Transcript of Digital Health Sales and Marketing... Stop Wasting Money
AHealthcareZ - Healthcare Finance Explained
0:00hello this is dr eric bricker and thank0:02you for watching a healthcare z today's0:04topic is digital health0:07sales and marketing0:10now i work with a lot of digital health0:12companies and i talk to a lot of digital0:14health companies and i am astounded by0:17actually the fantastic value0:19propositions that many of these digital0:21health companies have however0:24there's an issue and that issue is0:27sales and marketing because sales and0:29marketing in healthcare specifically for0:32digital healthcare companies0:34is actually pretty complicated and it's0:37really important to get it right because0:39if you don't get it right you will0:41essentially0:42waste0:43all of your time and all of your money0:45what do i mean by waste all of your time0:47and all of your money so0:49digital health funding has0:52gone through the roof so the biggest0:54year by far was the most recent year of0:552021 where there was literally 290:58billion dollars of investment in digital1:02health startups and companies now that1:04was in1:05729 deals for comparison's sake in the1:09previous year 2020 there was only 151:13billion dollars for1:15484 deals so 15 billion 20 it almost1:19doubled in a year and if you go back 101:23years to 20111:26it was only1:271.2 billion dollars of investment in1:31digital health companies1:33for 94 deals so look in 10 years it's1:36gone from 1.2 billion to1:39billion1:40if you add up all the years in between1:43and i'll leave a link in the show notes1:44to the rock health source of this data1:46it's fantastic if you add up all the1:48money that has been invested between1:502011 and 2021 it adds up to 85.61:55billion dollars that has been invested1:57in digital health companies now2:00one might argue that2:02individual patients have not necessarily2:05reaped the benefits of this 85.6 billion2:09dollars of investment because that's2:11ultimately the point right the reason2:13i'm doing this is to help patients like2:16i'm not doing this to like i don't know2:19twiddle my thumbs like the point is is2:22that you can ultimately2:23improve people's lives through the2:26solutions that many of these digital2:28health companies are offering so one2:30might argue have patients lives really2:33been improved2:35to equate to the 85.6 billion dollars2:38that has been spent i mean just to put2:40that in terms of let's say you didn't2:42spend the 85.6 billion dollars on2:43digital health companies let's just say2:45you spent it on insulin and it's like2:47fifty two hundred dollars a per person2:50per year in terms of insulin costs for2:52somebody that's got diabetes okay that2:55literally means that for this 85.62:57billion dollars you could have supplied3:00the insulin for 1.5 million people3:04over the course of this 10-year period3:06of time so you're like okay well maybe3:08to like help people instead of investing3:10the 85 billion dollars in digital health3:11companies maybe we should just pay for3:13everybody's insulin for 1.5 million3:16people that would have been a much3:17better use of the money maybe but the3:20point is is that3:22let's not waste3:24digital health investment just because3:27we don't get the sales and marketing3:29right so let's talk about what i've seen3:32work not only within the my own digital3:36health companies that i've worked with3:38and i've worked in three now3:40and what i've seen with other successful3:43digital health companies and that3:45relates to obviously you gotta talk3:47about the sales and marketing funnel and3:50what i have here is actually three3:52funnels because part of the problem is3:54is that sales and marketing in digital3:56health isn't just one funnel it's3:58actually three now4:00what you have here is a marketing and4:02sales funnel for employers you have a4:05marketing and sales funnel for brokers4:07consultants and insurance carriers and4:09then you have a marketing and sales4:11funnel actually for the members4:13themselves4:14because once you enact or implement the4:18solution that doesn't mean there's4:20adoption in fact utilization4:22historically for digital health4:23solutions is super low and so if you do4:25these first two funnels and sell the4:27deal but forget about this last funnel4:30with the end patient the end member then4:32you're totally hosed so let's go through4:35each of these three funnels now at the4:37top of the funnel is actually the4:38marketing so it's not the sales and4:39marketing flow it's actually the4:40marketing and sales funnel right and4:42what is marketing marketing is getting4:44people's attention because you can't4:46sell somebody anything until you get4:49their attention and getting people's4:51attention takes two forms it always4:53takes two forms there's inbound and4:55outcome so inbound marketing is4:57essentially content marketing where you4:59create5:00information that is educational and or5:03entertaining that people will then find5:07to then be educated about your product5:10or service and then there's outbound5:11marketing which is interruption-based5:13marketing and that can be advertising5:15that can be emails that can be text5:17messages that can be um you know a booth5:21at a conference there can be all sorts5:22of ways that you're uh that can also be5:25cold calling using the phone right so5:27phone email also messaging people5:29through linkedin conferences et cetera5:31so you've got these two areas okay now5:34one's not better than the other they're5:35complementary and you got to do both now5:39once that gets you into the sales funnel5:41and it's super important that when5:43you're selling and this is the miller5:45hyman approach which i have seen first5:47hand time and time again which