More and more, pharma companies are hoping to leverage the reach of healthcare influencers who hold sway over their thousands of followers.
Now, influencer marketing platform Linqia has launched a marketing network that brings together healthcare influencers ready to partner with pharma brands on campaigns.
Launched Tuesday, the Healthcare Creator Network (HCN) will draw on vetted influencers or creators from the top medical professions that are popular on social media sites.
Given the proliferation of health misinformation on platforms like TikTok or YouTube, Linqia sought to vet each influencer for quality, brand-safe content, the company noted in a press release.
“TikTok and broader social media are increasingly becoming consumers’ go-to source of information as they think about health and wellness,” Keith Bendes, VP of strategy at Linqia, said in a statement. “We are making it easier for healthcare brands to work with the best healthcare professional influencers, who have been pre-vetted for their brand-safe content and desire to work with brands in a paid partnership capacity.”
The HCN launch is Linqia’s latest effort to be a bridge for pharma brands who want to capitalize on the growing influencer marketing industry, the company noted.
The new network will also involve vetting creators for brand safety, ensuring proper Federal Trade Commission disclosures and adequately compensating creators, Linqia added.
TikTok has reigned supreme among social media sites for the last couple years, yet pharma brands have been hesitant to jump on the platform for a variety of concerns, including brand safety.
Still, TikTok’s massive array of health content has spurred plenty of physicians and healthcare professionals to become influencers and offer medical perspectives they hope will go viral.
“If we’re not on social media, then the entire conversation is dominated by [influencers] who don’t have the right credentials,” noted TikTok creator Dr. Austin Lee Chiang, in a recent interview with MM+M.
The Healthcare Creator Network aims to be one step forward in the process of fostering the community of authoritative, trustworthy health influencers. People on TikTok, after all, are craving it.
“I am finding a lot of social media users looking to engage with doctors and experts on all types of health-related questions, ranging from topics related to cancer prevention to how people can support their loved ones through illness,” Dr. Tim, a physician and TikTok influencer, said in a statement. “The Healthcare Creator Network is a great way for brands to leverage experts in specific healthcare fields to educate the general public by sharing accurate, helpful, and scientifically backed data, facts and tips.”
