HIMSS Media Research Reveals Technology Buying Process Becoming More Complex, Harder to Navigate

Study Provides Healthcare Technology Marketers with Data and Insights to Prioritize Marketing Investments and Improve Marketing Efficiency

PORTLAND, Maine, May 30, 2018 – HIMSS Media, the leading B2B media group focused exclusively on health information and technology, announces the release of groundbreaking industry research on healthcare IT buyers and their decision-making process. The research, conducted in Q1 2018, provides healthcare technology marketers with insights to help them reach and engage buyers and influencers more effectively.

“Buying technology is a complex undertaking in any industry, but especially in healthcare where lives are at risk,” said Janet King, senior director of market insights at HIMSS Media. “Our goal with this research is to highlight the needs of buyers so that organizations like HIMSS Media and our technology solution provider partners can make it faster and easier for healthcare organizations to confidently make technology decisions that improve health outcomes.”

The data for the study was gathered via an online survey to the HIMSS audience of IT, business and clinical decision-makers, and includes results from a range of healthcare organization types and sizes. Key findings from the research include:

• The Buying Process is Becoming More Complex: On average it takes 12 months for a healthcare organization to make a major technology investment decision, and almost half of the decision-makers surveyed report that the length of the buying cycle has increased over the last few years. Similarly, the size of the buyer collective is also expanding and is now comprised of 9 individuals on average across a variety of functional roles.

• Buyers Have Trouble Finding the Content They Need:  Nine out of 10 healthcare decision makers report difficulty finding the content they need to make informed technology decisions. They are most interested in content that has a healthcare industry perspective (75%), is from a trusted/independent source (66%), and shows them how others have benefitted by using the product/service (65%).

• Reaching Buyers with the Right Content Amplifies Engagement: 97% of buyers report taking action after finding valuable content. Actions include researching the product/service (80%) discussing content/technology with peers (72%), and/or forwarding the content to peers (53%).

Additional findings from the research are highlighted in our buyer journey infographic. HIMSS Media will also share more detailed research findings in a complimentary webinar on June 21st. To learn more about the webinar visit the Secrets of the Buying Journey webinar registration page.

About HIMSS Media

HIMSS Media is the fastest growing B2B media group focused exclusively on healthcare and technology markets. Through its suite of market-leading brands, such as Healthcare IT News, Healthcare Finance and MobiHealthNews, HIMSS Media delivers news, analysis and must-have information to an audience of senior healthcare and technology influencers. HIMSS Media is also the leading producer of important live events, such as the Healthcare Security Forum Machine Learning & AI for Healthcare, Pop Health Forum, Revenue Cycle Solutions Summit, and Big Data and Healthcare Analytics Forum.