Gholamreza Jamali

Objective: This study aims to examine the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in improving the marketing and sales processes of pharmaceutical products in Bushehr province. Methodology: The research is applied in purpose and employs a mixed-methods approach (qualitative and quantitative). The population included academic experts and specialists from Daroupakhsh Company in Bushehr. In the qualitative phase, through literature review and expert interviews, 7 main criteria and 45 sub-criteria related to AI applications in pharmaceutical marketing and sales were identified. In the quantitative phase, the DEMATEL method and pairwise comparison questionnaires completed by 12 specialists were used to analyze the relationships among the indicators. Findings: AI plays effective roles in pharmaceutical marketing and sales, including improving customer relationships, sales control, increasing accuracy in analyzing customer behavior, market and sales data management, enhancing research and development efficiency, affecting human resources, and increasing business process productivity. DEMATEL analysis indicated that improving customer relationships, increasing accuracy in behavior analysis, and impacting human resources are causal and influential factors, with human resources having the greatest effect. Other factors, such as sales control, market and sales data management, research and development efficiency, and business process productivity, are dependent and influenced by these primary factors. Conclusion: AI optimizes pharmaceutical marketing and sales by enhancing customer interaction, enabling more precise behavior analysis, and improving human resource productivity. Special attention to research and development and business process management is essential to prevent negative dependency effects and ensure overall effectiveness.