Launching new medical technologies requires not only innovation but also a well-executed digital strategy.
Below are the most common pitfalls faced by medical device companies, with actionable solutions to help keep you on the road to a successful campaign.
1. Vague or Unclear Messaging
Pitfall:
MedTech brands often communicate with slogans like “less pain, enjoy your life,” which sound positive but don’t clarify what the device actually does or how it creates value for specific users. This vagueness fails to connect with clinicians and procurement leads, leading to low engagement and lackluster product awareness.
Example:
An implant company launched a new hip implant and relied heavily on feature-laden, technical messaging in its marketing materials. Their collateral showcased terms like “advanced composite biomaterials” and “next-generation articulation technology” but gave little detail about how these technical features actually improved outcomes for surgeons or patients.
Result: Buzz without the substance.
How to solve:
DO simplify technical jargon.
DO clearly state what problem your technology solves and the unique outcomes it delivers.
DO test messaging with diverse stakeholders and revise based on their feedback before a wide-scale roll-out.
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2. Ignoring the Middle of the Buyer’s Journey
Pitfall:
Some medical firms overemphasize salesforce-driven efforts, neglecting the 70–90% of the buyer’s journey now spent online before any sales contact. As a result, early digital touchpoints, such as educational content, FAQs, and virtual demos, are often underdeveloped.
Example:
A global medical device brand missed out on a first-mover advantage by failing to provide comprehensive online product information. They had a flashy landing page, but not a depth of content to explore.
Result: All flash. No depth.
How to solve:
Map your buyer’s journey and align digital content to address questions and objections at each stage.
Invest in engaging digital tools — videos, on-demand webinars, and thought leadership — to educate and guide prospects before they engage sales.
3. Lacks Enablement for the Sales Team
Pitfall:
Despite dramatic changes in the digital landscape, direct sales engagement remains crucial with med tech customers. Teams sometimes launch campaigns without fully enabling the salesforce by failing to provide updated materials, focused training, or engaging content that furthers the conversation with their prospects.
Example:
A medical diagnostics company unveiled a new rapid testing device, supported by a robust digital marketing blitz. However, the sales team received late, incomplete training and only generic product presentations without customer segment insights, objection-handling scripts, or lead follow-up materials.
Result: Too generic. Boring presentation.
How to solve:
Develop a standardized sales enablement program for every launch, including detailed customer personas, competitive position statements, and digital lead tracking integration.
Schedule regular, cross-functional workshops so sales and marketing teams collaborate on messaging, share buyer objections, and align follow-up strategies.
Create engaging materials that make your product stand out and educate prospects on your benefits.
4. Underestimating the Value of Digital Channels
Pitfall:
Some companies lag in omnichannel campaigns, mobile optimization, or social media connections, resulting in poor digital engagement. Product launches often overlook the potential of digital marketing and rely solely on in-person tactics. Or even worse, relying only on printed brochures.
Example:
During pandemic-driven trade show cancellations, companies that failed to rapidly pivot to webinars, virtual launches, and paid social advertising missed substantial engagement and sales opportunities. These approaches have stayed solid as healthcare professionals seek out flexible ways to learn.
Result: Missed opportunities.
How to solve:
Optimize all digital touchpoints, including web, social, and mobile for user experience and engagement.
Use an omnichannel strategy, integrating traditional sales with digital tactics for message consistency and broad reach.
Empower your sales team with innovative materials so they provide value-added insights to educated prospects.
5. Regulatory and Compliance Paralysis
Pitfall:
Fear of noncompliance can lead to inaction or overly restrictive approaches, stalling innovative marketing campaigns and cost overruns. Fragmented collaboration between marketing, sales, and regulatory increases risk and reduces speed to market.
Example:
During a recent med tech launch, materials were held up for months when the product marketing team failed to gain alignment on their claims with regulatory before diving into campaign development. Their social media calendar was not planned for and set up from the start, so posts were delayed.
Result: Delayed campaign launch.
How to solve:
Bring regulatory stakeholders into campaign planning from the start to co-create compliant content. We like them to review scripts before we get out the cameras.
Develop templates and clear processes for digital review to streamline compliance without stifling creativity. Many teams work with Veeva or similar systems to streamline the regulatory review process.
6. Poor Alignment Between Marketing and Sales
Pitfall:
We’ve all heard this one before. Disjointed strategies and silos between marketing and sales cripple lead conversion. Without shared goals, marketing delivers leads that sales ignores, and both teams blame the other for missed targets.
Example:
One of our clients shared, any lead that marketing puts in Salesforce just ends up dying with their sales team. They had workarounds for their own broken system.
Result: Strangled sales funnel.
How to solve:
Create a shared lead qualification process and regular communication forums between marketing and sales.
Integrate CRM and marketing platforms for seamless lead handoff and closed-loop reporting.
Work with a team that looks at the complete campaign, from lead generation to nurturing to sales enablement so that your message and content flows seamlessly for your prospects.
7. Misidentifying Audience or Failing to Personalize
Pitfall:
Medical device campaigns often use one-size-fits-all messaging or fail to update communications for distinct audience segments. Over-reliance on technical content can alienate non-expert stakeholders, diminishing the campaign’s impact.
Example:
A medical device company launched a digital campaign for a new surgical thoracoscope and targeted its ads broadly to physicians using general medical data. However, the campaign reached many providers outside the intended specialty — including general practitioners and pediatricians — rather than senior pulmonologists or thoracic surgeons who actually use these scopes.
Result: Wasted budget, wasted time, and wasted effort.
How to solve:
Segment audiences by role, expertise, and informational needs; tailor content and channel accordingly.
Regularly audit and clean marketing databases to ensure accurate targeting and personalization.
Create marketing content for all your target personas and organize it so that both your prospects and your team can easily access the messaging and materials.
By proactively addressing these pitfalls with targeted strategies, medical device companies can maximize new product adoption, build lasting relationships, and achieve true digital transformation.
