Patient Segmentation for Deeper Connection

Market segmentation is a valuable tool for marketers, as it fine-tunes and customizes communication with consumers. Pharmaceutical companies would do well to utilize patient segmentation, resulting in better connections with patients as their specific needs are addressed.

Patients are segmented into various groups based on factors such as age and condition. Their aforementioned needs will have a higher likelihood of being met if they are properly grouped and thoughtfully targeted.

Psychographic Segmentation

Patients are people first. If you want to forge a strong relationship between your brand and a patient, it would behoove you to see patients as individuals with distinct opinions and traits to which you can cater.

Psychographic segmentation groups patients by their attitudes, motivations, personalities, and so on. What matters to patients? What do they want, need, and value? This segment is all about figuring out how to reach patients in a way that will resonate.

Demographic Segmentation

Demographic segmentation groups patients by condition, income, location, gender, age, etc.

To give you an idea, some groups could be: recently diagnosed, treatment naïve, and treatment experienced. Pharma marketers might also target age groups for specific medications. There are numerous divisions one could make.

To refine patient segmentation, micro-segments can be created, such as patients being grouped with others of similar disease patterns, not just the disease itself.

Behavioral Segmentation

Behavioral segmentation groups patients based on their unique behavioral patterns.

You could analyze how patients have interacted with promotional content in the past or you could look at how patients behave in relation to their condition. PIP Health divides the latter into four segments: tolerators, fighters, evaders, and cynics.

A fighter would be someone who is "very interested in new treatments." They'd likely be receptive to, say, a detailed ad for a relevant drug that doesn't sugarcoat their condition, whereas evaders, who avoid talking about their condition, may require a gentler touch, messaging that acknowledges how difficult it is to get help and feel in control.

This wealth of data can be harnessed to more deeply engage patients and promote better outcomes.

Health Affairs offers a compelling case for patient segmentation:

“A segmentation data analysis can help select a homogeneous target population and tailor an intervention to different patient types within a population. As health care continues to move toward a patient-centered approach, and big data and analytics become even more ingrained, policy makers should consider the significant benefits of patient segmentation analysis for integrated care and support its use.”

If you use STORYSOFT, patient segmentation can be done in real time. “Choose your own adventure” experiences allow patients to select which segments they belong to. This feeds you invaluable data and feeds them desired messaging.

Robust personalization is a must in today’s pharma marketing climate. Adopt a customizable, patient-centric approach by way of patient segmentation.

With STORYSOFT, you can increase patient engagement through personalization. Learn more.