Download Biotechnology

Biotechnology !
Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
2013
Jonathan Mackinnon, PhD
http://es.linkedin.com/in/jonathanmackinnon
https://twitter.com/JAGMackinnon
www.farmantra.com
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Summary!
Biotechnology is a billion dollar industry that is predominantly
composed of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) that
Outlined within are the fundamental considerations that need to be
taken into account before developing a social technology strategy.
engage in R&D and/or professional services. These Biotechnology
SMEs are highly-educated and highly-skilled innovative
This document provides a brief overview of the Biotechnology
Industry before delivering a current assessment of the methods
enterprises that operate in four “colour” divisions; Red
(Health),White (Industry), Green (Agriculture), and Blue (Marine
that a Biotech SME utilises to market itself. Using case studies I
outline methods by which SMEs can market their biggest asset,
and Aquatic). Yet, despite the high level of education Biotech
Knowledge, before identifying the methods by which this can be
SMEs are failing to capitalise on their knowledge to improve
business development.
analysed.
In essence this document should act as a guide on which a
Social technology has significant untapped potential that is
strategy can be built up over a pre-determined period of time.
beginning to be explored by business. The impact that these
technologies will have on business-to-business (B2B) and
Incorporation of a gradual tailor-made strategy across all levels of
the SME requires an investment of time but little financial cost. The
business-to-consumer (B2C) communication will become more
prevalent over the coming years. This accelerated adoption of
competitive advantages gained extend well beyond increasing
revenue and can be used to promote all areas of business
social technology networks provides Biotech SMEs with
development.
unprecedented potential to refine and improve business
operations whilst in parallel increasing employee productivity and
collaboration.
With few resources and limited time Biotech Firms can develop a
fully-integrated social technology strategy with clearly defined
benchmarks of success. This will not only improve internal and
external collaborative efforts but also increase the SMEs profile on
the global Biotechnology stage.
I hope this is informative, and I welcome any discussions on the
topic.
Jonathan
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Contents!
1.  The Biotechnology Industry: An overview………………
1
2.  Biotech approaches to Marketing………………………5
3.  Marketing Knowledge……………………………………12
4.  Social Technology Applications…………………………18
5.  Website Marketing Metrics……………………………...23
6.  References……………………………………………….31
1.  The Biotechnology Industry: An overview
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Biotechnology: Definition
“The application of science and technology to
living organisms, as well as parts, products, and
models thereof, to alter living or non-living
materials for the production of knowledge,
goods, or services”
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
(OECD)!
Promoting the combination of research and
innovation to drive economic growth is a
humans first started to use microorganisms
to produce food and selectively breed
priority of many industrial and political
agendas. Unlike the 300 years that the
livestock for farming. The modern
Biotechnology Industry originated in the
Pharmaceutical Industry has had to
late 1970´s thanks to innovative scientific
establish its place within the global
breakthroughs in Biochemistry and
economy the Biotech Industry is a young
Microbiology that led to the formation of
emerging industry that consists of a few
big players but many small players.
Genentech. Over the proceeding decades
the industry has grown in four “colour”
divisions that have attracted over $300bn
The concept of Biotechnology has been
Medical &
Healthcare
Industrial
applications
& products
Agriculture
Marine &
Aquatic
in investment 1.
practiced for thousands of years since
2
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Biotechnology: Global presence
In 2011, publicly traded Biotechnology firms
in established centres generated revenues
of $83.4bn.
Global Biotechnology Report 2012 2!
From a modest 20 Biotech firms that emerged in the
late 1970´s the industry has seen significant growth
to reach over 15,631 firms presently listed by the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD) (Figure 1).
The US considerably dominates both in number of
biotech firms (6,213) and the highest proportion
($22bn) of the global $35.3bn spent annually in R&D
(Figure 2). Other global players include European
countries such as France and Germany, and nonEuropean countries such as Japan and Korea.
Interestingly, the Spanish and Australian Biotech
Industries are established in terms of population ,
however, significantly less capital is spent on R&D.
Conversely, Switzerland and Belgium invest heavily in
R&D but possess comparatively fewer Biotech Firms.
United
Kingdom!