is you're5:50not just making one sale you're actually5:51making three sales to three buyers for5:55each individual customer and those three5:58buyers are the technical buyer the6:01outcome buyer and the financial buyer6:03now6:04the technical buyer is the person who6:06has to interact and use this thing on a6:08frequent basis typically that's going to6:09be the benefits manager or the benefits6:11director at the employer they've got to6:13interact with your solution you've got6:15to sell that interaction you're going to6:17make their life easier not harder you're6:20gonna make them look good so that they6:21get a promotion not cause them risk in6:23their job so that they get fired okay6:25then there's the outcome okay like so6:28arguably for a um6:31an employer-sponsored health plan like6:33the whole point of employee benefits is6:34to attract and retain employees so can6:36you actually achieve the outcome of6:40attracting and retaining employees6:41whether it be through just a better6:43benefits package or healthier employees6:45or6:46you know all sorts of things right to be6:48able to attract and retain those6:49employees like that's really the vp of6:51hr who's like looking to make that6:52happen and then there is the the6:54economic or the financial buyer which6:56obviously healthcare costs are super6:57high it's oftentimes the company's6:58second largest expense after payroll so7:00those are people within the c-suite7:02typically the ceo and the cfo that are7:05the financial buyers okay so you've got7:08to make all that happen in order to get7:09a buy decision and you're like okay7:11great7:12and we're done no7:13that's only one of the three funnels7:16you've got the whole funnel over here7:18related to the broker consultant and the7:21insurance carrier because really7:23there is an7:25ecosystem there's an employee benefits7:26employer sponsored healthcare ecosystem7:28and if you think you're just going to7:29win by getting the7:31these folks on board at the employer7:33without getting their broker consultant7:34and the carrier on board then i have7:36seen that fail over and over again7:40you've got to win over the ecosystem and7:42that involves a guess guess what getting7:45the attention of the ecosystem through7:47marketing through inbound marketing and7:48outbound marketing to the ecosystem of7:51brokers consultants and carriers next7:54you then have the analogous7:56technical buyer outcome buyer and7:58financial buyer per the miller hyman8:01methodology at the broker consulting8:03carrier now what are the analogous8:05positions in those areas okay so the8:06temple buyer is like the account manager8:08because they've got to interact with8:09your product or solution to like make it8:11happen you have to make their job easier8:13you have to make them look good so they8:14can get promoted right then you have the8:17really i would say then8:19the outcome buyer oftentimes is8:23the smee or the subject matter expert8:26within the brokerage within the8:27consulting firm within the carrier what8:30is this me so it might be the head of8:33population health it might be the head8:35of analytics so there's typically8:38some sort of strategic area within their8:42benefits that they have often times many8:44of these brokerage and consulting firms8:45they have sort of a department that is8:48responsible for that again oftentimes is8:51analytics or cost containment or8:52population health or it could even be8:54wellness it could be uh well-being it's8:56all sorts of stuff so you got to make8:58them you have to be like look we offer9:00consulting services that achieve the9:03whole reason that me as a sme exists9:06and then finally there's the financial9:08buyer which is actually the producer or9:11the end consultant or9:14the uh the people with financial9:15responsibility at the carrier whether it9:16be sales or the cfo of the carrier9:18because you want to then9:21increase9:22the income9:24for this organization9:26not necessarily by extracting more9:30dollars from each employer9:32but maybe you add value to this9:35organization9:37by increasing their sales9:39maybe by off by your digital health9:42solution9:43being integrated with embedded with9:45exclusively offered with xyz9:48broker consultant carrier then they're9:51able to go out to the marketplace and9:52they're able to win more customers9:55and therefore you're of value to the9:57producer you're of value to the sales9:58team you're a value to the cfo because10:01you're helping them win business so you10:03can't just be like oh hey we're this10:06awesome digital health solution that10:09improves patients lives and improves10:11members lives yes you need to do that10:13but that is not enough10:16you need to answer the question why is10:19the broker consulting firm carrier10:21financially interested in promoting your10:23product in the first place and if you10:25can't answer that question there is a10:27high likelihood that you will not be10:29promoted listen we live in a pragmatic10:33world i'm not here to be cynical i'm10:35just here to be pragmatic these people10:37have kids they need to send through10:38college as well they're thinking about10:40that now finally so funny here you're10:43not getting a buy you're getting a buy10:45in okay so you need to get a buy and10:47then you also need to get a buy in10:49and then i have engagement here which is10:52essentially the marketing and sales to10:53the end user to the employee the plan10:57number right so this is where we talk10:59about okay well health digital health is11:01actually b to b to c right so it's b to11:03b11:03you the business as the digital health11:05company to the business i.e the employer11:08to the business i.e the broker11:09consultant carrier but then it's to the11:12then the end customer is