KOL Mapping: How to Identify KOLs in Key Therapeutic Areas

Key opinion leaders (KOLs) are increasingly important stakeholders for pharmaceutical companies, often playing critical roles in drug development. But before you can benefit from their expertise and influence, you have to identify the right KOLs for your organization.

In this article, we'll cover everything you need to know about KOL mapping, including why it's so important for the pharmaceutical industry, how to approach the process, and best practices to follow. We'll also explore how Livestorm can simplify connecting with KOLs.

What is KOL mapping?

KOL mapping is the process of identifying thought leaders in specific therapeutic areas and assessing their level of influence with healthcare professionals (HCPs) and trends in the pharma industry.

As key opinion leaders, these stakeholders hold dual roles. KOLs are both highly knowledgeable experts in their fields and influencers with the power to sway HCPs, clinical approaches, and treatment adoption.

This process can also help pharma companies identify and engage digital opinion leaders (DOLs). Similar to KOLs, DOLs are digital natives who also have significant influence in a specialized area.

In some cases, KOL mapping is used interchangeably with KOL identification or KOL profiling. But these terms aren't exactly the same:

• KOL identification is the process of finding key opinion leaders.
• KOL profiling refers to the process of researching and categorizing these stakeholders.

Both processes are less involved than KOL mapping, which requires an in-depth understanding of the landscape, how providers are connected, and how professionals in the area influence one another.

Why is key opinion leader mapping so important?

For most medical affairs teams, KOL mapping is an ongoing process. It involves using qualitative and quantitative methods to research experts and monitor their connections within the KOL landscape.

Pharma companies that engage in this kind of mapping want to do more than just get to know these stakeholders. Instead, they want to recruit the right experts for specific roles.

Many pharmaceutical companies recruit KOLs to speak at virtual events, advise about drug development, and guide marketing efforts. For example, pharma companies often engage KOLs for purposes like:

• Advising during the research and development process for new treatments
• Participating in clinical trials during the drug development cycle
• Amplifying the company's messaging within their network of medical professionals
• Contributing to HCP engagement strategies by influencing the adoption of treatments
• Speaking at pharmaceutical product launches, advisory meetings, and other events

One of the most valuable contributions KOLs can make is helping pharmaceutical companies establish trust in the medical community. That's why mapping is so important.

It ultimately helps pharmaceutical companies decide where to invest. When done well, this process identifies well-respected, influential thought leaders who are the right fit for the company and the purpose.

How to identify and map KOL influence in specialty areas

Let's walk through the basics of KOL mapping, including the process of identifying these experts and charting their influence.

Collect and analyze KOL data

If you're in the process of KOL mapping from the ground up, you'll want to start by collecting data on experts in a specialty area. You can (and should) use a variety of data sources to research KOLs.

Some of the most common data types include:

• Claims: Check healthcare insurance claims data to understand the types of conditions these providers encounter most frequently and the types of treatments and prescriptions they offer. This data provides insight into KOLs' clinical work, and it can help you identify the providers at the forefront of any trends.
• Affiliations: Look up the healthcare facilities, academic institutions, and professional organizations these providers work with or invest in. This data reveals the types of healthcare associations they find valuable. It can also give you a sense of how different groups connect across the KOL landscape.
• Grants: Review the federal, state, and private grants these providers have applied for and received. This data offers insight into the types of research KOLs care about and the therapies they're invested in.
• Clinical trials: Seek out clinical trial data to assess these providers' opinions on certain treatments. This data also helps you understand how experienced they are with trials and how much influence they have.
• Publications: Develop a list of the medical publications these providers have contributed to. The topics offer more insight into their areas of expertise. Plus, their publication volume can help you assess their commitment to a certain cause.
• Social media: Don't ignore social media profiles, especially if you want to include DOLs in your KOL mapping strategy. Social media posts often reveal more personal thoughts and attitudes on healthcare topics. By checking audience size, you can also get a sense of influence level.

