Top 5 writing mistakes made by medical marketers

The top 5 writing mistakes made by medical marketers

Here at Terryfic Writing, we love to share writing worth reading, and we came across a perfect example published by Medical Medical Marketing and Meeting (known these days as MM+M).

Considering the source, it's no surprise that this article commands attention. I've been a reader for longer than I'd care to admit and was great friends with Dave and Bev Gideon, owners and publishers of the title before it was bought by Haymarket Media. They were kind enough to publish several of my articles.

Back to the present: Here's a synopsis of the article by Leece Norman with my perspective from a career in medical marketing.

According to Norman, "too much jargon, too little specificity, and the other clarity-killers that too often find their way into print or pixels" when medical marketers endeavor to explain complex subjects "in a manner that’s easy for a range of audiences to understand. Factor in the regulations governing much of the content they produce, and even the simplest writing assignment can prove a major challenge."

Oh so true! The regulatory constraints have myriad adverse effects on medical copywriters and product managers. There is a tendency to stick to labeling upon pain of a dreaded letter from the omnipotent FDA, This play-it-safe mentality results in boring, repetitious content which is incapable of engaging audiences, particularly busy clinicians. This is notoriously prevalent in pharma email marketing, which tends to be executed in lazy "check the box" fashion.

The diagnosis is clear, and Norman has a five-step treatment plan for medical marketing copywriters:

1. Don't overuse medical jargon, especially for lay audiences

The first rule of writing is understanding the audience, known these days as "the persona". Avoid using clinical jargon for non-clinical audiences. Unless writing for healthcare professionals, don't call a heart attack a myocardial infarction, says Norman.

2. "Don't bore us, get to the chorus"

Actually, the late, great Tom Petty said that. However, it pithily makes Norman's point, which is to get to the point fast. According to Norman, "The impulse to explain as much as possible is an understandable one – but if you take too long to get to the point, readers will tune out.

You have to grab the reader with what journalists call "the lede". In email, the subject line is the most important of all. If it doesn't compel the reader to open the message, all is lost.

Medical professionals sell their time to make a living. Don't waste it. They jealously guard it and view you as a time bandit.

The modern consumer has the attention span of a gnat. An infinite supply of content competes to command a finite supply of attention. Keep that in mind as you set your fingers to the keyboard.

Be brief and to the point. As Mies Van der Rohe said, less is more. Says Norman. "Get rid of any 'fluff' in your writing and eliminate any sentences that are repetitive." As August Wilson said, The simpler you say it, the more eloquent it is."

Being succinct actually takes more time and effort. As Mark Twain famously said, "I wanted to write a shorter letter, but I didn't have time." Thus the folly of paying writers by the word--it offers a perverse incentive to create writing NOT worth reading.

Of course, if one is writing for search engine optimization (SEO), your audience is inhuman--spiders, crawlers, algorithms, and the like. Thankfully, even these reading machines are being trained to be more sophisticated content consumers, relieving writers of the burden to write badly redundant copy that makes one appear to be an insufferable bore to the persons of interest in the target persona.

SEO aside, when writing emails or other marketing communications for a real live audience, Norman's advice applies.

The first draft is the fun draft, but as Hemmingway said, writing is editing.

3. Be specific

According to Norman, specifics lend credibility to assertions:

"For example, writing that many people will get skin cancer if they don’t protect themselves from the sun isn’t authoritative. Stating that?two out of three Australians will get skin cancer?by the time they turn 70 is factual and makes the reader consider the data point."4.

4. Write with your audience in mind

Says Norman: "It’s important for medical writers to consider their audiences, especially given the huge differences in knowledge and sophistication between HCPs and non-HCPs. If you’re writing with a patient in mind, the content should assume far less knowledge than material targeting a physician. Tailoring your content as needed will ensure that it resonates with the intended audience."

One might add that there are myriad levels within both HCP and non-HCP audiences.

HCPs are divided by education (MD, DO, NP, PA, RN) specialty, subspecialty, and type of practice, and principal employment just to name a few. Segmentation enables specificity in crafting copy to each of these. Ideally, you want to write to a segment of 1. In practice, the better you are able to sort an audience into subsegments, the more data-driven and compelling your copy will be.

For prescription product marketing, the formulary is an oft-neglected yet decisive data point, often rendering persuasion pointless. I will never forget the moment I realized this sad truth. I was at an industry conference attending a session that featured a panel of practicing physician prescribers. Such panels are often a buzzkill for enthusiastic medical marketers. After listening to a number of questions from the audience, one panelist said that she was employed by an institution with an ironclad formulary. No amount of persuasion, however compelling, could succeed in getting her to write a prescription for a product not on the formulary.

There are ways to address this. Either omit these physicians from promotional lists where possible or address them differently--encourage them to advocate within their institution to get your product on the formulary.

5. Proofread, proofread, proofread

Typos are the bane of a writer's existence. In the data-driven medical marketing field, the risks are magnified. As Norman says, "It’s a necessity to proofread your content before publishing it, especially in a business where it’s so important to be factual. Mistyping a number, for instance, can completely change the meaning of a statistic or study, which could significantly undercut your authority. It’s a simple step to take to ensure accuracy – not to mention preserve your reputation as a writer and communicator."

Having been to the school of hard knocks regarding typos and proofreading, Terryfic Writing has adopted a five-step proofing regimen:

1. Microsft Word editor
2. Grammerly
3. Hard copy visual proof
4. Microsoft Read Aloud
5. Optional 3rd Party Professional Proofreading

Terryfic Writing is your writing resource. If you would like a no-obligation consultation, call or text 708.334.8414, email [email protected], or send an InMail to Terry Nugent, Principal.