THE HCP ENGAGEMENT PLAYBOOK FOR PHARMA LEADERS DRIVING GLOBAL TRANSFORMATION

The HCP Engagement Playbook: A framework for pharma leaders to map strategy to execution across omnichannel event touchpoints.

In an age of rapid transformation, pharma companies face a growing imperative: create meaningful, consistent, and customer-centric experiences that span every touchpoint. At the centre of this shift is HCP and audience engagement – not just as a buzzword, but as a business driver.

For commercial leaders tasked with defining enterprise-wide engagement strategies and embedding new capabilities across data, digital, omnichannel, and AI, this playbook provides a practical blueprint for turning ambition into action.

At Strata, we understand the unique complexities of pharma, but we also know that innovation rarely comes from looking inward. Drawing on insights from consumer brands, global sectors, and behavioural science, we believe that pharma can create experiences that are not only compliant and informative but also inspiring and personalised.

This playbook offers a practical framework to help pharma leaders align strategy with execution across the omnichannel event journey – with live events as a cornerstone of the HCP and audience engagement ecosystem.

01 | Redefining Pharma Engagement: From Touchpoints to End-to-End Journeys

Pharma companies are no longer just managing isolated events, they are curating continuous experiences that influence perception, loyalty, and outcomes.

Key Insight: McKinsey reports that companies delivering consistent and personalised engagement across channels can see a 10 – 20% improvement in customer satisfaction and up to 15% growth in sales conversion rates.¹

Companies with advanced omnichannel capabilities are seeing 2x the revenue growth compared to less mature peers. ²

In pharma, this means moving from siloed tactical activities to connected brand experiences that align with HCP, patient, and stakeholder needs.

Industry Insight: Veeva reports that 65% of HCP engagements are not synchronised across sales and marketing – a gap that creates missed opportunities and inconsistent experiences. Yet when teams coordinate, marketing effectiveness improves by 23%, and HCPs are 60% more likely to prescribe after visiting a brand site post-rep call.³

Despite this, only 24% of pharma organisations fully consolidate HCP engagement data, and fewer than 20% measure behaviour change or impact, leading to a fragmented engagement landscape.⁴

For leaders shaping a global vision of customer engagement, success depends on orchestrating seamless, relevant interactions across functions, teams, and territories. This requires not only coordination, but cultural change.

02 | The Strategic Framework: Plan. Personalise. Perform.

PLAN: Create an HCP-Led Engagement Strategy

• Align event goals with customer journey stages
• Prioritise omnichannel planning (digital, hybrid, in-person)
• Use data to segment audiences beyond role and specialty (e.g. behaviour, motivations)
• Integrate your engagement and brand values into every event touchpoint

At Strata, our experience spans multiple sectors – enabling us to bring a customer-first lens to pharma planning. We don’t replicate. We reimagine.

Industry Insight: Veeva’s latest research shows that pre-launch scientific outreach accelerates treatment adoption by 40%, particularly when engaging digitally savvy, early-career HCPs.³

With strategic omnichannel planning, you can turn pre-launch moments into adoption accelerators.

PERSONALISE: Tailor Every Touchpoint

• Use modular content frameworks for scalability and local adaptation
• Embed live feedback mechanisms to adapt in real time
• Leverage behavioural science and UX to enhance emotional connection
• Build pathways that feel personal, not programmatic

We apply lessons from retail, automotive, and tech sectors to create bespoke and human-centric pharma experiences that resonate.

80% of HCPs believe they receive a ‘one size fits all’ experience at pharma events.⁵

HCPs are clear: 67% say tailored engagements improve their understanding of a product, and 80% highly value personalised information over generic content.⁶

PERFORM: Execute with Precision and Insight

• Streamline planning with end-to-end logistics and project management
• Implement feedback loops and analytics across all touchpoints
• Evaluate not just outputs (attendance, NPS) but outcomes (perception shifts, intent)
• Enable agile iteration based on results and changing needs

03 | Enabling Seamless Integration Across Teams and Regions

Too often, global strategies fail at the local level due to poor integration and disconnected delivery partners.

Strata are part of a family of agencies, allowing for bespoke, joined-up integrated solutions across strategy, creative, logistics, production and delivery. Our single touchpoint approach enables cost efficiencies, ensures brand guardianship, and ultimately drives better business outcomes.

As you lead change across the value chain, Strata’s integrated model ensures connected delivery across all customer-facing functions. Our structure eliminates silos, enabling you to act as one company in front of the customer.

This means faster activation, better outcomes, and fewer silos — across regions and business units.

04 | Your Engagement Toolkit: Essentials for Live Pharma Event Leaders

– Live Event Journey Mapping Templates – tailored tools to visualise and align HCP touchpoints from invitation to follow-up, integrated with broader omnichannel journeys.

– Touchpoint Evaluation Matrix – assess and optimise every element of the live experience, from pre-event engagement to onsite interactions and post-event actions.

– Modular Event Content Playbooks – enable personalisation at scale through flexible formats adaptable for local markets, languages, and preferences.

– Live Experience Feedback Dashboards – real-time insight capture and post-event analytics to measure outcomes, sentiment, and actionable next steps.

– Global-to-Local Delivery Framework – ensure consistency in brand, compliance, and logistics across regions, while empowering localisation.

– Engagement Synchronisation Planner – design strategic connections between live event milestones and supporting digital content to increase impact and prescribing behaviour.

IQVIA reports that in-person congresses remain the second-most preferred touchpoint for HCPs (16%), while face-to-face rep visits still make up over 40% of preferred interactions. ⁷

05 | Why Strata

We don’t just deliver events. We architect experiences that drive transformation and authentic audience engagement.

• Multi-sector expertise with a pharma-savvy approach
• Advisory mindset: strategic thinking meets executional excellence
• In-house team of pharma experts and broader sector specialists
• Integrated strategy, creative and delivery under one roof
• Proven results for global pharma and life sciences brands
• A single touchpoint end-to-end solution bespoke to your needs

If your goal is to build a globally scalable, customer-centric model that brings together data, digital, omnichannel, content, and live experiences – Strata is your brand experience agency partner. We act as an extension of your team, to help you drive organisational change.

Ready to evolve your event strategy into an audience engagement engine? Let’s talk.

References

1. McKinsey, “Personalising The Customer Experience: Driving Differentiation in Retail
2. McKinsey, “How medtechs can meet industry demand for omnichannel engagement” 2023.
3. Veeva Pulse Field Trends Report, Q4 2024.
4. IQVIA/EPG Health, New Research Report: The Future of HCP Engagement Impact.
5. EPG Health, The Future of HCP Engagement Impact 2023.
6. AMPS: Embracing Omnichannel Engagement in Medical Affairs
7. IQVIA, “Understanding Healthcare Professionals’ Changing Channel Preferences to Build Better Engagement.