The mission of iMedExchange is to add value to the lives of physicians. Building a secure, vibrant and useful community is core to this mission and January marks another milestone in that effort.

In November, we launched the first stage of a program to reward our physician members for their own efforts in building that community. That first stage included iMX Points, a system that awards points to members for specific activities that build a stronger community and support collaboration. In the past 90 days, iMedExchange members have earned nearly 500,000 iMX Points.

In December, we launched the next stage of the program with iMX Advantage, a benefits program that brings best-in-class opportunities to iMedExchange members. Initial iMX Advantage partners have included Wine.com, Staples, Horizon & Co. and others. All are providing iMedExchange members with exclusive access and financial incentives and over the coming months we will announce many more opportunities for physicians -- ranging from financial services to clinical supplies to technology and more.

In January, we announced a bi-weekly iMX Advantage drawing in which the top 100 iMX Points earners are automatically entered into a bi-weekly drawing. The inaugural drawing awarded Canon digital cameras to two iMedExchange physicians. The next drawing will be Friday, January 12th and we can't wait to notify the winners!

I just had a call with a company struggling to figure out how to create a social media strategy that has a chance of actually reaching physicians and, once reached, that will foster a strong, value-add relationship between them. This is a familiar refrain these days, as pharma, device, and other industry organizations navigate what they perceive as the new, dangerous and opaque social media landscape. This company wasn't pharma nor device but they are still struggling with a lot of the same issues -- how do I find just the docs I care about... once I find them how do I engage them... once I engage them how do keep that engagement from turning on me.

An underlying premise of their current thinking was that social media was something they were supposed to "at" docs or at least "with" docs -- i.e., they needed to be communicating a message through social media channels to eagerly listening docs or trying to make them engage in a conversation about their product. There's a place for this, no doubt, but social media is more than just asking leading questions on LinkedIn, exposing yourself through bitly links on Twitter and making "friendly" product announcements through Facebook. In fact, you don't necessarily have to do any of that to be successful -- sometimes, just being there enough.

I have heard this aphorism many times in the seven years since my kids were born, although usually in the context of things like school plays, "donuts for dads" gatherings and kindergarten graduations. Just by being there I send a message to my girls that I care about them, that I think their pretty cool and I want to spend time with them. While I'm there, my girls are seeing me interact with others, learning about me by the way I interact with others. They get to see me resolve conflicts and they see that others respect me (although it may be too much to ask for that lesson to sink in for a while). If they are nervous or get into a scrap, they know that I'm there for them as a resource at a time when they need me.

This is useful way to think about social media, i.e., it's not always necessary to be communicating directly "at", or even "with", your target audience through these channels -- just being there can send an important message. For example, instead of trying to get prosective new clients to talk with you in a discussion forum, have the conversation with your customers who already love you -- but have that conversation in ear shot of the rest of your target audience. A user support forum is a good example. Prospects get a chance to learn about your product and, more importantly, about how you treat your customers with having to message them directly. This is analogous to letting my kids watch me talk to teachers, kids, other parents instead of just telling them over and over and over what a good guy I am (of course, my kids do not yet have the choice of disowning me). Another example would be making useful, value-add resources available to them wherever they are in the social media landscape rather than making them seek you out. This is especially salient for physicians who constantly remind us that they don't want "yet one more place to go on the Internet" -- they have too many places to find as it is! The kid-friendly analogy here would be telling my kids that if they need me they should go find a pay phone and call me if there's something I can help with.

iMedExchange strives to build the most-useful place online for physicians and to connect them with value-add information, resources and opportunities where they are.

First off - Happy New Year! We had a terrific company Christmas Party several weeks back and the general consensus was that we are all glad 2009 is over. 2010 stands to be very exciting and is already moving at a rapid pace.

I am frankly a little embarrassed by the lack of outward communication through our blog through the entire Holiday Season. Clearly our priorities were elsewhere. While it became a very very busy time, there is no excuse for such a massive collapse. I am being a little facetious, but you get the point.

I won't go into all the excitement of the last month but suffice it to say some of it will be very evident to physicians in the coming months. We're preparing to open up the chocolate factory and only a few select golden tickets have been issued to date. That's all I'm going to say on that for now.

We'll be sharing lots on the blog this year from technology insights to social media analysis and strategies to profiles of interesting physicians as nominated by our broader community. We're going to tackle some serious market challenges on behalf of physicians but we are also going to have some fun.

2010 we're glad you are here!

At iMedExchange I get to work with physician colleagues from all walks and all parts of the country. My experience has been that everyone has a story to tell and I've heard from plenty of members that they enjoy learning about other members.