On their own, each data source can only tell you so much. That's why it's so important to review more than one source and combine the analytics to develop a more nuanced map.

Interview KOLs in your therapeutic area

By now, you should have a sense of some of the most important KOLs in your specialty areas. Talking directly with KOLs can give you more insight into their expertise and networks.

These conversations can provide additional data points, allowing you to cross-check the information you've already collected. This approach also lets you ask more specific questions.

In some cases, in-person interviews may be a viable option. But when you need to connect with stakeholders from a large geographic area more efficiently, video conferencing is an excellent option.

With Livestorm, you can easily host video calls with one or more KOLs. Schedule one-on-one conversations between your medical affairs team and key opinion leaders in your area.

Ask questions about their views on certain treatments, their opinions on healthcare trends, or their professional networks. Be prepared to answer questions about your KOL strategy, including engagement plans.

Develop a KOL map

Once you've reviewed both quantitative and qualitative data, you should have the information you need to perform KOL mapping. This type of map typically breaks down each expert's:

• Therapeutic area
• Level of influence
• Clinical and therapeutic interests
• Viewpoints, especially in terms of healthcare trends
• Alignment with your organization
• Main strengths (e.g., excellent keynote speaking skills)

Assign values to these data points so you can easily rank each KOL. Keep in mind that there's no standard system for this step. Instead, use the factors that matter most to your company to determine weights.

There's no need to narrow down the choice to one KOL. Instead, identify the best KOLs for different projects or purposes.

Once you've mapped out key providers and identified stakeholders to partner with, you're ready to implement a KOL engagement plan. This is the start of building a long-term relationship with your top-priority KOLs.

Best practices for successful KOL management

Mapping KOLs is just the first step. Use the best practices below to engage KOLs and manage relationships.

Decide on KOL identification goals

KOL mapping and engagement often require significant resource investments. Before you start researching these influencers, get clear on the goals your team wants to achieve.

For example, you may want KOLs to participate in an upcoming series of clinical trials. Or you may want to partner with prominent influencers throughout a drug development cycle.

Your objectives will inform how much you invest and how you approach the project. They'll also guide how you rank key opinion leaders and choose the right person to collaborate with.

Know the right KOL qualities to seek

In many cases, you'll choose KOLs based on their influence and expertise. But there are plenty of other qualities to consider in a KOL, including:

• Trustworthiness and credibility, as you'll want to partner with a KOL who can influence others
• Authority in a relevant specialty area, as you'll want to work with a KOL who serves as an expert
• Collaborative approach, as you'll want a KOL who acts as a true partner for your company
• Communication skills, as you'll want a KOL who can speak on your company's behalf
• Commitment to following trends, as you'll want a KOL who monitors new research

Create a robust KOL engagement plan

Before you begin connecting with KOLs, develop a plan to engage them. Once again, virtual engagement is often ideal, as it allows you to communicate with key opinion leaders no matter their location.

With Livestorm, you can manage almost any initiative, from video conferencing with individuals or small groups to live events with hundreds or thousands of attendees.

Our video engagement platform is ideal for advisory board meetings, product launch events, and online conferences. Invite KOLs to speak, lead Q&A sessions, or network with HCPs in breakout rooms.

For example, MaaT Pharma used Livestorm to host a virtual KOL discussion of new clinical data. Since Livestorm supports multiple speakers, it's ideal for engaging conversations between thought leaders.

Livestorm for connecting with KOLs

To build an effective KOL engagement plan for the healthcare industry, you need the right tools. Livestorm makes it easy for pharma teams to:

• Connect with KOLs via 1:1 video calls
• Host online events to engage healthcare leaders
• Share slide decks and documents during presentations
• Take data protection seriously, as Livestorm is ISO 27001 certified and GDPR compliant
• Integrate Livestorm with the CRM and automation tools you already use

Ready to see how our video engagement platform helps you connect with KOLs? Sign up for a free Livestorm account and set up your first video conference in minutes.