Healthcare Marketers, Prepare for “Generation AI”

Gen X, Y and Z, GenAlpha — healthcare marketers must continually keep pace with a diverse array of consumers with unique profiles and preferences. As artificial intelligence (AI) dominates the headlines and gains a pop culture foothold, a new consumer group is poised to be the next big disrupter for the healthcare industry.

Generation AI, or GenAI, is not to be confused with generative AI, i.e., specific algorithms used to create new content. Instead, it’s a term used to describe AI-enabled consumers who were essentially born with smartphones in their hands. Whether they’re scanning algorithm-driven recommendations, enjoying same-day free shipping or customer service tools that display the conversational logic of a college professor, GenAI will include a new group of patients, caregivers and physicians with elevated expectations for personalized and compelling customer experiences.

The Evolution of AI

OpenAI’s ChatGPT made waves in Q4 last year and captured one million new users in just five days. In response, competitive generative AI bots like Google’s BARD and Meta’s LLaMA also entered the field. Notably, Facebook quietly announced that after a nine-year hiatus, Messenger (a separate app) will return to the Facebook mobile application. ChatGPT stands apart from its competition because OpenAI makes it a more accessible, simple and free interface.

Amy Webb, CEO and Founder of the Future Today Institute, dubs this time the “AI-SMOSIS” era, where everything will be augmented and interwoven with AI, evolving alongside Web 3.0. As AI-enabled consumers will soon be the norm, healthcare marketers must understand GenAI so that they’ll be able to show up appropriately to capture the loyalty of this new target.

AI’s Impact on Healthcare

AI will impact the healthcare and pharmaceutical industry across the value chain—from preclinical R&D to manufacturing and distribution, sales and promotion to patient experience. The healthcare industry is also signaling heavy support for AI, having spent $760 million on AI in 2016, with projected growth to rise to $14.6 billion in 2023 and $102.7 billion by 2028, according to a 2023 report from Markets and Markets.

GenAI will continue to expect more from brand experiences as the technology evolves and shows patients, caregivers and healthcare professionals everything AI can deliver. Here’s a look at how AI is transforming the healthcare experience:

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• Personalization: GenAI customers will expect brands to understand their preferences and provide customized recommendations, offers and services. AI makes it possible for brands to analyze customer data and behavior to provide highly personalized customer experiences. For HCPs, AI will offer personalized options for patient and pharma communications.
• Speed: AI will help brands provide efficient service online, like faster responses to customer queries and quick resolution of issues to eliminate the frustration of being on hold with an automated system.
• Convenience: AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants will give customers 24/7 access to customer support and services. This could include answering commonly asked questions about a drug or therapy, helping patients navigate their healthcare journey, triaging medical issues or providing a telemedicine call. A recent study published in JAMA Internal Medicine shows just how helpful AI can be—researchers found that ChatGPT provided better answers to patient emails than human doctors four out of five times. The medical panel evaluating the responses also found ChatGPT responses to be more empathetic.
• Predictive capabilities: GenAI customers will expect brands to offer relevant products and services even before they realize they need them. AI tools can help, providing predictive customer behavior information so brands can anticipate their customers’ needs.
• Seamless experiences: GenAI will desire a consistent brand experience, whether they interact through social media, mobile apps or in-store. AI can empower brands to provide omnichannel, seamless experiences across different touchpoints and channels.
• Accuracy: In the age of misinformation, well-built tools will provide real answers to search questions backed by verified research rather than promoted, unresearched content. Patient support tools on disease education will be the lowest hanging fruit for our industry. Tools that can assist physicians during appointment notetaking and the diagnosis process will augment the physician experience.

How to Prepare for GenAI:

• Stay informed and up to date: Read articles, take online courses, attend workshops or watch educational videos to learn about AI technology and its capabilities and limitations.
• Learn how to write good prompts: Practice and observe prompt submission trends. Generative AI answers yield the best results when prompts are detailed, specific and thoughtful.
• Listen to your audience: Research audience behaviors, conduct focus groups and learn from patients and physicians how AI can improve the experiences and communications you are already delivering.
• Become AI-enabled: Invest in your company’s AI skills by tapping experts in programming languages, data science and machine learning. Consider creating an AI Center of Excellence focused on leveraging AI to improve your customer experiences and communications.
• Embrace change: Be open to change and new ways of doing things. AI technology will disrupt traditional business models, and those who can adapt quickly will have a competitive advantage.
• Build AI-powered experiences: Test and learn in safe environments—consider creating an internal employee-facing conversational tool to test conversational logic, create a standard operating procedure, understand bot hosting and monitoring and solicit feedback. This will help you stay ahead of the curve and meet the expectations of a society that expects AI-powered experiences.

The healthcare industry has already been open to increased automation and digitalization, and AI will only accelerate that trend. As we look to the future, AI-enabled consumers will reshape the healthcare landscape. By understanding GenAI and adopting new strategies to deliver personalized, on-demand customer experiences, healthcare marketers will be positioned to thrive in a world where AI is everywhere.

Kristin Ryan is Executive Vice President and U.S. Head of Digital and Innovation at GCI Health. You can reach Kristin at [email protected].

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