Mastering the obvious…

About the Author

Richard Meyer is a passionate Internet DTC marketer with over 15 years of progressive experience in consumer marketing who`s worked on top pharmaceutical brands like Cialis, Prozac and Sarafem, as well as two years with Medtronic Diabetes. He is currently consulting for his own company, Online Strategic Solutions, and writes a DTC column for PM 360 magazine and blogs for Eye for Pharma in addition to his own blog, World of DTC Marketing.

So let’s looks at the facts;

1. More people are going online for health information than at any other time in our history.

2. Patients are taking the information and using it to take active participation in their healthcare decisions.

3. Congress believes that the public has to be protected from DTC advertising and wants to scale back DTC.

Per a quote from one of my favorite movies: “what we have here is failure to communicate”. A good marketing person should always try and put him/herself in the shoes of their customer and right now customers are going online to take an active participation in their healthcare. Why? Because they want a say in what goes on within their bodies, because they are more likely to be dealing with an aging parent who needs extended healthcare and saying “that’s not going to happen to me!” The point is that people are questioning their HCP’s from medical procedures to the type of medication they take.

I have recommended before that before Congress develop healthcare programs they listen to how consumers are obtaining and using healthcare information. They would see that consumers in fact don’t trust DTC ads even though the drug industry continues to spend millions to sponsor the network news. I again call on lawmakers to invite Manhattan Research and Prevention magazine to give a presentation on how consumers are using health information. Once they have the facts maybe then they’re realize that the ideas they are coming up with are not relevant to today’s empowered consumer.