A Pop Song’s Plea for Clarity
Ever found yourself humming along to Duran Duran’s catchy tune, “Is There Something I Should Know?” The song’s iconic opening line, “Please, please, tell me now,” may just be the unofficial anthem of digital agencies worldwide. Why, you ask? Well, let’s delve a little deeper.
Just like how Duran Duran pleads for clear communication in their song, digital marketing and web design agencies also find themselves echoing the same sentiment. When potential clients approach us, our silent plea is always: “Please, please, tell us now” – tell us what your specific needs are, tell us what challenges you are facing, and please, tell us about any budgetary constraints we need to consider.
Now, I’m sure some of our younger readers are scratching their heads, thinking, “Duran who?” Let me put it this way: If your knowledge of Duran Duran doesn’t extend beyond their cameo on ‘Scooby-Doo,’ then I’m probably old enough to be your parent. In fact, I just blew out fifty candles on my last birthday cake!
However, for the record, my heart beats to the rhythm of the Stone Roses. For my fellow ‘Roses’ fans, you’ll agree that “I Wanna Be Adored” could also serve as a fitting anthem for us agencies. We indeed want to be adored, but that adoration comes from understanding your needs and helping you succeed.
The more you tell us, the better we can help you. Just like a well-composed song, a successful project relies on clear communication and understanding. So, whether you’re a Duran Duran fan, a Stone Roses enthusiast, or just hearing about them for the first time, let’s dive into why clear (and clean) briefs are the unsung heroes of successful digital marketing and web design projects.
Why Clarity Matters in Briefs
The Value of Clear Communication
One of the primary challenges we encounter is potential clients who approach us without a clear brief or an identified problem they want to solve. For us to deliver the best results for your business, it’s crucial to understand your business goals, target audience, and the unique challenges your company faces within the highly regulated pharma and life sciences industry. Only then can we build a digital marketing strategy or website that effectively addresses these issues and helps your organisation to achieve its objectives.
Understanding Your Requirements
The specificity of your requirements is directly proportional to the quality of solutions we can provide. A vague “We want to increase our online presence” does not offer us enough detail to craft a tailored approach. Are you trying to engage with a specific group of patients or HCPs, improve your search engine presence, or enhance your online reputation within the pharma or life sciences industry? Your detailed requirements will guide us in providing the best possible solution.
Budgetary Constraints
Understanding your budget is another critical element in shaping our potential solutions. Budgets impact the scope and scale of a project, dictate the use of specific technologies, and even determine the timeline for implementation. When we have clear insight into your budget, we can tailor a solution that maximises the return on your investment and also complies with industry regulations across different countries.
How to Prepare for Your First Meeting with an Agency Specialising in Pharma and Life Sciences
If you’re a pharma or life sciences marketer planning to collaborate with a new agency, you’re taking an exciting step towards creating some great new digital assets and campaigns. Here are some tips on how to get the most out of that first meeting and ensure a successful partnership.
Define Your Goals
Start by setting specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals. Knowing exactly what you want to achieve will help guide the agency in the right direction. For instance, instead of saying, “I want more website traffic,” a SMART goal would be, “Increase website visits by 20% over the next six months, targeting healthcare professionals and patients with a focus on these therapy areas: xyz.”
Identify Your Challenges
What specific issues are you facing that led you to seek an agency’s help? Are you struggling with low website traffic, poor conversion rates, or a lack of visibility on Google? Do you need help positioning your biotech start-up within the crowded pharma or life sciences sector? Clear identification of your problems will enable us to provide you with targeted, effective solutions.
Budget, Money, Wonga!
Be prepared to discuss your budget. An understanding of your financial boundaries will allow us to tailor a strategy that offers the best value for your investment. Remember, a transparent discussion about costs early on can prevent misunderstandings later on down the line, which is a time suck for both parties. It’s essential to have an open dialogue about budgetary expectations to avoid wasting time on impractical solutions or endless back-and-forth negotiations.
Provide Relevant Background Information
The more we know about your business and its history, the better. Provide us with relevant background information, including past marketing campaigns, your key competitors, and your unique selling proposition within the pharma or life sciences industry.
Leverage ChatGPT to Write Your Comprehensive Brief
If you’re struggling to find the time to draft a comprehensive brief then consider using ChatGPT as it can assist you in creating a detailed brief for your web design, digital marketing, or SEO project.
To get the best out of ChatGPT, you need to feed it with detailed prompts. Here are some examples of how you could structure your prompts:
- For Web Design, start by asking: “Help me to write a brief for my website project, what sections would you recommend and what other ChatGPT prompts should I also use to complete my brief?” You can also use the following other prompts to help you with key areas of your brief:
- Help me create a detailed project timeline.
- Help me write a competitor analysis.
- Help me define SMART objectives for my website project.
- What are some potential design trends that could enhance my website?
- Help me brainstorm features for my website.
- Help me to create personas for my website.
- Identify potential search key phrases used by each persona.
- What are some effective digital marketing strategies for my type of website?
- How can I make my website more user-friendly and accessible?
- What are some strategies for website maintenance and regular updates?
- For Digital Marketing:
- Who is my target audience in the life sciences sector, and what are their online behaviours?
- What digital marketing channels should I focus on to reach my target audience?
- What blog post topics would be of interest them
- For SEO:
- How can I improve my website’s SEO ranking within the pharma and life sciences industry?
- What keywords are relevant to my business and industry?
- How can I optimise my website’s content for SEO to cater to a life sciences audience?
Remember, the more specific you are with your prompts, the more accurate and useful the outputs from ChatGPT will be.
Let’s avoid humming this tune…
So, whether you’re humming along to Duran Duran or nodding your head to the Stone Roses, remember that successful projects, just like well-composed songs, rely on clear communication and understanding. Prepare a well-defined brief and you’ll make the whole process more effective and efficient for everyone involved. If you don’t then to paraphrase the Kaiser Chiefs, we might just ‘predict a riot‘ in the agency world! Let’s avoid that chaos, shall we!
And finally a gentle plug for a new release
Get More Insights with Our Free eBook
If you found this article helpful, then we’ve got a treat for you! We invite you to download our FREE eBook: “The Essential Guide to Pharma & Life Sciences Website Design”. It’s packed with expert insights and actionable tips to help you navigate the complex landscape of pharma and life sciences web design.
But that’s not all! When you download our eBook, you’ll also have the opportunity to request our bonus extra – a free ready-to-use Website Design Brief Template. This practical resource will make the task of preparing a comprehensive brief easier and more efficient. It’s a must-have for anyone planning a website redesign or new site build in the pharma and life sciences sectors.
