Differentiating a product in a crowded market with best-in-class patient support

The challenge

A top ten pharma company needed an innovative patient experience solution to help a new treatment for a common, chronic disease stand out in a crowded immunology market.

The therapy faced intense competition from other biologics that were perceived to offer a better patient experience.

Our connected solution

The project required the combined efforts of Inizio Marcomms and Inizio Engage to deliver a highly empathetic and seamless patient experience across human and digital channels to promote treatment satisfaction and prevent discontinuation.

First, the Inizio Marcomms team sought a better understanding of patients by examining available user feedback. Following that, the team used those insights to develop behavioral strategies. Patient experience mapping was introduced to determine any barriers, areas of opportunity, or other key inflection points. Armed with these findings, a tactical plan was devised to address areas of need and fully realize the potential of any opportunities.

To implement these changes, an array of both Patient Solutions initiatives and digital engagement assets were developed and introduced, in a joint effort from both Marcomms and Engage. These included:

• Behavioral understanding & techniques
• Call guides
• Digital engagement assets:
  • Email campaigns
  • Text message reminders
  • An online portal, providing access to treatment information and practical advice.
• Patient engagement and education
• In-person and virtual injection training

This research and dynamic range of materials and activities were vital to guaranteeing satisfaction with the treatment and ensuring its continued use.

A personalized program

Inizio Engage’s relationship management system (Trak360) was also introduced, which provides data-driven insights into a patient’s treatment journey to ensure that we not only provide ongoing digital support but continually measure its effectiveness as well.

The personalized online portal contained treatment information and access to other support resources. This includes call guides, patient education materials, and carefully crafted communications mapped against key activities along the patient journey — helping to deliver the right message, on the preferred channel at the right time.

Additionally, the team employed a group of highly skilled healthcare professionals to become ‘Guides’. This was a patient-facing network, to provide one-on-one practical, logistical, and emotional support.

The value created

After the launch of the new treatment, a follow-up survey showed these results:

• 90% of patients rated interactions with ‘Guides’ as very helpful
• 95% of enrolled patients would recommend the program
• Engagement was well above the benchmark, with an email click-through rate of 10% and a 60% open rate.