3%!
Japan!
3%!
Other!
20%!
Australia!
3%!
Germany!
4%!
Korea!
6%!
United
States!
40%!
Spain!
11%!
France!
10%!
Figure 1: Number of Biotech Firms in 2011 3 !
Other: Switzerland, Italy, Netherlands, Ireland, Israel, Belgium, Norway, Denmark, Finland,
Sweden, Portugal, Austria, Czech Republic, Poland, South Africa, Estonia, Slovenia Spain! Belgium!
2%!
2%!
Switzerland!
3%!
Other!
11%!
Canada!
3%!
Korea!
3%!
Germany!
3%!
Japan!
3%!
France!
8%!
United
States!
62%!
Figure 2: R&D Expenditure in 2011 3!
Other: Sweden, Italy, Denmark, Israel, Netherlands, Ireland, Austria, Norway, Russia,
Australia, Finland, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Poland, Portugal, Estonia, South Africa
3
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
high capacity for creative development and excellent
access to new scientific advances 5. Furthermore, with
the product pipeline of pharmaceutical companies
Japan
Korea
Belgium
OECD Average
Industry as they significant drivers of innovation via a
Switzerland
SMEs are highly valuable members of the Biotech
France
developed to generate new sources of income 4. These
0
Canada
universities in the form of spin-off´s or start-ups that are
20
United States
A large proportion of Biotech SMEs originate from
40
Germany
expenditure. !
60
Spain
(Figure 3) and account for 36.2% of all R&D
80
United Kingdom sized Enterprises (SMEs) with less than 50 employees
100
New Zealand
73.9% of all Biotech Firms are Small- and Medium-
Percentage (%)
The value of Small Business
Figure 3: Percentage of SMEs by country 3!
Data shown (for the 11 countries featured previously. Global OECD average indicated. drying out, SMEs are considered key to replenishing
dwindling stocks 6. Consequently, to maintain Industry
growth SMEs are indispensible and must achieve
commercial success by securing adequate investment
for R&D and generate appropriate revenues from
launched products.
4
2.  Biotech approaches to
Marketing
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Biotech and Marketing: A troubled relationship
“To maximise success Biotech SMEs need to
combine product superiority, competitive
strategy, and marketing ability”
Kakati,M. 2003 7!
Over the last years over 1.5 billion people have joined
five Finnish Biotechnology Industry scientist-managers found a
online social technology platforms to form global
significant inconsistency in understanding the aim and value of
communities that have significantly increased the
marketing (Table 1). economic value of many commercial sectors 8. Whilst the
Due to the young age of the Biotech Industry there are no
Pharmaceutical Industry has made appreciable progress in
stable business development strategies available that
adopting the merits of social technology the Biotech
guarantee success 1. Thus, by considering the marketing
Industry has been slow to react, primarily due to the
strategy early, the SME is forced to develop a clearly-defined
devotion of financial resources to R&D and the low human
tailored business development strategy that, in combination,
resources available. !
can be achieved using resources already available within the
!
SME. From the outset this would significantly benefit the SME
The prevailing view amongst Biotech Industry professionals is
as by developing strategy and marketing approaches not only
that social media can be utilised as part of a more general
would there be an increase the likelihood of commercial
marketing strategy associated with a specific product launch. success but also the ability to acquire risk capital necessary
Unfortunately research indicates that many Biotech SMEs have
during the start-up phase 10.
no commercial business strategy or clearly defined knowledge
of their market, competitors, customer needs, or product
differentiation and positioning 9. Indeed, a recent interview with
6
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Biotech and Marketing: Insider views
Table 1: Biotech marketing interviews with five scientist-managers
What does marketing mean for the company?!
-Insider view!
What marketing activities are performed?!
How is marketing organized?!
- Outsider view!
Case 1!
*I do not understand the question … We contact potential customers directly – maybe *Contacting customers
*Scientists performing most of
this is the best way to describe it.
*Presenting at conferences and publishing in academic the marketing activities
journals
*Giving expert lectures
*Gaining visibility through the company website
Case 2!
*So it meant almost invariably taking the published articles that we had … directly to
the pharmaceutical companies, actually to the scientists employed by those
companies that were doing the same kind of work.
