2004

Speaking on the topic of marketing at the Strategic Research Institute's 2nd Pharmaceutical Marketing Global Summit held in Philadelphia, PA, February 26, 2004, Stevens offered advice for pharmaceutical marketers on how not to make their marketing suck.

New Written Prescriptions (NWRx's), which are uncontaminated by managed care intervention and patient fulfillment issues, are the ultimate measure of physician behavior and, therefore, the purest measure of promotional effectiveness, according to Nancy S. Lurker, CEO of ImpactRx. This article highlights real world examples of the differences between analyses performed using ImpactRx's NWRx's for patients new to or switching therapy versus those using traditional dispensed new prescription data.

So, the economy sucks and there's less low hanging fruit to go after. That's life. In order to deal with the hand we've been dealt and get our share of the available crumbs out there, we really can't afford to have marketing that sucks. We have to engage in some extreme marketing

On February 4, 2004, the FDA issued long-awaited draft guidance documents designed to improve communications to consumers and health care practitioners about health conditions and medical products. The most eagerly anticipated guidance concerns the acceptable alternatives to the lengthy, detailed, and technically-written brief summary of risk information for consumer-directed print advertisements for prescription drugs.

The Super Bowl debut of DTC advertising was tainted by all the brouhaha over the half-time show. Perhaps as many people complained about the erectile dysfunction (ED) ads of Cialis as complained about the half-time show. Was it appropriate to run these ED drug ads during the SuperBowl? Which DTC campaign-including Viagra, which did not run and ad during the game-is most effective and why? These questions and others were included in a survey of PHARMA-MKTING listserv members. The results are summarized in this article.

This article is a summary of a presentation by Lynn Benzing, President, The Patient Marketing Group at the Achieving DTC Success Conference in October, 2003. Ms. Benzing presented results from her company's Consumer Relationship Satisfaction Survey, a groundbreaking comparative study on how pharmaceutical marketers are handling key consumer touch-points that impact brand loyalty. This study profiles over 50 brands across all major therapeutic categories.

Vol. 3, No. 2: February 2004 - CONTENTS Feature Article Key Issues Facing DTC Marketers in 2004 Guest Article Beyond Patient Education: Influencing...

This article focuses on what marketers need to do to face the tough 2004 DTC environment. It summarizes a presentation made by Robert Ehrlich, CEO, DTC Perspectives Inc. at the Achieving DTC Success Conference in October, 2003. Ehrlich talked about TV ad creativity, government regulations, the issue of brand retention, DTC ROI, and the challenges of a consumer-centric approach.

This article reviews how tailored behavior change programs can increase acquisition, compliance, persistency or brand loyalty. A smoking cessation program is presented as a case study.

Pharma Marketing News is the monthly e-newsletter of the Pharma Marketing Network (www.pharma-mkting.com). It is packed with facts, opinions, and case studies based upon interviews with experts in the field of pharmaceutical marketing. Highlights of presentations from industry conferences, contact lists for experts consulted, and links to references help susbcribers keep up to date on best practices and network with their peers.