Content Marketing for the Cutting Edge: Pharma, Biotech, and Life Sciences

Consumers today don’t know who to trust. Lacking your knowledgeable insider perspective, they wonder how new drugs and pharma products were developed, whether they’re safe, and why they cost as much as they do. Most of all, they wonder how your products will affect their daily lives.

It’s up to you to explain all of that — and content marketing is the best way to do it.

Whether it’s blog posts, e-books, bylined articles, or social media, content marketing enables you to establish thought leadership and educate consumers about your brand.

But there’s more to crafting great content than lifting copy from your existing brochures and blasting it out over social media. Here are a few tips we’ve picked up along the way that can help you start off strong. 

1. Follow the leaders

Whether it’s content marketing or medical research, savvy brands don’t try to reinvent the wheel. They learn from the successes and failures of those who’ve already done it. When it comes to content marketing, a number of healthcare organizations have developed brilliant campaigns. Pfizer’s website, for example, contains a wealth of information on everything from how they conduct research to their participation in global health initiatives to how patients can find and apply to clinical trials. They anticipate the questions consumers have and answer them before they’re asked. Similarly, Merck & Co. publishes articles about the time, people, and resources involved in the journey of a new drug from concept to market entry. 

Pfizer and Merck are great examples of pharmaceutical companies doing content marketing right. For a healthcare provider, look no further than the Cleveland Clinic. Cleveland Clinic’s Health Essentials website publishes informative, engaging articles about healthcare. They say right on the website that they comply with the HONcode set of standards for online medical information, which not only boosts their credibility but also garners trust from their readers.

2. Establish your own expertise

It’s smart to do what’s been successful for other brands, but never forget that the ultimate goal is to establish your own expertise. Research shows that, increasingly, patients and professionals are turning to the internet for information about health conditions, treatments, and medications.

Your online presence (whether it’s blog posts, bylined articles, white papers, videos, or social media pages that link back to your site) can establish your authority as a reliable source of information and build customer loyalty by encouraging them to download your free e-book or subscribe to your blog.

Consider publishing blog posts that educate people on the differences between brand-name and generic medications, or on the process of developing and testing new drugs. Or, step forward as an authority with a knowledgeable bylined article about a pressing industry issue or trend.

Compelling content gains their trust and positions your brand as an industry authority and reliable source of information. 

3. Write for your mom

In a recent post on ExL Pharma’s blog, one expert argued that rampant misinformation makes it difficult for consumers to find the quality information they need about health issues and treatments. Another expert attributed the problem to the inaccessible language used by healthcare professionals. Instead of delivering healthcare information in simple, clear terms that are easy for consumers to understand, practitioners often use jargon that goes over peoples’ heads. The best way to avoid that? Write like you’re explaining it to your mom. Unless she’s also a medical researcher, she probably relies on you to keep it real. So do your customers. Write in terms that they can understand and relate to.

Whether it’s web copy, a blog post, an e-book, or a white paper, content marketing enables you to take an active role in delivering clear, accurate, and insightful healthcare information to consumers, demonstrating your brand’s authority and building customers’ trust and loyalty in the process.

4. Engage consumers through social media

If you compare content marketing to throwing a party, then social media is the invitation. Social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram allow you to invite consumers to engage with you and your content. The audience is there — healthcare content, whether it’s about new medications, treatments, or trends in the medical industry, is common in social media users' news feeds. You just have to draw attention to your content.

Nearly 70 percent of all patients use the internet to gather information, either before or after a doctor’s visit. They also use websites and social media to connect with people facing similar health issues and to post about both positive and negative experiences with doctors, hospitals, and prescription drugs. This is an opportunity for healthcare brands to set themselves apart from their competitors. Consumers are increasingly embracing the internet and social media as a way to get the healthcare information they need — so meet them where they are. 

So how do you get started building a content strategy that will set you apart? After you establish your goals and identify your target audience, consider working with a professional content vendor who can craft content that helps establish you as an expert. That’s where Prose Media comes in. We know how to create simplified yet informative medical content that will help you showcase your expertise, develop a unique voice, and engage your audience. Sign up today for free, no-obligation access to our platform. We would love to provide high-quality solutions to your pharma, biotech, life sciences and healthcare content needs.