* … trying to create awareness at the larger scientific conferences … presenting
scientific data that we´ve generated in our own laboratories and we present that to the
community.
Case 3!
* … since we are dealing with such a special solution there is a lot of business to *Publishing customer news bulletin
business communication involved.
*Giving interviews to the press
* But at this moment we have not taken any general actions in a way that we would *(Company website)
have started to build awareness based on this solution, so the next step would be the
distribution channel and at the last phase, the consumers would be interested in this
matter as well.
*The marketing competence of the
individual owners is used to perform
marketing activities
Case 4!
* … this is more about informing in a way that we present our products among other
companies at universities so that people would know what they could order.
* The resources of our owner companies are utilized among other things in mailing lists
and such and also their visibility at business fairs is much utilized at their
stands.
*Outsourcing some of the
marketing activities
*Using owner companies ’ marketing
expertise to perform some of the marketing
activities
*Scientists performing some of the
marketing activities
Case 5!
*Right from the start we have hired experienced sales and marketing personnel
*Communicating with marketing experts outside the *Recruiting marketing experts to take care
* … so we have contact networks also outside Europe where there are people who company
of some of the marketing activities
operate in our business field and have worked for similar companies so they have a lot *Presenting in conferences
*Scientists performing some of the
of experience and contact networks with these customer companies.
*Gaining visibility through company website
marketing activities
*Building and maintaining network relationships with the
scientific community
*Providing scientific reference lists
*Presenting at conferences and publishing in academic
journals
*Gaining visibility through the company website
*Developing partnerships
*Informing and creating awareness of company’s
capabilities, facilities and services
*Brand building
*Advertising
*Mailing campaigns
*Sponsoring
*Gaining visibility through the company website
*University visits
*Recruiting marketing experts
to take care of some of the
marketing activities
*Scientists performing some of the
marketing activities
Eriksson, P and Rajamäki, H 9!
7
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Marketing Capabilities: A SME´s assets
“In SMEs knowledge is usually disseminated
verbally. Creating a formal system for storing
Knowledge
knowledge is percieved as unfeasible due to
Products
limited resources”
Kmieciak 2012 11!
Figure 4: SME assets. Prior to developing a strategy Biotech SMEs need to
necessary early can prevent entering a collapsing market and
identify the assets that they possess. Whilst it can be
ensure high commercial success. Furthermore, by aligning the
argued that products drive revenue, a more significant
firm´s scientific message with its knowledge marketing at an
value asset, Knowledge, can be utilised to engage a global
early time point it is possible to communicate the potential
stage to benefit all aspects of the SME. !
value of products earlier that will, in turn, assist in engaging
The current limiting factor of this asset is that knowledge is
Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) and potential customers long
disseminated on a local scale. By using this asset as a tool for
before product launch 12. promoting the business outside of product marketing it is
possible to better assess the unmet need for which the
product is intended, the market size, and the growth rate 12. In
dedicated Biotech R&D SMEs the delay between concept and
market entry/collaboration can be over 10 years. Thus,
prediction of competitor goals and global strategies is
8
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Marketing Strategies: Shifting from Outbound to Inbound
The majority of Biotech SMEs are
founded by scientists that use
marketing strategies based on
methods that have been proven
successful in academic circles and
traditional marketing approaches
employed by Pharmaceutical
companies.
These methods are defined as
Outbound Marketing strategies. This
strategy commonly employs unpaid
outbound methods such as presenting
at scientific conferences, publishing
scientific papers, and interacting with
the local scientific network. Paid
outbound methods include company
brochures/catalogues, attending trade
fairs, magazine advertisements, and
unsolicited contact, in person or via
email. Whilst these methods have merit
the impact, they are geographically
restricted and limit the overall exposure
a company can attain. In recent years a
significant shift in marketing has
occurred, from Outbound to Inbound
Marketing. Inbound Marketing is
founded on the concept that interacting
and educating potential customers
significantly improves the conversion
rate from an interested party to actual
customer. In order to achieve this, one
must develop a marketing strategy that
is tied to the business strategy of the
company. Once developed,
methodologies such as those outlined
below can be employed to generate
new leads.
