Trends in email marketing to life science researchers
In a recent survey of ours, one in two life science researchers named newsletters as an information source when considering a purchase. Newsletters from manufacturers remain an important way for many researchers to gather information.
Manufacturers, for their part, run email marketing with goals such as generating more inquiries, strengthening communication with customers and raising brand awareness and recall.
Email marketing is an old method, but it still works. To avoid missed opportunities, it pays not to fall behind.
The risks of not doing email marketing
Falling behind competitors
Newsletters land directly in the customer’s inbox, which makes them ideal for building purchase intent and driving traffic to your website. Sending the right newsletter regularly also maintains and strengthens customer relationships. Without email marketing, you risk falling behind competitors on information and missing inquiries.
Slower acquisition of new customers
Younger academic researchers and researchers in companies increasingly search the internet themselves when gathering purchasing information. If you want to win new users while keeping repeat customers, not using newsletters and other online tools raises the risk of missing inquiries.
A heavier load on sales
The basic model is that marketing generates leads and sales closes them. If marketing does not work, sales ends up spending time on every step, and sales efficiency drops.
What holds email marketing back
Where companies are slow to start, the causes tend to be these:
No dedicated staff
Online marketing needs specialists in strategy, measurement and system operation. In Japan, email marketing must also comply with the Act on Regulation of Transmission of Specified Electronic Mail, in force since 2002.
Running out of content
Teams cannot write material researchers want to read, or cannot keep it coming. Campaign information alone soon bores readers and can lead to unsubscribes or complaints. Sending valuable newsletters consistently takes a team effort in content planning.
No science writer
Articles for researchers are highly specialized and academic, so they need writers who know the life sciences and medicine: science writers or medical writers. For overseas companies, writing in Japanese adds another hurdle.
We can help
BioAssociates supports life science companies with digital marketing in Japan, including email marketing: email DM to BioMarket.jp members, content alert ads and science writing. Contact us with any questions.