Pharmaceutical marketing today: It’s about the drugs, not the user
Evolution of marketing in pharma is big business and it continues to grow at a rapid rate. In fact, the marketing spend in the pharmaceutical sector has increased by nearly 70% in the past 20 years and now totals nearly $30 billion dollars.1
The question is whether the current approach to evolution of marketing in pharma will continue to work in the evolving new world of patient advocacy, preventative care, and strong proof of outcomes demands? We believe the future of pharma marketing looks bright.
Those businesses that embrace the power of digital innovation and a customer-first business model will succeed in building more effective interactions, deeper loyalty, and lasting brand preference. Despite the squeeze of cost-control, regulatory restrictions, and global competition, the marketing world of pharma will adapt going forward to focus on the user, not the drugs.
The one-size-fits all approach won’t work anymore
Traditional marketing strategies in this industry have revolved around vigorous product marketing of the prescription drugs that the decision-makers think will make money. Commercial success is attributed to aggressive digital marketing and promotional activity—usually targeted to the physician. Responding to the needs and expectations of patients, providers, and payers hasn’t typically been the top goal, but that’s about to change.
The current state of pharmaceutical marketing is complex and usually takes 1 of 2 paths: direct-to-consumer or direct-to-provider/payer. Pharmaceutical firms today don’t normally differentiate between these 2 channels.
They tend to take more of a one-size-fits-all approach. This runs counter to today’s way of thinking, which is all about personalization, customer experience, and targeted omni-channel marketing of the right product, at the right time, to the right user, and using the right media.
The shift to value-based health care has arrived
Our fast-changing market demands more value than ever before from pharmaceutical manufacturers. In this case, value means more cost efficiency, proven patient outcomes, and greater contribution to the overall health care experience throughout the value chain.
Those pharma companies that shift their attention to what providers, payers, and patients are asking for will profit from the growing worldwide market on preventative care. The key will be becoming a key player in the integrated health management model that ties traditional pharmaceutical marketing into mobile communications, and other online platforms for diagnosis and marketing.
The tight regulatory environment surrounding pharmaceutical marketing continues to be a challenge to providing value-based health care. Notably, there is no evidence to suggest that the regulatory landscape for marketing pharmaceuticals will become clearer and easier any time soon.
An alternative to the heavy regulation of mass-marketing advertising might be found in less traditional, more relationship-focused digital marketing channels that better align with the new environment of patient/provider/payer control, values-based outcomes, chronic disease prevention, the internet as an information gathering tool, and specialized marketing of specialty information to a targeted pool of relevant patients.
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