Outbound Marketing
More traditional advertising directed
towards finding customers and
persuading them to purchase product.
Inbound Marketing
Directed towards providing content of
value in order to educate potential
customers. Typically content is free and
there is a time delay between potential to
actual customer conversion.
Outbound
Inbound
•  Conferences
•  Scientific Papers
•  Blogs
•  Podcasts
•  Local scientific network
•  Paid advertising •  Video
•  ebooks
•  Unsolicited contact
•  Brochures/catalogues
•  Newsletters
•  Social Media
•  Email marketing
9
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Case studies: R&D and service provision
In order to provide a reference for generating a knowledge-
years away from generating revenue, the second, a Cell-Based
based marketing strategy two cases will be presented
Assay Screening SME is generating revenue but wishes to
throughout. The first case is a Biopharmaceutical SME that is 5
increase its market share. Sample Case 1: Biopharmaceutical SME
Type
R&D
Founded
2008
Employees
1 CEO, 6 dedicated R&D staff, 3 support staff
Pipeline
5 lead compounds, 2 compounds in PII trials (outsourced)
Marketing Approach
Marketing currently seen as low priority. All resources directed towards R&D with occasional
participation in conferences
Visibility
Poor
Sample Case 2: Cell Based Assay Screening SME
Type
Service Provider
Founded
2010, spin-off from University
Employees
2 CEOs, 6 screening staff, 2 sales staff
Pipeline
1 platform operational,1 platform in development (in collaboration with University)
Marketing Approach
Marketing seen as high priority. Sales staff very active but few leads
Visibility
Medium 10
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Biotech Value Chain: Areas of operation
Both case studies operate in separate value chains. The first
stages of its value chain, with the initial discovery phase
case operates within the initial stages of drug development
originated from the university it is in collaboration with,.
up until pre-clinical. From here it is outsourcing its Clinical
Trials and has no formal arrangement for Manufacturing or
Marketing & Sales. Case study 2 operates across the later
Biopharmaceutical SME
Basic R&D
Target ID &
Validation
Lead
Development
Clinical Trials
Marketing Manufacturing
&
Sales
Cell Based Assay Screening
Discovery
R&D
Service operation
Marketing &
Sales
11
3.  Marketing Knowledge
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Why?: Benefits significantly outweigh risks
•  Up to $1.3 trillion annual value can be unlocked by social technologies
•  >1.5 billion people use social networking
•  90% of companies using social technologies report business benefits
•  2-fold increase in enterprise collaboration and communication
•  20-25% potential productivity improcement in knowledge-based environments. •  60% executives believed that the benefits outweighed the risks
McKinsey Global Institute 2012 8!
13
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
How?: Develop networks using internal resources
If firms are performing well in an industry
this can be explained by their use of internal
Company
resources and accumulated capabilities
Vanhees 2006 13!
Vast amounts of information can be acquired from external
sources using internal resources that form networks in
overlapping areas of interest. This information can
subsequently be disseminated through networks using
social technology for the benefit of the individuals and the
company as a whole. !
There are three sources of information that are linked via
overlapping regions of interest. The first is the company´s
Employee
Customer
Figure 5: Regions of information interest
internal information that is correlated to its business strategy
(incorporating mission values, responsibility, and customer
profile). This area of interest overlaps with customers,
The largest area of interest belongs to the diversity of
employees individually and in combination. Employees´ areas
customers. Different geographical locations play a significant
of interest is significantly larger due to the diverse professional
role in this context in addition to the diversity in education and
and educational backgrounds. Interests are partially aligned
professional backgrounds. These overlapping areas of interest
with the company, however, significant additional interests
can be used as a platform for engagement using social
exist. technologies. 14
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Case studies: Developing networks
Biopharmaceutical SME
Employees
1 CEO, 6 dedicated R&D staff, 3 support staff
Areas of interest
•  CEO has established local network and global contacts in industry related to
company activity. •  R&D staff already engage in social network activities outside of work and maintain
contact with colleagues and friends from PhD/university/other. Areas if interest/
experience include many areas of bioogical sciences, biotech, and pharmaceuticals.
