Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become a buzzword in the pharmaceutical industry, promising to revolutionize marketing strategies. However, many organizations still hesitate to fully embrace AI-driven solutions due to perceived risks and uncertainties. In the eye of this impending storm, pharmaceutical marketers must prepare for the inevitable AI integration.
The current state of AI in pharma marketing
Pharmaceutical companies are constantly bombarded with messages about the transformative power of AI. Hyper-personalization and AI-driven agility are hailed as essential for survival in the competitive market.
Yet, behind closed doors, teams of experts are often cautious, warning against premature adoption due to perceived risks. It seems like the industry is at a crossroads, with change on the horizon but not yet fully realized.
The challenge of AI insecurity is prevalent across nearly every pharmaceutical organization. Few will press the big red ‘go’ button on AI integration. However, positive steps can be taken even while navigating this uncertain terrain.
Critical thinking is a quintessential human skill that distinguishes us from machines. It drives us toward better outcomes and fosters effective leadership. Helen Lee Bouygues, president of the non-profit organization ‘Reboot,’ advocates the ‘SHARP’ method for enhancing critical thinking:
- Stop: Pause and reflect, using rational thinking rather than automatic responses.
- Hone: Improve reasoning abilities by asking plenty of questions.
- Accumulate: Dive deep into ideas and facts, analyze data, and learn what to avoid.
- Reason: Use evidence to confirm or discount hypotheses, ensuring ideas are well-supported.
- Perspective: Examine problems from different vantage points.
In the context of AI readiness, honing critical thinking is paramount. AI can generate real-time answers and content but falls short in certain domains. Critical thinking is vital to devise strategies that account for industry, organizational, and regulatory nuances and to remain vigilant against issues like hallucinations—fictitious content or data generated by AI tools that may sound convincing.
Creativity
While AI can generate innovative ideas, true creativity remains a distinctly human skill. Fostering a culture that encourages creativity, supports unconventional ideas, and embraces design thinking can set pharmaceutical marketers apart.
In recent years, the industry has seen a decline in true creativity, potentially due to growing reliance on technology. However, a positive trend is emerging. Organizations are recognizing the need to invest in creativity and innovation. Transformation experts are enlisted to deliver innovation mindset training, bolster entrepreneurialism, and drive the change required to thrive in a rapidly evolving landscape.
Once AI tools are at your disposal, your innovative mindset, wild ideas, and critical thinking skills will be the driving force that keeps you on a unique path. Rather than following the crowd and diluting into obscurity, you’ll be thinking big, bold, and unafraid to explore new avenues or change direction with agility.
Empathy
Empathy, an inherently human trait, remains a domain where machines fall short despite their ability to mimic emotional responses. The passion to help patients runs deep in the pharmaceutical industry, from research and development to product maturity.
Human touch is essential to ensure that messages resonate authentically and provide the nuanced understanding necessary for effective patient support programs.
As the world reduces the availability of third-party cookies, the ability to build trust will be pivotal for future teams. AI tools heavily rely on personal data, and it is through humans that we can realistically obtain the high-quality zero-party data required for interactions and informed decisions.
