Foie Gras and Femtosecond Lasers: Client Immersion at ESCRS Paris

I recently had the opportunity to fly to Paris for the annual European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ESCRS) conference. The juxtaposition of the majestic “City of Lights” with a conference about eye surgery — the thought of which makes most squeamish — didn’t seem so strange to me. In fact, it reminded me why immersion is such an important aspect of being a successful healthcare marketer.

Account Director Amy Smith and CMO Nancy Beesley enjoy the good life in Paris.

Paris and the Perks of Account Service
Before we talk about immersion, let’s talk about Account Service. Our job is rarely glamorized. We manage the fine details of complex projects, which isn’t exactly riveting. We have to worry about invoicing and purchase orders (boring). We handle a lot of the heavy work: We break bad news to clients (if there is any) and take the licks if the work isn’t great.

But Account Service people do get perks. Our job has the allure of travel (A trip to France?! Sign me up!), and the pleasure of problem-solving: Strategy is what we do best, and it offers pleasures all its own.

The perks were on full display during our trip to Paris. These included (in no particular order):

• Falling in love with garlicky escargot and soulful paté
• Enjoying riveting discussions with surgeons about femtosecond lasers and intraocular lenses
• Watching the always-enthralling live cataract surgery
• Scoping out the competition
• Discussing the day’s learnings with my clients over a nice bottle of Cotes-du-Rhone. (Heady in more than one way!)

Gaining Client Immersion
To me, the biggest perk was immersion. They say that you can only really learn a new language if you get off the tourist bus and engage with native speakers in their natural environment. The same is true of understanding a client’s business: You have to go where clients are doing their business and see what makes them tick. And it’s not just important to me as an account service person. Immersion results in unparalleled value to our clients.

A shot of live cataract surgery during a demonstration at ESCRS 2010.

By going to conferences, we see how clients interact: both politically between departments, and socially with their customers; over dinner; in the convention booth; outside le Palais des Congrès, waiting for a taxi; or sharing seats in the dark audience of a competitive symposium.

Most importantly, immersion is the key step between generating advertising ideas based on research and those based on experience. It creates new ways of thinking about positioning a brand and leveraging a message. By taking insights gained at ESCRS back to the creative team, we’re helping to foster truly groundbreaking concepts. By joining our clients at far-flung locations, we’re building the trust to get those concepts approved.

Ultimately, immersion is what turns a client into a partner. And if it gets me to Paris? Even better.