1 maintains well-developed international networks.
•  Support staff engaged locally with individuals across many areas of expertise. Cell Based Assay Screening SME
Employees
2 CEOs, 6 screening staff, 2 sales staff
Areas of Interest
•  1 CEO originates from university with Professor status, 1 originates from Pharma
research, M.Sci by education. Both have acquired well developed international
networks. Primarily engage through email. •  Screening staff possess PhD´s, 4 from host country, 2 others from other countries.
Social technologies heavily utilised outside of work to maintain professional
networks. •  Sales staff very well connected with clients. Use social technologies to complete
work goals. Each operates individually, no technological collaboration. 15
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Network integration: Fostering internal collaborations
70% of value creation opportunities lies in
Table 2: Levels of Integration 14
improving communication and collaboration
within and across enterprises. Integration
Process
Structure
LOW
Communication
Network, round table
Contribution
Knowledge input into network
Coordination
Task leaders coordinate
subgroups
Cooperation
Subgroup responsibilities
Collaboration
Complete collaborative efforts
McKinsey Global Institute 2012 8!
Fostering internal collaborative social technology
projects have significant benefits over other avenues
of responsibility. Whilst individuals may operate under
separate guidelines, or possess divergent
HIGH
responsibilities, by increasing collaboration
information transfer occurs more frequently.!
Not only does increasing collaboration enhance internal
performance but a fully integrated approach also improves
the value of the information generated compared to the
information generated by one individual alone.
Consequently, a strategy incorporating all members of the
Employee
Employee
Employee Employee Integrated Social Technology Platform
SME offers distinct time value advantages compared to a
compartmentalised strategy where few members are
responsible for social technology
16
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Case Studies: Network Integration
Biopharmaceutical SME
Employees
1 CEO, 6 dedicated R&D staff, 3 support staff
Asset Collaboration
•  CEO holds overall responsibility and has 1 hour meeting per week with all staff to
develop and monitor all social technology development
•  R&D staff form 3 subgroups with 1 support staff member. •  Social technologies divided between subgroups that meet twice per week for 30
min to assign tasks. R&D staff focus on contributing international information whilst
staff contribute local information and focus on regional topics. •  With 2 hours of meetings per week and 1 hour of personal time employees increase
their level of collaboration and trust. Cell Based Assay Screening SME
Employees
2 CEOs, 6 screening staff, 2 sales staff
Asset Collaboration
•  CEOs divide responsibility between them and lead one subgroup each. •  Screening staff subgroups incorporate 1 sales member to generate information
about local and international affairs. •  Each subgroup meets once a week where responsibilities are divided andcontent is
generated individually. •  A summary is presented at a 1 hour weekly meeting between staff. 17
4.  Social Technology Applications
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Social Technology: Where to begin?
In essence, social technology is a set of network
applications that allow individuals to interact on a
global stage to directly exchange information with one
another and create their own content. The range of
applications available is diverse and allow users to
interact via many mediums such as video, blogging,
conversing in a network, and presenting
presentations. !
In order to avoid stretching limited resources across as
many platforms as possible it is advisable to choose the
technologies that are most suited to the company that
should be systematically integrated in turn. In order to ascertain what efforts are successful a series of
social Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) should be
Table 3: Assessing available network applications
Questions
Assessment
Applications
Which applications are most relevant to the
business?
Impact
What technologies have had the most impact
on your value chain? What is the level of value
for each one?
Customers
What are your customer profiles? How are
they interacting with each technology
Features
What features of each technology can you use
to contribute? What benefits can be measured
from your contributions?
identified. These social KPI´s differ from website metrics as
they measure the impact of social interaction. Website
metrics, on the other hand, look to profile and quantify the
visitors to the website. KPI´s are a lot more difficult to
define as the “success” markers differ for each company. 19
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Social Applications: Most used by professionals
Content Social Platforms
Networking
Blog
Technical
forum
Social Technology applications have numerous benefits.
to the website from this professional network. Alternatively,
Primarily, networking on a global scale increases the
Twitter can be used by an employee to engage with
professional network of an individual. When used correctly
individuals across different industries and disciplines. This, in
these networks can also bring the attention of the potential
turn, may lead to increased traffic towards the website. Once
customers or investors towards the company itself. LinkedIn,
here, if suitably engaged by a blog post or information piece,
for example, allows users to develop professional profiles and
the individual may return for new information. Once developed
then connect with colleagues, both past and present. By
into a lead the potential for converting into a customer or
developing a company profile interested parties can be drawn
investor requires significantly less persuasion.
