Physician Interest and Participation in Market Research

By Jessie Robertson, VP Client Services

September 23, 2022

Market research plays a fundamental role in helping those involved in the healthcare market answer key questions about their brands. Gaining insights from healthcare practitioners is central to market research. However, engaging physicians to participate in research can be a challenge. While most of the surveyed physicians say they enjoy participating in market research studies, in practice, physicians self-report participating in less than half of the number of studies they are invited to participate in. Real-world experience from our panel says the response rate is even lower. With this in mind, we asked Canadian physicians to help us understand what motivates them to do market research.

Willingness to participate in a market research study may be largely driven by the methodology involved. The vast majority express interest in online surveys and there has been a decline in the proportion who are willing to engage with qualitative research compared to pre-pandemic. This is especially true for research that involves travel or inconvenience for the physician.

Topic of the research can also be a key driver of interest in participation with the following being of greatest interest:

research related to new or soon to be launched products
topics that aim to understand physicians’ role in patient journey
current use and perceptions of brands.

While methodology and topic are key drivers of participation, those are often the aspects of the research we cannot change. Other factors physicians consider are incentive amount, flexibility in terms of the methodology available as well as time to complete the research and receiving survey data after participation.

While it is not always possible to design the ideal study from a respondent point of view depending on the research objectives, by gaining a better understanding of the factors that motivate physicians to complete market research studies, we can help build more engaging and interesting research and ultimately motivate greater participation.

Key takeaways

Differences in the number of invites and participation levels of GPs vs specialists
Willingness to participate in different types of market research studies
How topic and length of survey impact interest in participating
Devices used to participate in surveys

Infographics may contain select findings from our Independent Studies. Contact us to find out if your organization qualifies for a complimentary presentation with access to the full report.