Marketing Strategies Employed by Pharmaceutical Companies
Considering it cost the average pharmaceutical company $1.3 billion to develop a drug as of 2006 according to The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, it is no wonder drug manufacturers employ a variety of marketing strategies to help increase revenue. While some people are opposed to the marketing practices of the pharmaceutical industry, these companies create medicines that help patients live longer and healthier lives. Pharmaceutical companies still use traditional print- and broadcast-based marketing strategies like magazine ads, television and radio. However, online ad spending in the pharmaceutical industry increased 10.6 percent in 2010 according to e-Marketer, which suggests digital marketing strategies are becoming more prevalent for pharmacy manufacturers.
Sampling
Sampling is a marketing strategy pharmaceutical companies use to help patients experience their products for free. First, pharmaceutical companies approach physicians, and ask them if they would like product samples. The physician can then hand out samples to patients who are affected by the condition the drug is indicated for. Sampling allows pharmaceutical companies to gain brand awareness among physicians and consumers.
Journal Ads
Pharmaceutical companies place advertisements in journals that are relevant to their particular disease state. For example, a pharmaceutical manufacturer who develops a drug to treat hypertension may choose to place an ad in "Heart," an international peer-reviewed journal that keeps cardiologists up to date about advances in cardiovascular disease. This allows the drug company to gain exposure to its product among a highly targeted group of health care professionals.
SME and KOL Presentations
Pharmaceutical companies market their products by training subject matter experts (SMEs) and key opinion leaders (KOLs) to deliver highly technical medical presentations about topics like disease state overviews, treatment innovations and drug mechanisms of action. The underlying principle of using KOLs and SMEs as a marketing strategy is if physicians find value in the medical education and guidance they receive from these experts, they may be more inclined to prescribe the company's products. Many times, the SME or KOL is a physician or other qualified health care professional, which adds to the credibility of the brand.
Search Engine Marketing
Search engine marketing, also known as SEM, allows pharmaceutical companies to place targeted advertisements that appear in search engines when people use specific search terms. For example, a hypertension brand may decide that customers frequently use search terms like "best heart drug," "hypertension treatment options" and "high blood pressure drugs" when searching for treatment information online. The pharmaceutical company can then bid on these key words and create an ad that appears when a customer searches for the key words.
E-Detailing
E-Detailing is a marketing strategy pharmaceutical companies employ to connect with physicians and other health care professionals online. E-Detailing allows the physician to schedule an appointment to talk to a pharmaceutical representative about drug and disease state information online rather than seeing a pharmaceutical sales representative in person. This saves time for both the physician and the drug company and allows for a more in-depth conversation, since the physician is meeting with the representative on his own time, rather than having to hear an unexpected presentation in his office while he is trying to tend to patients.
Sampling
Sampling is a marketing strategy pharmaceutical companies use to help patients experience their products for free. First, pharmaceutical companies approach physicians, and ask them if they would like product samples. The physician can then hand out samples to patients who are affected by the condition the drug is indicated for. Sampling allows pharmaceutical companies to gain brand awareness among physicians and consumers.
Journal Ads
Pharmaceutical companies place advertisements in journals that are relevant to their particular disease state. For example, a pharmaceutical manufacturer who develops a drug to treat hypertension may choose to place an ad in "Heart," an international peer-reviewed journal that keeps cardiologists up to date about advances in cardiovascular disease. This allows the drug company to gain exposure to its product among a highly targeted group of health care professionals.
SME and KOL Presentations
Pharmaceutical companies market their products by training subject matter experts (SMEs) and key opinion leaders (KOLs) to deliver highly technical medical presentations about topics like disease state overviews, treatment innovations and drug mechanisms of action. The underlying principle of using KOLs and SMEs as a marketing strategy is if physicians find value in the medical education and guidance they receive from these experts, they may be more inclined to prescribe the company's products. Many times, the SME or KOL is a physician or other qualified health care professional, which adds to the credibility of the brand.
Search Engine Marketing
Search engine marketing, also known as SEM, allows pharmaceutical companies to place targeted advertisements that appear in search engines when people use specific search terms. For example, a hypertension brand may decide that customers frequently use search terms like "best heart drug," "hypertension treatment options" and "high blood pressure drugs" when searching for treatment information online. The pharmaceutical company can then bid on these key words and create an ad that appears when a customer searches for the key words.
E-Detailing
E-Detailing is a marketing strategy pharmaceutical companies employ to connect with physicians and other health care professionals online. E-Detailing allows the physician to schedule an appointment to talk to a pharmaceutical representative about drug and disease state information online rather than seeing a pharmaceutical sales representative in person. This saves time for both the physician and the drug company and allows for a more in-depth conversation, since the physician is meeting with the representative on his own time, rather than having to hear an unexpected presentation in his office while he is trying to tend to patients.
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