With that context, I'd like to introduce you to a physician who is particularly fascinating, talented and quickly becoming an important member of the iMedExchange community. Robert Oksenholt, DO ("Dr. Bob") is a critical care physician and pulmonologist practicing in the coastal town of Lincoln City, Oregon. Dr. Bob is an amazing combination of visionary combined with pragmatic perfectionist.

Dr. Bob was born in Ethiopia during the reign of Haile Selassie and spent his childhood in Great Falls, Montana. He attended medical school in Kansas City Missouri, did his residency in New York City, trained in Critical Care at the University of Pittsburg and did his Pulmonary training at the University of Texas - Houston.

He then moved to Lincoln City where his brother Erling had already been practicing medicine. When he's not at work, he loves exploring both technology and nature, including animals. According to Dr. Bob there is no better place to enjoy nature than Oregon with its moderate weather, rain forests and beautiful coast.

A little know fact, partly because it's so recent, is that Bob's daughter Celeste just scored a perfect 2400 on her SAT. Apparently the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

When I asked Bob for his thoughts on iMedExchange here is what he had to say: "I was recently introduced to iMedExchange and it's clear to me this platform, this community, and this company, are going to have a major impact on health care broadly, and physicians specifically. I suspect most people who have become members to date haven't bothered to look at the broader implication of what's being assembled. I get it! Every doctor in the country needs to get involved with this platform and participate in the community. It's clearly being built with and for physicians unlike anything in the market."

This weekend marks the official launch of iMX Advantage, an exclusive membership benefits program for iMedExchange members. As I wrote last week in Customer Driven Marketing, iMedExchange is committed to delivering value to our physician members in everything we do. iMX Advantage is an example of that model. Through this innovative program, simply for being a part of the iMedExchange community, members will gain access to "best in class" opportunities from organizations that represent the best of their respective categories. We are truly excited about the launch of iMX Advantage because each and every best-in-class opportunity we bring to our members will deliver immediate value. "Best in class" means that the opportunities our partners bring must be as good as or better (and usually better) than any other program they have in place with any other organization. In this way, we ensure that our members will not have to worry about the quality of the offer of whether they can find a better opportunity elsewhere - you'll never see a 5% discount on a rental car in iMX Advantage! And unlike other similar benefits programs, there is no cost for our physician members to participate.

We are launching the program with two initial partners, Staples and Artisanal Cheese out of New York. Both companies represent the best of the best in their respective categories and each has built a custom, best-in-class buying program for our members. As you can see from the selection of these two initial partners, iMedExchange is on a mission to bring value to every aspect of physician's lives, not just their clinical practice - although some of our biggest announcements coming in the near future are going to bring unmatched value to the practice of medicine for more members. As we move forward with iMX Advantage, we will launch new partners virtually every week for the foreseeable future. Our current pipeline of partners includes organizations from gourmet, travel, financial services, technology, electronics, transportation, luxury goods and others. We have other great programs in the works related to iMX Advantage and I'll look forward to sharing them with you as they launch... and you won't have to wait long!

Physicians continue to increase their usage of the Internet as a resource for professional and personal activities at an ever-increasing pace.

According to a November 2009 study by Google entitled "Connecting with Physicians Online":

•80% of physicians use the internet to verify information from a patient
•73% percent of physicians consider the internet to be a standard part of their clinical practice
•83% of physicians rely on the Internet more now than in the past.
•78% of physicians believe the internet has made the practice of medicine easier
•69% of physicians trust online information

Physician Internet usage does not spike at any particular time throughout the day. They use the Internet around the clock, in short bursts.

The data is very telling. Physicians are increasing their reliance on the Internet to make the practice of medicine easier and to vet the information received from their patients.

It is still a little surprising to me that the primary source for clinical information is a search on --- Google.

This points to the fact that traditional sources of information, CME, textbooks, etc are being replaced or at the very least augmented. The more effective and approachable the Internet becomes the more the trends are pronounced.

Something tells me Google is not the end game however. It's a good bridge to a more intelligent network. One in which relevant/contextual knowledge and information is instantly available...whether at the point of care, in our offices or on the go. The transformations we have seen in just the last 10 years are incredible when you stop to think about it. Imagine what the coming 10 years has in store...

A few of you may be familiar with the famous phrase above...transmitted May 24, 1843 from Samuel Morse at the Supreme Court in Washington DC to his young associate Alfred Vail located at the B&O depot in Baltimore.

I chose to feature Morse first in my mini series of great American innovators because his story is both interesting, inspiring and in many ways typical of the meandering path and persistence associated with major innovation. It's also germane that he was an important innovator specifically in the field of communication, effectively creating the central nervous system for communications around the country and world.

One of the more interesting elements of the Morse story is that his initial career was in the arts. He grew up the son of a popular Congregationalist minister. By the time he was in his early thirties he was a famous American painter. He even founded the National Academy of Design in New York.

