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Thought leadership and innovation for the Pharmaceutical Industry

There are many people who have been surprised by the "overnight" popularity of social media but I would suggest that this is not a splash in the water but rather an evolution of the Internet and how u

There are many people who have been surprised by the "overnight" popularity of social media but I would suggest that this is not a splash in the water but rather an evolution of the Internet and how users utilize the Web to connect and share information. The transformation of the Internet is happening rather quickly and DTC marketers should be focusing on the where the Web is headed as implementation now may be outdated in only a few months.

No other media channel has grown as fast as the Internet. The reasons for its growth stem from the fact that it is driven by users not marketers and frankly consumers are tired of advertising intrusion into their daily lives.

As much as the Internet impacts our lives the underlying problem is still "how to sort through all that information to find the information we want and is credible". There has been a lot of talk about Web 3.0 but in reality components of Web 3.0 are already here. You can follow someone who is connected within the industry on platforms like Facebook and Twitter and set up alerts via Google so that customized information arrives in your inbox as it is available on the Web. Micro targeting, the ability to target specific segments with specific messages, is already in use by some sites but for healthcare marketers the key issue is privacy concerns.

Awhile back some people were not happy to learn that Real Age was using data from users to send out targeted advertising from pharma companies even though pharma did not get the personal information. However I believe that most people would prefer to receive more targeted advertising that is more relevant than general ads based on demographics.

So users control the Internet and social media but how can they streamline information searches and stay on top of what's important to them. Well first pharma is missing one hell of an opportunity to stay in touch with current customers via a great CRM program. The reason, I believe, that many have not been successful is that the lines between meaningful information has been blurred with promotional offers. CRM programs can only be successful if customers find it of value. The other reason is that one CRM program does not fit all segments in a microsegment society. Do you really think that a 30 something and 50 something women have the same information needs when it comes to healthcare treatments? Pharma could collect a whole host of information on their existing customers but you need both an IT platform to segment and build CRM programs along with someone who can understand and develop key messages for each segment.

There are a lot of social media sites starting to appear around health conditions. There will of course be winners and losers within these sites but the evolution of how people filter information is going to continue. Regardless of how you feel about social media I would argue that social media is a natural evolution of the Internets ability to connect people from all over the world and share information. So the question is which pharma companies are prepared for this evolution and which ones can react to leverage the strength of communities?