The power of Peer Impact in Digital Opinion Leader (DOL) engagement

In healthcare, trust is paramount—and when it comes to influencing medical professionals, no one is more trusted than a respected peer. This is why true Digital Opinion Leaders (DOLs) have become key players in shaping professional perspectives and behaviours. DOLs are influential HCPs whose views hold sway over their peers due to their expertise and credibility.

Unlike traditional influencers, DOLs are not promoting brands for financial gains. They are advancing scientific conversations, influencing clinical practices, and driving awareness of critical health issues among other healthcare professionals (HCPs) because this is what they care about. 

Pharmaceutical professionals are increasingly interested in understanding who the true DOLs are, in order to serve them well and potentially find ways to collaborate for better outcomes. However, many in pharma struggle to find these true DOLs, who have a high impact level and are trusted by their peers. If you are thinking about engaging with DOLs but are unsure of their peer impact, then how can you be sure they are the right HCP to partner with?

The DOL engagement process: Identify, Engage, Activate

CREATION.co has been working with Digital Opinion Leaders since 2012 and has created a tried and tested three-step process for healthcare companies who want to find their HCP DOLs influential among their peers, described in our eBook, Activating Digital Opinion Leaders:

1. Identify: Companies must choose DOLs based on their influence within specific medical fields, focusing on those who have high peer trust. A sign of high peer trust is HCPs who are followed, quoted, shared and engaged with in scientific conversation by other HCPs.
2. Engage: Successful engagement requires meaningful relationships. Rather than simply sponsoring content, companies need to build relationships around shared health goals, supporting DOLs on causes they care about.
3. Activate: When DOLs are activated authentically, they use their platforms to promote valuable information, raise awareness, and inspire positive change within their professional networks.

Measuring Peer Impact: The DOL Impact Score

CREATION.co’s DOL Impact Score is a tool that measures how much influence a healthcare professional has on their peers, based on online interactions like mentions, shares, and peer engagement. This score helps companies identify DOLs with the highest peer trust in specific fields, enabling more targeted and effective engagement.

Examples of successful DOL engagement

DOL engagement can lead to powerful outcomes. For instance, a DOL campaign focused on chronic pain awareness inspired thousands of patients to share personal stories, driving policy discussions. Another example raised awareness about health equity for elderly cancer patients by working with true DOLs who passionately advocated for better patient care among this group.

DOLs can amplify messages that resonate deeply within the medical community, and leveraging their peer trust can drive impactful change. To do this you need to connect with those peer-trusted DOLs who align with your shared health goals, such as improving patient care or raising awareness of under-discussed health issues.

Setting KPIs for success

To measure the success of DOL engagement, companies should set Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) like the volume of online discussions around the topics you want to nurture, growth of peer networks, and engagement levels from other HCPs. These metrics help assess whether the engagement is driving meaningful change in professional communities.

The value of Peer Impact

In healthcare, where trust and credibility are essential, the peer impact ofDOLs cannot be overlooked. Engaging DOLs is not just about spreading messages—it’s about building partnerships that promote shared health goals and improve patient outcomes. By focusing on DOLs and their peer networks, healthcare organizations can achieve lasting, meaningful impact that goes beyond traditional marketing.

For more information watch our recent webinar on DOL peer impact: Why DOL engagement is not the same as influencer marketing.