It was tragedy, however, that compelled him to begin experimenting with electricity, magnets, wiring and such in order to transmit messages in real time across vast distances. The tragic event happened while Morse was in DC painting President John Quincy Adams. He had left his wife back in New York as she was recovering from the birth their third child. His father sent word that she was "convalescent." This turned out not to be the case. She had passed away. By the time he received word and traveled through harsh conditions, she was already buried.

Continue reading "What God Hath Wrought" »

At iMedExchange, we are constantly asking ourselves the question "how does that bring value to our members". No... really... I mean constantly. We asked this question last year when we were experimenting with an ad-revenue model. The problem is that banner ads and popups don't bring value to the users who are the targets. Sure, ads can sometimes (if intelligently and contextually targeted) help a user learn about a vendor or product that may actually turn out to be a good fit for the buyer. But that's clearly the exception because CPM stands for "cost per milli", i.e., that banner add or popup has to be shown 1,000 times to earn the .50 cents, $2, $10 or (in case of targeted physician ad placements) even as much as $100 - $200 CPM rate. What I take from that is that you have to show a lot (and I mean A LOT) of people a distracting, annoying and utterly valueless ad before you uncover that rare person who might find what you're selling to be a good fit.

But we tried it...on a very limited basis mind you. We solicited feedback from some of our physician members and they agreed with what I just said. However, if we were selective about what ads we allowed in and we used the revenues from those ads to build more and more value in other areas... well then it was worth testing. After all, they understand to build a sustainable vertical social network that adds value to physicians, it has to make money. But underlying that was the clear understanding that if we adopted that ad-revenue strategy then we would be undertaking a revenue model that added no real value to our members.

Continue reading "Customer Driven Marketing" »

"You See Things and You Say 'Why?' But I Dream Things That Never Were; And I Say, 'Why Not?" George Bernard Shaw, Back to Methuselah (1921)

Innovation is a fascinating subject and innovators are fun to read about. They are even more fun to be around. I am fortunate to be surrounded by innovators in their respective areas of interest...medicine, technology, law, sales, design and more. As iMedExchange prepares to launch waves of innovation into a market starving for inspiration and solutions, I thought I'd share thoughts about innovation and innovators I have stumbled across in the course of my reading.

First, let me note there is a distinction between invention and innovation. There are terrific works on this comparison including a brief article by William Buxton from 2005. Buxton notes in his opening statement that:

"Innovation is far more about prospecting, mining, refining and adding value than it is about pure invention."

Buxton goes on to quote William Gibson "The future is already here. It is just not uniformly distributed."

Continue reading "Innovation in America" »

I love Autumn. It's a beautiful time of year as the weather gets crisp (in most places), the trees change colors and we look forward to the celebrations of the Holidays. I have a special development...my second child and first son is due sometime around Christmas.

Over the past few months my opportunities to write have been limited by an unrelenting schedule. We are preparing for some industry changing introductions, the pinnacle of which will be announced after the Holidays. In the meantime, I can finally take a breath as we work on final touches and get our batteries charged for 2010. This next year we will release one of the most important advances in Health Care IT in decades. It's going to be the year of the physician! Physicians have put up with a lot lately and the game is about to change.

I thought I would share a few images from my Fall. 1) My daughter eating cupcakes in the office kitchen 2) The view of changing trees out my office window (Nordstrom HQ is across the street) 3) My wife and daughter carving pumpkins and 4) Watching game 2 of the Fall Classic from Times Square

Those who read my blog know that from time to time I will highlight exceptional hotels and restaurants I frequent in the course of my travels. Mostly I do so in case one of the physician members of iMedExchange is travelling and wants some advance scouting on places to stay or eat.

This week I spent several days in South Florida meeting with sharp physicians from all walks. Florida is an important health care market and a very high percentage of the state's physicians are members of iMedExchange.

While I vary my food selections, I always have to try the local sushi favorite when I am in a coastal town. (as a general rule I don't eat sushi or fish when I am not in a coastal area) Based on several recommendations, I gave Sushi Maki in Coral Gables a try. (there are also locations in South Miami and Palmetto Bay) Myself and my physician compatriots all came away feeling like the place lived up to its reputation.

Located across thr street from the Collonade on Ponce De Leon the restaurant isn't flashy, but it does have a subtle design flare. The service was superb. Most importantly, the sushi was extremely fresh, creatively displayed and terrifc tasting. Even the menu was creative including lessons in writing haiku.

When visiting Miami for your next society conference, make time for Sushi Maki.

