DTC Marketers Heading for Skid Row!

A new “D” may need to be added to “DTC” (direct-to-consumer) advertising, as in DDTC — DEPRESSED DTC!

Richard Meyer over at the World of DTC Marketing is a bit depressed himself and seemed stunned after doing an informal survey of his peers working the DTC marketing gig in pharmaceutical companies (see here). He finds they are under pressure to justify their budgets. We may even see some of these DTC marketers out on the street without jobs!

“DTC marketers are busy redoing PowerPoint presentations to try and justify ANY spend. Hardest hit will be the Internet,” says Meyer.

“I got nominated for an award at the DTC convention later this month,” one DTC marketer told Meyer, “and once I have that I can move on and get out of DTC. There just aren’t enough good senior managers who understand the value of marketing here anymore”.

Where I came from — NYC — there was a saying that relates to awards: “That and 15 cents will get you a ride on the subway.” Which would imply that such awards actually have value. But the saying goes back to when I was a kid and it DID cost 15 cents to ride to anywhere in NYC on the subway. Now? Fuggetaboutit!

Are Your Heading for Skid Row Yourself?
All the awards in the world won’t get you your next job on their own and you can’t expect to live on praise for a job well done. You must get out there and network if you expect to keep your job or find a new job. CREATE opportunities rather than wait for them to come to you! That is why Pharma Marketing Network is AGAIN hosting a networking event for pharmaceutical marketing professionals.

Pharma Marketing Network has hosted several successful networking events in the past. The last one in April, 2006, was attended by over 100 people! (See photos, sponsors, and attendee list here.)

We expect this year’s event to be as, if not more, successful. In order to ensure that, we encourage you to take a few minutes to answer the Networking Event Preferences Survey that will help us design a networking event that is perfect for you!

At the end of the survey you will have the opportunity to get your name on the short list of people we will contact PRIOR to announcing the event. We will also offer you a 15-25% discount for early bird registration. If you have recently been laid off from the pharmaceutical industry, you may qualify for an additional discount.

Meyer was inspired to do his own survey after I asked the question “Is the Pharma Industry in a Recession?” More than 150 people have responded to my poll below and 62% of them say “yes.” What do you think?