Digital Opinion Influencers/Leaders: A Disruptive Trend in Physician Marketing?
Pharma firms have long recognized the power of key opinion leaders (KOLs) in driving influence through traditional channels: journals, speaking events and word of mouth. The problem, however, is that healthcare providers (HCPs) and patients are acquiring information about disease and treatment in the online world – and many KOLs are not “digital opinion influencers,” or DOIs. This creates an opportunity – strategic DOI identification, outreach and management – for brand, communications and medical teams that is often overlooked or poorly addressed.
Digital opinion influencers are influential members of a health community turned to for advice, opinions and information. Their influence flows from reach (followers), their resonance (content sharing) and relevance (topics discussed). Their distinguishing characteristic (versus traditional KOLs) is their use of social media to either create or amplify messages. DOIs are both medical professionals and non-professionals.
Based on our analyses for a range of pharma clients, we have found that DOIs and KOLs often exist in largely different universes, with little overlap. Typically, fewer than 20 percent of KOLs will also have a social media presence and just a handful will rank alongside DOIs in terms of online reach. In the patient world, this is to be expected as many DOIs are individuals as opposed to patient advocacy groups that would already be on a pharmaceutical company’s radar.