In the course of my travels I am fortunate to meet hundreds of physicians all over the country. Each has a unique story and I am grateful for having the opportunity to meet each doctor. While I cant profile everyone, occasionally I get a chance to write a little profile about a physician doing something unique; and today is one of those opportunities. This morning we had the privilege of touring the Badia Hand to Shoulder Center in Doral, Florida. Alejandro Badia, MD, F.A.C.S. gave us a personal tour...on his birthday nonetheless.

The first word that comes to mind after touring the facility is "class." The space is extremely well designed and virtually every detail has been attended to. The staff are sharp and professional. Dr. Badia is warm, intelligent and entrepreneurial.

When you enter the lobby you immediately notice the rich, dark woods and tasteful lighting. Patients and families can sit in a nice atmosphere with a flat screen television that provides educational material while also updating families waiting on a patient's status. The work flow in the space is very well thought out and it's truly a paperless operation. The well appointed surgical center is set up for video monitoring and broadcasting so procedures can be viewed anywhere in the world over their secure system.

Upstairs from the practice and surgery center is the DoctorsNow walk in care facility. This serves as both a primary care facility and an occupational medicine facility...which makes sense for the community which is a mixture of residential and industrial/corporate.

Dr. Badia and his team are conveniently located adjacent to the Miami International Airport, the Doral Golf and Spa Resort and a very short drive from communities like Coral Gables.

As online social networking approaches adolescence, many are asking "where's the value?" While there is some value in satisfying the natural human need to connect with others, that isn't always enough to justify the time and energy required to participate in a social network. This is especially so when you factor in all the "noise" of a typical social network like Facebook -- the inane comments of friends of friends, the popup ads, the invitations to become friends with people you don't know, or to join a mafia family, or to fend off a pillow fight, or to accept a virtual cocktail, or a new fish for your virtual aquarium... who has the time for so much nonsense?!

Continue reading "Value-add Social Netwoking" »

At the core of Social Media is a connectedness between people who share at least something in common. Whether the connection is personal, professional or both, social networks serve as a platform to create value out of our relationships with others. Sometimes the value generated by our social networks is simply fulfilling the basic need for communication. Other times, social networks expose us to new relationships that themselves may become strong and valuable. I have found this to be the case with a quite old form of social network -- the regular poker game.

Compared to many of the young guns dominating the poker world these days, I came to poker late in life... just eight years ago. I was immediately drawn to the complex strategies and subtle tactics of the game but only more recently have developed a deep fascination for the human element of the game. And while I appreciate that the art of deception and the craft of reading other players as crucial elements of the game, I am most fascinated by the way Poker can forge relationships between players.

Two years ago I began hosting a monthly low-stakes poker tournament, "Poker 2.0", with the intent of fostering relationships among Seattle tech entrepreneurs and investors. Recently, I have begun partnering with other tech startup organizations to bring the networking power of poker to a broader audience. This past Monday, I took Poker 2.0 on the road to Silicon Valley for an extravagant networking event for tech founders, CEOs and investors called Founders Feast. The event was a huge success -- not only did attendees have a great time playing poker but the conversations around the tables were clearly connecting people in a powerful way. On the following night, I was invited to play at another long-running Silicon Valley poker game among venture capital folks and investors and once again established the beginnings of more relationships that some day may prove fruitful for all sides.

My next challenge is to bring poker to physicians across the country as a fun way to connect the physician community. That experiment started tonight as we invited Seattle area physicians to join us for a friendly poker tournament as our first-ever Physician Appreciation event. Over the coming year, we'll be hosting many Physician Appreciation events around the country and some of those will include poker tournaments. We will keep you posted on these events as we travel the country meeting our physician members where they live.

Komi came highly recommended and in some DC circles is currently rated the hottest restaurant.

The experience started out on a humorous note. My very close friend, in fact my college roommate, suggested we go for sushi. Never one to turn down sushi I was prepared to see what sushi in the District was all about. Komi is located in the trendy Dupont neighborhood of DC and is a low key, clean simple place.

Upon receiving the menu my companion mentioned we were in the mood for some quality sushi. The waiter wasn't quite sure how to respond except to inform us Komi was a greek restaurant. The sushi mix up may have been the result of the fact that some dishes involve raw fish. This is akin to saying that Thai food is basically the same as Italian because some dishes involve noodles.

Komi is very simple....and very expensive. You choose from one of three main dishes. Aside from that, everything is selected for you. They begin almost immediately serving bite size dishes called Mezzethakia that do include lots of raw fish oriented treats. The main dishes are a selection of rustic meats or fish that are truly unique.

All in all, Komi is interesting...not a place I would frequent on any regular basis...especially considering the prices ($125+ per person with one glass of wine). I also wouldn't claim to have liked every single morsel. However, the dishes were one of a kind and for a once every few years experience, Komi should be on your list.