Transform Your Next Patient or Provider Conference with Virtual and Augmented Reality
THE STATUS QUO FOR CONFERENCE-BASED MARKETING
When it comes to patient and provider conferences, there is certainly plenty for life science marketers to be frustrated about: the costs of exhibiting continue to rise, turnout is unpredictable, and ROI remains difficult to measure. On the other hand, these events still offer unrivaled access to target audiences. For many organizations, conference attendance is an obligatory defense strategy; as one marketing director recently told me, ”the one thing we know is more costly to us than exhibiting, is skipping a major conference our top competitor attends.”
Within this somewhat grim reality of conferences (“can’t live with them, can’t live without them”), virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) have emerged in recent years as a cause for a new hope among life science marketers. Surveys among HCPs find VR/AR can be an effective driver of booth traffic, and successful use in many other consumer-facing industries suggests patients should be equally interested. Yet as a nascent platform with its own lingo and steep technical learning curve, VR/AR can feel intimidating, leaving many biotech, pharmaceutical, and medical device marketers to adopt a more passive, “wait and see” strategy.
WHY YOU MUST UNDERSTAND AND START MONITORING VR/AR, NOW
I will not urge you to rush into adopting these tools, but I will say this: regardless of whether you view VR/AR as a massive untapped opportunity, a someday-maybe priority, or even a faddish gimmick, your team must smarten upon and, at a minimum, begin carefully monitoring these technologies.
Corporate investments in VR/AR grew at unprecedented rates last year. An ambitious competitor is bound to show up across the aisle from you with VR/AR at an upcoming conference (if they haven’t already), and if they leverage the technology correctly, it will give them an edge. You don’t want to look like a card shop full of printed materials across the street from an Apple Store on launch day.
FIRST THINGS FIRST: UNDERSTAND YOUR OPTIONS & POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS
The below table serves as an initial primer the current technology landscape for VR/AR as it pertains to life science marketing. There are currently two primary technologies (all-in-one VR, and tablet-based AR) we have found through repeated experimentation to be mature enough and best-suited for heavy usage in patient and provider conferences. To be clear, the others listed are not inferior technologies, but they tend to excel in other contexts such as clinical training, manufacturing facilities, etc.
All in One Headset
Ideal for immersing patients and providers in an interactive story or learning experience. High quality visuals with easy setup and breakdown with no wires, built-in safety features, mirroring solutions for on-floor technician support, and intuitive user interface.
Examples: Oculus Quest, Oculus Go, Vive Focus, Lenovo Mirage Solo.
Potential Applications: Disease Education, Interactive MOAs, Immersive Patient Cases, Virtual Facility Tours, and Virtual KOLs.
Tethered VR Headset
Exceptional visuals. Requires additional setup and dedicated gaming PC. Best suited for clinical training or HCP-facing applications where higher visual fidelity & accuracy is important.
Examples: Oculus RiftS, HTC Vive, Windows Mixed Reality.
Potential Applications: Empathy-Building, Clinical Training, and Procedure simulation
Smartphone “Snap-In” VR Headset
Older, less interactive technology with lower quality visuals and slightly higher rates of motion sickness; allows audiences to continue engaging with content on their personal devices post-conference.
Examples: Samsung Gear VR, Google Daydream, and Google Cardboard.
No Longer Recommended for Commercial Use.
Tablet/Smartphone-Based AR Tablet
Ideal for facilitating conversations with patients and providers at conferences using 3D holographic visuals. Fastest intake/outtake with easy on-floor technician support and intuitive, familiar user interface. Smartphone-based options for at-home version.
Examples: iPad, iPhone, Android Tablet & smartphones.
Potential Applications: Disease Education, Interactive Visual Aids, Collaborative Learning, and Holographic Product Demos (Med Devices).
AR/XR “Smartglasses”
Earlier-stage tech with limited field of view but tremendous promise. Better suited for HCP conferences currently. Monitor carefully as new players (including Apple) enter market in coming years.
Examples: Microsoft Hololens 2, Magic Leap
Potential Applications: Holographic Product Demos
This landscape will continue to evolve, but as a general guiding principle, we believe the best device for patient conferences is the one that achieves the highest visual quality without dipping below a score of “very good” or “excellent” on user-friendliness (unfortunately these two measures are often at odds with one another). When in doubt, heir on the side of a VR/AR experience that your booth staff can confidently run without many headaches or tangled wires, and that your audience can self-navigate without needing assistance every thirty seconds.
BUILDING THE BUSINESS CASE
Need help building the business case for virtual or augmented reality at your next conference? Here are a few quick stats to help get you started:
Our customers have seen booth traffic increase 350% year-on-year after introducing virtual reality
71% of participants believe a brand that uses virtual/augmented reality is forward-thinking.
Over 50% of physicians would like to try VR for training, CE, and to learn about new treatments and conditions.
Written By Joshua Setzer
Co-Founder and CEO, Lucid Dream VR
