Exploring the New Frontier of Digitalization: Medical Device Digital Marketing Forum Successfully Concluded

As the healthcare industry fully enters the era of digital marketing, medical device marketing is undergoing a transformation from traditional closed models to open, shared, and precise digital models. Facing external factors such as bulk procurement of medical consumables, the normalization of the pandemic, and hospital reforms, along with internal pressures to reduce costs and increase efficiency, digital marketing has become an inevitable trend for industry development.

On the afternoon of May 9, 2024, the "Medical Device Digital Marketing Forum," jointly hosted by VCBeat, VB100, Bedin Medical, and Medroad, was grandly held at the Beijing Beiren Yichuang International Convention and Exhibition Center. The forum was moderated by Xu Wanning, Executive Partner of Hui Mei Capital, and brought together professionals, entrepreneurs, and investment elites from the healthcare industry to jointly explore the digital transformation path of medical device marketing.

Xu Wanning｜Managing Partner of Huimei Capital

In the Post-Volumetric Era of Centralized Procurement, How Can Companies Break Through and Develop in the Face of a New Medical Market Landscape?

 Jin Dong | China Medical Device MagazinePresident of the Society

Jin Dong, Publisher of "China Medical Devices" MagazineThrough the full-year data related to centralized procurement in 2023, the implementation of centralized procurement and volume-based procurement policies has already changed the market's rules of the game. Many companies have faced significant impacts as a result. The importance of brand awareness and market share in future centralized procurement was further discussed. He proposed the development direction for the supply chain industry, encouraging companies to focus on becoming manufacturers of key core spare parts and components rather than complete machine manufacturing to avoid internal competition. Additionally, he outlined four eras of the medical industry’s development: the Era of Distributors, the Era of Service Providers, the Era of Platform Providers, and the Era of Data Providers, with particular emphasis on the arrival of the Era of Data Providers, which indicates that data analysis and application will become the key to corporate competitiveness.

Insights into Digital Marketing in the Medical Device Industry

 Ding Haibo | Chairman of Medtronic China

Ding Haibo, Chairman of Beideng MedicalExamples illustrate how Better Medical's digital platform can quickly reach the target customer base, thereby driving sales growth. The importance of building a diversified channel matrix was emphasized, detailing how Better Medical constructs one-on-one channel networks tailored to the needs of different medical institutions. It was mentioned that Better Medical has established a network of over 50,000 channel partners and uses digital means to precisely manage and serve these partners. The three key elements of Better Medical’s digital marketing are digital content, digital traffic, and digital tools, which can help companies reduce costs, improve efficiency, and enhance the accuracy and conversion rates of marketing. Finally, an optimistic outlook on the future of the medical device industry was expressed, encouraging peer companies to actively embrace market changes, leverage opportunities in digital transformation, and jointly explore new growth areas for the industry.

Medtronic's Practices in Multichannel Marketing

Xiaoyu Sun｜Medtronic Greater China IT Vice President

Medtronic Greater ChinaSun Xiaoyu, Vice President of ITMentioned under the pressure of rising costs in the global market and falling product prices, how to use digital methods to improve marketing efficiency, and emphasized that in China, the acceptance of digital tools by doctors and patients is very high, which provides huge opportunities for Medtronic. He emphasized that Medtronic's core competitiveness lies in technological innovation, and it is committed to improving patients' quality of life through digital means and enhancing the interaction experience between doctors and patients. Medtronic has established a unified service account and website, the "Medtronic Digital Surgical Academy," which not only provides high-quality training content for doctors but also helps the sales team better understand customer needs through backend data analysis, thereby offering more personalized services.

Marketing Needs of Medical Device Companies in the Digital Wave

 Feng Zhangping | Vice President of Neusoft Medical and General Manager of Private Business in China

Feng Zhangping, Vice President of Neusoft Medical and General Manager of Private Business in ChinaMr. Feng Zhangping pointed out that Neusoft Medical not only has a rich product line in民生 (people's livelihood) aspects, but also has a comprehensive layout in the大健康 (greater health) ecosystem. From individual users to large scientific research institutions, Neusoft Medical provides holistic healthcare solutions. He mentioned that although Neusoft Medical performs well in product数字化 (digitization), it still faces challenges in how to shorten the marketing distance with users and improve marketing efficiency. Finally, Mr. Feng shared some thoughts and explorations of Neusoft Medical during its digital transformation process. He proposed that despite Neusoft Medical’s meticulous work in product digitization, it still encounters challenges in the digital marketing of large medical equipment. He called on partners both inside and outside the industry to jointly explore how to use digital means to enhance marketing efficiency, shorten marketing paths, and ultimately achieve win-win outcomes.