20
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Social KPIs: Key Performance Indicators
Table 4: Key Performance Indicators
Metric
Assessment
Bookmarks
Who is bookmarking your information (using website metrics, covered later)
Comments
Who is commenting on your content? Do they comment on content across different
technologies?
Downloads
How many people are downloading your content? Does this increase with time?
How is this affected by the frequency of content generation?
Email subscriptions
What is the current subscription size? Is this increasing with new technology
interaction?
Feedback
What are the main points of consideration from the feedback generated? If there is
no feedback, why?
Followers
How many people are following your content (only applicable to some applications)
Frequency
What is the daily / weekly / monthly frequency of interaction?
Total contributors
How many people are contributing to your content via comments, links etc?
Views
How many people have viewed your content? Is there a particular demographic
viewing the content?
21
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Case Studies: Social Technology Strategy and KPIs
Biopharmaceutical SME
Technology Adoption
•  Using the cumulative knowledge of the SME about KOLs, influencial bloggers
and scientists the initial goal was to organise how the information should be
stored. •  Secondly, group decisions led to the generation of new content about R&D
news, Biotech investment, and SME-specific science. •  Third, a blog, twitter, and LinkedIn profiles were adopted for the SME
(sequentially).
•  In parallel, personal twitter, blog, and LinkedIn profiles were integrated into the
strategy. Cell Based Assay Screening SME
Technology Adoption
•  In the first stage customer profiles were developed from existing customer
information. •  Launch of engagement using social platform was postponed until significant
market data had been collected.
•  Weekly meetings provided enough information to generate new daily content
which was posted on the SME blog, twitter, and facebook. LinkedIn profiles
were actively encouraged, especially for sales members. •  After listening to suggestions the SME also posted videos on YouTube to explain
and demonstrate some of their services. 22
5.  Website Marketing Metrics
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Marketing Metrics: Easily overlooked
A survey of professional marketers found:
•  39% had significant amounts of analytics data
•  Only 37% routinely gained insights from the analytics
•  21% lacked the resources to adequately perform analysis
•  20% did not have the time required
•  52% focused on generating reports rather than gathering insights
•  53% will see an increase in metric budget in 2013
MarketingSherpa 2013 15!
!
24
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Marketing Metrics
Why measure Marketing Metrics?
•  To identify what works
•  To identify what doesn´t work
•  To identify what can be improved
•  Improve marketing performance by
reinforcing successful initiatives!
In order to determine the level of success associated with any
available it important to identify the relevant criteria. For
marketing strategy some tangible outcome must be recorded.
example, a large multinational company focused on the
In traditional marketing avenues marketing success is
provision of snacks and beverages may define marketing
predominantly defined by revenue associated with the specific
benefit from the number of “likes” gained on Facebook for a
marketing initiative. How can these marketing metrics be
particular product. The likelihood of this approach being
applied to Social Media Strategies? Thankfully, there are a
relevant to a SME that specialised in professional services is
number of freely available tools available (for example Google
unlikely.
Analytics) that can be used. Before launching into the metrics
25
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Website: Traffic Sources
Knowledge-based marketing success is
defined by company visibility. The more
visible interaction a company generates
Organic
increases the likelihood of lead
development which in-turn generates
more business opportunities. Thus,
Referral
overall success can be defined by the
amount of traffic that is directed towards
the company´s website. This traffic can
Direct
be divided into three categories; organic,
referral, and direct traffic.
