In a recent study, pharmaceutical and device companies rated scope of influence as the most ideal trait of a promotional speaker.

The more influential a speaker, the easier it is for the company to drive event attendance, found the Cutting Edge Information study, "Promotional Speaker Programs: Successfully Managing Speaker Bureaus and Recruiting Thought Leaders." According to the data, the least important trait is the speaker's publication record. While publications are important to a potential speaker's academic standing and influence, the ability to perform good research and write well is not necessarily an indicator of speaking ability.

Top 10 pharmaceutical companies surveyed follow this overall trend. However, these companies rate publication record as even less important than the overall average. They may focus more on marketing and -- from their standing -- can choose the best speaker with the largest scope of influence.

However Top 50 companies rate clear communication as the most ideal promotional speaker trait. Unlike their larger counterparts, Top 50 companies rate communication skills even greater than scope of influence. This trend suggests that these companies weight the speaker's ability to get the message across higher than the attendance that an influential speaker can bring.

Along with publication record, small companies rate strong social skills as one of the least important traits for speakers. These preferences suggest that small drug companies first consider the speaker's ability to drive attendance and market the product effectively. Overwhelmingly, surveyed device companies hold scope of influence to be the most important trait for speakers.

"Promotional Speaker Programs: Successfully Managing Speaker Bureaus and Recruiting Thought Leaders" (http://www.cuttingedgeinfo.com/research/marketing/pharma-speaker-programs/) features trend analysis and detailed data on the impact of regulatory changes to promotional speaker program teams. Research includes performance metrics for speaker event management, including typical attendance, average cost per attendee and best times to hold events.

Use this report to:

  • Allocate funding and cross-functional staff to best support promotional speaker program teams.
  • Provide top-quality promotional speaker programs and boost attendance rates.
  • Understand and adapt to the impact of the Sunshine Act on speaker programs.
  • Obtain fair-market value benchmarks for speakers' compensation.

For more information about pharmaceutical speaker program benchmarks, contact Cassie Demeter at 919-403-6583.

Cutting Edge Information
Cassie Demeter, 919-403-6583