the actual plan11:16member that you're supporting and you11:18have to recognize that that in and of11:20itself is its own sales and marketing11:23funnel where you have to do11:25inbound and outbound marketing to the11:27end uh consumer where you have to do11:31whether it be through now inbound11:32marketing is where okay the person has a11:35problem and the member has a problem and11:37they're out looking for a solution and11:38so what do they do they might call11:40customer service at the carrier so maybe11:42your solution is embedded into customer11:44service at the carrier or maybe this is11:46what we did at compass we were the11:48health navigation solution we11:49intentionally fixed people's problem11:51medical bills gave people comparative11:52pricing information scheduled11:53appointments for them so that as people11:55encounter these pain points within the11:57health care system they're like could11:59you help me with this and we wanted to12:01be like nine times out of ten the answer12:04of yes we can help you with this because12:07we want to be12:09the whenever you're contacting us we12:11want to say yes we can help you and oh12:13by the way here are some other ways we12:15can help you as well and then finally12:17you also need to do interruption-based12:18marketing now you can't just do it and12:20be like oh we'll just email all the12:22employees that's interruption-based12:23marketing we'll just email all the12:24employees and then we're done no that's12:26not enough that's part of it listen12:28maybe you need to text them maybe you12:30need to call them maybe you need to talk12:32to them during open enrollment maybe you12:33need to engage them with an app maybe12:35you need to engage them through social12:37media it's never one of these things12:40it's typically a combination of these12:42things because know that when you're12:44engaging an employee population that12:47that employee population is very12:48heterogeneous you've got millennials12:50you've got gen xers you got baby boomers12:52you've got men you've got women that's12:55six personas right there12:58that you need to address and these13:01people like to be addressed not only13:02with different content but in different13:05ways are you going to be able to talk to13:07a millennial on the phone probably not13:09they don't really talk on the phone are13:10you going to be able to uh have a lot of13:13you know chat and text messaging with a13:16baby boomer yes some but not a lot13:18they're more likely to talk on the phone13:20right so13:21and then finally you're like okay great13:24i'm getting their attention and13:25educating them inbound marketing13:27there literally is a sales process13:31for the individual plan members as well13:34where typically there's not like an13:35out-of-pocket cost for the member13:38whether it's like using your digital13:39health tool or using your point solution13:41or whatever it is oftentimes that's at13:43zero cost in them but you need to sell13:45them because they still have to invest13:47their time13:48they have to invest their attention into13:50like learning how to use your digital13:53health solution whatever thingamabob or13:55it is so13:56how do you do that who do you need to13:59sell to14:00you need to sell to the14:03the peers within the organization in14:05other words the early adopters right14:06because everybody has the technology14:09adoption life cycle and so there are14:11early adopters within the employee14:14population who are going to be the first14:17people to use a digital health solution14:20and you not only need to identify and14:22sell to them but then you need to14:25encourage them to then sell to the early14:28adopter excuse me sir uh the pragmatist14:31and the the conservative employees14:33because you yourself at the digital14:35health company you're not going to14:37convince14:38a conservative employee to use your14:41digital health service their coworker is14:43going to sell them on using your digital14:45health service their early adopter14:47co-worker who they look up to or who14:50they're friends with etc they're the14:53ones who are going to convince them not14:55you your job is to get the early14:57adopters and the pragmatists on board14:59and then the early doctors and the15:00pragmatists get the conservatives on15:02board okay so and then also through15:04management at the end of the day15:08businesses then they say oh we're a flat15:10organization listen all businesses have15:13a hierarchy because all organ all human15:16organizations have a hierarchy like you15:18can say that hierarchy is right or wrong15:20but listen that's the way it is so15:24do you communicate out to the management15:27have you15:28sold the management if they're hearing15:30about this from their fellow employees15:32but like their boss doesn't talk about15:34this at all they need to hear it from15:36multiple places they need to hear about15:37from their fellow employees and from15:39their boss and from their boss's boss15:41and from their boss's boss's boss listen15:43when we have done15:46videos by the ceo or by regional15:49managers or divisional leaders etc that15:51go out the employees that's super15:53helpful to be like look this is the ceo15:55of the company that's talking about xyz15:58digital health solution you can't do15:59that in every company but when you can16:02engage the management and sell so that's16:04hugely helpful in the sales pipeline so16:07there you have it digital health sales16:09and marketing three funnels you must16:12master all three of them in order to be16:14successful so we can stop wasting time16:16and money i mean let's roll up our16:18sleeves and get this done america and16:21thank you for watching a healthcare z
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