Table 5:Traffic Sources
Type
Organic
Referral Direct
Origin
Links from Search
Engines
Links from other websites
Direct URL, website is
bookmarked, link from email or
document the company has
produced
How
Keyword search leads to
information generated by
the company e.g. Blog
post
Links from social media,
professional forums, conferences
Business cards, conferences,
advertising, white papers, 26
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Search Engine Optimisation: Increasing organic traffic
Organic traffic to the website
Original content can be in many
orinates from search engines. How
forms, however the most
much traffic depends on how well
applicable for knowledge-based
your website ranks for your specific
companies are website keyword
keywords. A good marketing
optimisation, blog entries, ebooks
strategy involves generating high
(educational/informative
quality orignal content that
documents about subjects relevant
incorporates specific keywords.
to company´s vision).
Tools
Google Adwords Keyword
Tool
Identify and evaluate the
performance of your website for
different keywords and phrases.
Evaluation revolves around volume,
trends and competition
Google Trends
Blog
eBooks
Website Keywords
Other original
content
e.g. Interview
posted on internet
Compare search trends between
keywords or phrases. Results
include interest over time, interest
by geographic region and related
terms
Search Engine Visibility
27
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Marketing Metrics: Using Google Analytics
Google Analytics allows users to generate significant real-time
can rapidly familiarise themselves with the functions. Below is
insights into web activity. This highly customisable tool is
an overview of some of the metrics on offer.
freely available with minimal technological knowledge
required to install. The user interface is inttuitive and users
Table 6: How to measure your website metrics
Section!
Metric!
Measurement!
Overview
All visits
How many visits your website is achieving
Unique Visitors
Visitors that are viewing your website for the first time
Page views
How many pages your visitors are viewing
Bounce rate
How quickly people are leaving your website
Lanugage
What languages do your viewers speak
Location
Where your website´s audience originates from. Aim to increase global reach
New vs. Returning
How many visitors are new and how many are returning
Frequency What frequency do visitors return? How many pages do they view when they
return?
Engagement
How long are visitors spending at the website
Overview
Are people accessing your website from mobile?
Demographics
Behaviour Mobile
28
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Case Studies: Website metrics
Biopharmaceutical SME
Results
•  Search Engine Optimisation provided instant increase in organic traffic as the content
was much more accessible. •  Regular, daily, blog posts also served to increase organic traffic by 40%.
•  Social technology engagement led to an increase in referral traffic, especially from twitter
as the cumulative knowledge allowed several employees to lead discussions in
professional forums. •  As website traffic rose and users became more engaged an increase in external
collaboration with academics and industry professionals was noted. •  Social technology engagement also attracted interest from VC´s that are in negotiation. •  Increased global exposure has also led to an increase in highly-skilled applicants.
Cell Based Assay Screening SME
Results
•  Initial exposure was delayed by the time taken to generate customer profiles. •  Assisting forum members who were suffering screening technical issues (but were not
using the SME´s services) built the SME´s reputation amongst academic institutions. •  Upon uploading YouTube posts potential customers were much more likely to visit the
website.
•  The website, in turn, saw an increase in the number of people downloading content and
the amount of traffic from referral sites such as Facebook.
•  Revenues increased 49% within 7 months and two additional employees were hired to
run a screening advice forum on the SME website. 29
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
Conclusion
Social Technologies are evolving at an ever increasing pace
fostering these networks, and engaging with website visitors
with significant reward to SMEs that incorporate them into their
SMEs can increase their business development pace. More
business operations. Biotech SMEs, the drivers of commercial
rewardingly, SMEs can gain more important rewards such as
scientific innovation ,find themselves in a more unforgiving
an increase in performance, collaboration, knowledge, and
global economy where investment capital is harder to find and
competitive advantage.. Outlined here are the initial steps
the capacity for companies to invest in professional services
necessary to develop such a platform and, as the benefits are
is diminishing. In order to survive in this new global economy
realised, behaviours can be modified to lead to optimal
Biotech SMEs need to adapt to increase their professional
performance. With the majority of executives agreeing that the
appeal outside of local networks.
benefits outweigh the costs social technologies cannot afford
to be ignored
Biotech SMEs posess retain a significant amount of internal
resources, namely the knowledge of the employees. With
minimal financial investment a SME can leverage this
knowledge to form networks that reach across the globe. By
30
6.  References
Biotechnology: Marketing Knowledge using Social Technology
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