The Road to Digital Marketing Development for Medical Devices and Key Practical Insights

 Rong Jin | Co-founder and CMO of Medroad Fast Build

Co-founder of Yilu Kuaiban andCMO Jin RongProposing that digital marketing is the key to the future development of medical device companies, but many enterprises are still at the elementary stage of traditional marketing and Internet+ marketing. He emphasized that companies need to undergo digital transformation and use data-driven marketing strategies to improve the accuracy and efficiency of decision-making. When discussing the practice of digital marketing, Mr. Jin Rong shared the practical experience of VCBeat. By building a diversified toolkit including a new media matrix, live streaming platforms, and data system platforms, they help businesses achieve precision marketing and business communication. Mr. Jin Rong also highlighted the importance of digital marketing tools. He believes that companies should choose digital tools that can adapt to industry attributes, fit actual application scenarios, and respond to industry changes.

He also mentioned that digital marketing is not only the application of technology, but also a completely new marketing concept, which requires enterprises to think and plan from a strategic level.

Application and Development of Digital Marketing Tools

 Wang Yang | Director of Digital Products, MedRoad FastBuild

Wang Yang, Digital Product Director of Yilu KuaibanThe Essence of Marketing: Value Delivery, While the Selection and Application of Digital Marketing Tools Should Return to Their Fundamental Purpose—Driving Traffic, Promotion, Cost Reduction, and Efficiency Improvement. He pointed out that when choosing digital marketing tools, companies should consider three key factors: the adaptability to industry attributes, alignment with practical application scenarios, and the ability to adapt to industry changes. Mr. Wang Yang introduced Yilu Fast Build's "Spring Bud Medical Device Radar," a system integrating data support, target audience positioning, content creation, and efficient outreach tools. Leveraging AI technology, this product uses a tagging system to help companies quickly identify distributors and procurement units, gain early access to market information, and thereby achieve precision marketing. Mr. Wang Yang also proposed the Digital Marketing Ecosystem Service Chain Plan, emphasizing the need for result-oriented and effective marketing services, which cannot be achieved by individual efforts alone. He hopes enterprises across various industries providing high-quality services will join this initiative to collectively empower the digital marketing of medical devices and achieve win-win cooperation.

In the Digital Age: Innovation and New Challenges in Medical Device Development

From left to right: Xu Wanning | Managing Partner and Chief Operating Officer of Hui Capital; Jin Dong | Publisher of "China Medical Equipment" Magazine; Feng Shicong | Founder and CEO of Baidu Intelligence, Member of the Big Data Expert Committee of the China Computer Federation, top expert in AI, big data, and information retrieval in China; Ding Haibo | Chairman of Beideng Medical; Sun Baolei | Chairman and General Manager of Terumo Medical; Jin Rong | Co-founder and CMO of Yilu Fast Build; Tian Wei | COO (Chief Operating Officer) of Weimai Medical.

Jin Dong, Publisher of "China Medical Equipment" MagazinePredicted the end of relational marketing and emphasized the importance of academic promotion and brand building in product market penetration. He believes that companies should gain recognition from doctors and experts through academic outreach and brand influence, rather than relying on traditional relational marketing.

Founder and CEO of VCBeatCEO, Member of the Big Data Expert Committee of the China Computer Federation, Top Expert in AI, Big Data, and Information Retrieval in China: Feng ShicongFrom a technical perspective, the application of artificial intelligence and big data in digital marketing was shared. Digital construction is the foundation of marketing, and marketing is the application of digital construction. It was also mentioned that through big data analysis, enterprises can conduct market research and customer outreach more accurately, thereby improving marketing efficiency.

Ding Haibo, Chairman of Beideng MedicalShared Beideng Healthcare's practical experience in digital marketing. He emphasized that digital marketing is not only a marketing strategy but also a part of the overall business strategy. He suggested that when promoting digital marketing, enterprises should make small-scale attempts rhythmically and gradually expand to achieve the overall digital transformation of the enterprise.

Sun Baolei, Chairman and General Manager of Terumo MedicalDiscussed how enterprises can enhance product awareness through digital means, especially in the context of the下沉 of medical resources, and how to utilize digital promotion for surgical procedures and products.Weimai Medical COO (Chief Operating Officer) Tian WeiDiscussed the potential of digitalization in improving the efficiency of medical services and promoting equity.

Through digital means, more hospitals and doctors can provide high-quality medical services.Co-founder of Yilu Fast Build andCMO Jin RongEmphasized the importance of data in corporate decision-making, suggesting that companies should understand market dynamics, predict future developments, and mitigate risks through a data middleware platform. He proposed that companies need an awakening at the top-level design to drive the concept of digital marketing from top to bottom. During the panel discussion, all guests unanimously agreed that digital transformation is key to the development of the medical device industry. Companies need to embrace change actively, utilizing digital tools and platforms to enhance marketing efficiency and brand influence. At the same time, they emphasized that companies need strategic positioning and must pragmatically advance the implementation of digital marketing.