Sanofi unveils success behind multiple recognitions at PRIME Awards

Marketing & Strategy: The annual PRIME Awards were recently celebrated by the industry and recognised the best in healthcare communications and marketing in the pharmaceutical and life sciences industry.

Sanofi was the only pharma company recognised with three awards; Marketing Campaign of the Year, Launch of the Year and Best Use of Data or Insights.

In an interview with Health Industry Hub, Liz Siminsky, Business Unit Head, Type 2 Inflammatory Diseases, Sanofi Australia & New Zealand reflected on this recognition, discussed how the customer engagement dynamics shifted since the start of the pandemic and the key marketing trends shaping 2022.

Liz commented “I’d like to take the opportunity to recognise and thank the [PRIME Awards] judges that presided over our three entries. To see the success of not one but three entries for the team is a wonderful external validation for the very hard work that they put into bringing this product [Dupixent for severe atopic dermatitis] into the marketplace.”

In reflecting on what contributed to the team’s success in receiving these awards, Liz said “It’s the longevity of this team. They’ve been together for quite some time and they’re all really capable individuals. My focus as a leader was to work with them to build a deep understanding of the market dynamics. The introduction of Dupixent into the Australian marketplace for clinicians was the first innovation to be PBS listed in over 20 years. That in itself was a signal of significant change in clinical practice and the selection of the appropriate patients. Additionally, clinicians had to gain an understanding of the eligibility criteria and the use of three different disease severity scoring assessment tools which have not been used in routine in practice previously.”

As the healthcare professional (HCP) expectations evolved during the COVID-19 pandemic, the medicines and vaccines industry sought to understand the impact of the pandemic on HCPs and their environment with the aim of developing solutions to assist them and their patients navigating through the significant changes.

In considering the barriers during this time, Liz noted “Our marketing solutions and initiatives grew in breath as they needed to be in more than one format and accessible to clinicians in line with their preferences.

“Sanofi was underway with digital transformation but the pandemic accelerated this significantly. The team adopted a mentality where they would try something, test it out, evaluate it and adjust and find new ways to work with customers. I’ve been most proud of their agility to put forward a significant quantity of high-quality work and the mindset of curiosity and experimentation to learn.

“The marketing team also partnered really closely with their compliance colleagues through the changes and adopted the agility required to move forward together in meeting our HCP needs.”

Liz discussed the dynamics and key trends transforming pharma marketing strategies internally and externally in 2022.

“The biggest change for us that is looming is the move from what is largely a remote workforce to a hybrid model of working. From a hybrid perspective, it’s critical for us to listen carefully to our team members so that they can optimise how they work and grow within a hybrid environment.

“Similar principles apply for working with our customers throughout 2022 as they experience operating and interacting with us in a hybrid environment. We need to consider the challenges and barriers that apply to them and work together to overcome them.

“There’s no doubt that as we’ve travelled through the last two years, not only the skills of our people have improved, but they have also embraced new technologies, new ways to engage and seek information to meet the customer needs and preferences. We’ll continue to challenge ourselves as we strive for continual excellence in how we work with our customers and what we can provide to them in terms of adding value,” Liz concluded.