22 March 2009 VIEW on Advertising AGENCY OUTLOOK s pharmaceutical marketers and advertisers, we are obligated to ensure that consumers receive reliable and trustworthy information about our brands and products.And while we are very effective at this across traditional media channels, in the online/new media space, we are not currently fulfilling this obligation. Learning Who to Trust Jump online and you can very easily find consumers discussing prescription medications on various social networking and health related sites. This is hardly surprising, considering that about one in five consumers are now using online social networking and other Web 2.0 technologies to obtain health information. What is surprising, and somewhat disturbing, is the fact that consumers actually trust the information they receive from these sources (a recent Jupiter research study revealed that 80% of consumers who have used the Internet to “connect to others” trust peer created health information to some degree), and that this information flow occurs virtually unchecked and unmonitored by either the pharmaceutical companies or the FDA. For example, just by reading user reviews, patients (or consumers) may draw conclusions about what medication is right for them, even though these recommendations may include off label or illegal use. Additionally, consumers often complain of adverse reactions that are not listed on labels and recommend their own dosing regimens. And that’s just scratching the surface; delve deeper into some of the darker corners of the Web and you will be amazed at how prescription medications are being used experimentally by college students, how freely they document the results of these experiments, and how frequently they share them with others. PeerCreated Information Because consumers are now actively seeking and actually trusting this sort of peercreated health information, we are faced with a major challenge: How do we monitor what’s being said, and most importantly, act responsibly to make sure that consumers are receiving factual information that will ensure the safe and appropriate use of our products? One thing is for certain, in the absence of any guidance on the matter from the FDA, pharmaceutical companies are left to their own judgment about how to address the issue. Until now, the most broadly adopted approach to overcoming this challenge has been the ostrich strategy. Across the board, brand managers and agency executives have simply put their heads in the sand and hoped this problem would go away. But in reality, this problem is not going away anytime soon and we need to develop solid strategies in order to manage what is being said by consumers about our brands and products online. Ironically, the biggest fear that we as marketers have had about being involved in the online/new media space centers around the loss of control of our messages, and what to do if consumers are discussing adverse reactions and illegal or offlabel use. Unfortunately this current strategy of leaving consumers to discuss our brands and products unabated means that we have effectively ceded control of our carefully crafted marketing messages and left consumers vulnerable to inaccurate information — something that is very dangerous on many levels. Join the Conversation Ultimately the only strategy that can allow us to manage our brands’ marketing messages in the online/new media space, and fulfill our obligation to consumers, is one of involvement. We need to join and man age the conversations that are occurring in order to dispel any misleading or potentially dangerous information. Being involved doesn’t necessarily mean having someone sit down and respond to every online mention about a brand, and it doesn’t mean that we are responsible for reporting every mention of an adverse reaction or of illegal or offlabel use. It does mean, however, that we should have an online monitoring system in place, so we can see what is being said about our brands, along with three of four set responses (regulatory approved) that can be quickly posted to Web sites or mes sage boards in the event that discussions around offlabel use, adverse reactions, or potential aberrant drug related behavior arise. Simple in nature, these responses should be designed to quickly nip misinformation in the bud, inform consumers to either contact their physician or the pharmaceutical company in the event of adverse reactions, or, in the case of offlabel or illegal use, remind consumers that a particular drug is not indicated for the purpose that is being discussed. In the end we all have a responsibility to ensure the safe and appropriate use of our brands and products. In order to help that occur, we must pull our heads out of the sand and find ways to limit the potential damage that could result from consumers misappropriating our brands by disseminating misinformation in the online/new media space. An online monitoring and response strategy is one such way to help ensure our responsibility to safe and appropriate use. PALIO is a full service healthcare communications and advertising agency. For more information, visit palio.com. It’s Time to Take Our Heads Out of the Sand Geoff Sheldon, VP, Brand Planning Director Ultimately the only strategy that can allow us to manage our brands’ marketing messages in the online/new media space, and fulfill our obligation to consumers, is one of involvement. Palio A You know the type: They like to quote themselves and then blush as they stare at you for your acknowledgment of their brilliance. They are the undisputed champions of all they survey. You can see them at those big industry events, lingering darkly in collegiate huddles, backslapping, belly bumping royalty, set on building their fiefdoms. They are the latest crop of landlords, holding court at your expense. This is your average, run of the mill that blows into the cracks along Madison Avenue with the hope to emerge as the new savior of your brand. Beware these false prophets for they cast aspersions at the fundamentals and will attempt to woo you with their crystal balls of hyperbole and technology. At Palio we have zero tolerance for ego building…or silo building (unless you happen to be a local farmer). We believe in the unifying strength of our four pillars— creative, brand planning, medical strategy, and, of course, our account folks. And instead of treating clients like yesterday’s tabloid, tossed aside for a newer, hotter story, we’re in it for the long run…to see that your brand will Never be forgotten. SM If you’ve got a diva that’s grown a little long in the tooth, give Mike Myers a call at 5185848924. Even if he’s given over to the occasional aria, the U of AZ fight song is much more his tempo.
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It's Time to Take Our Heads Out of the Sand
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