Pharma runs and hides from paid search
According to a study from web metrics measurement firm ComScore, paid search ads by pharmaceutical companies dropped a whopping 84% between March 26 of this year and the end of June. Does thi
By on Oct 8, 2009According to a study from web metrics measurement firm ComScore, paid search ads by pharmaceutical companies dropped a whopping 84% between March 26 of this year and the end of June. Does this make sense and what are the real reasons paid search is dropping?
There is risk adverse and then there is pharma which ironically, when it comes to challenging the FDA on anything to do with drug advertising, tucks its tail and runs and hides like a puppy who made a mistake in the house. The fact that paid search has dropped so much as a result of the letters from the FDA is indicative of a bigger problem at both the FDA and with pharma marketers; the lack of understanding the digital channel and how people access health information.
So why has search dropped so much? Here are some reasons:
1. Let's move the money to TV. Pharma marketers have a love affair with TV advertising even though time and time again more and more studies show that TV provides less and less of an ROI. This was a perfect excuse to take that search money and put it into other channels.
2. Let's avoid all risk. Most pharma companies are more than risk adverse when it comes to the FDA and DDMAC they are scared to death of enforcement action and will do whatever the FDA wants them to do whether it makes sense or not.
3. We didn't pay that much attention to paid search copy. Some are paying the price for not really focusing on paid search wording and as a result they have told their agency "stop everything in paid search until we can review it again". The way pharma moves this could take half a year.
4. The FDA once again has their collective heads up their asses. Why should the FDA issue guidelines on paid search, you do it and we'll let you know it it's OK. A perfect example is clarification around the one-click rule which the FDA NOW feels is unacceptable.
Let's look at the reality of search. The same results (drug/benefit without fair balance) could occur with organic search which drug companies can't control. The FDA in their brilliance has not addressed this because they are brain dead when it comes to having someone within the agency who knows digital. It used to be that one-click to fair balance was acceptable and an unwritten rule. Now all of a sudden the FDA says "that's not good enough anymore!"
Rather than bring in Manhattan Research to explain to DDMAC and FDA people what is happening in online health and why they would rather bring in people who have an agenda. Correct me if I'm wrong but shouldn't the FDA ask consumers of healthcare first before asking the industry?
The other key problem that the drop in search illustrates is that big pharma does not have people who really understand the digital channel in key decision making levels. Sure there maybe an eMarketing person but does that person really have a passion for and understand the digital channel and can that person really get managements buy-in on what needs to be done and why?
The FDA has become too political and pharma has become too risk adverse and in the end it just means that pharma continues to ignore empowered patients who frankly are laughing at DTC advertising now.