Sean O’Donnell, Group Copy Supervisor, Palio
Consumer marketing may seem like the Wild West compared to pharma marketing which must live in the confines of regulatory requirements and an indecisive FDA when it comes to social media guidelines. Still, the two disciplines have much in common. Both require understanding the target audience and creating effective communications that address a consumer’s need or desire.
However, just because pharma marketing has more restraints doesn’t mean there aren’t lessons to be learned from the consumer space.
It’s about how you roll. People want to associate with a brand that resonates with their own values. And, they’re interested in more than having their current needs met; they want someone to help them envision something better.
Different brand personalities appeal to different audience segments, but if Apple has taught us anything, it’s that cool rules. They’ve successfully managed to tap into that persona by letting it shine in everything they do from developing cool products to providing super friendly customer service. They also never come out and say they’re a cool company – they let their brand ambassadors do that for them. They have an army of fans who genuinely love their products and use social media to share their experience.
People are doing more research. When it comes to shopping decisions, consumers are relying on the internet more than ever prior to making a purchase. The same is true for health care consumers. They’re researching physicians, treatment options, drug choices and networking with patients – often before they ever step foot into the doctor’s office.
Empowered patients are the new normal and they’re influencing sales and prescribing behavior. Use social media to provide credible and accessible information to support patient decisions, encourage brand advocacy and foster better communication with doctors.
Provide an experience. Getting a sale is only half the battle; building customer loyalty and repeat business is the other half. It’s no longer enough to just deliver a quality product. People want an outstanding customer experience and if they don’t get it from you, they’re going to look elsewhere.
That means getting employees to “live the brand.” At Starbucks, they’ve instilled a “Just Say Yes” company culture. They provided employees with a mantra – not a manual – to guide their actions. If a customer wants his caramel macchiato with skim milk, he’s going to get it.
For pharma marketers, it’s about taking time to listen to patients and practitioners to determine what they need and then exceed expectations with every interaction. Providing an experience also means staying in touch, whether that’s sending valuable information via an email newsletter or letting people know how to contact your company on Facebook, Twitter or the company website.
The consumer space has embraced the shift of the digital frontier from the Web to apps. Communication is changing; people want to feel like they’re part of the process and have achieved something. It’s shared, evolving and organic from the people around them.
Ultimately, marketers like it both ways: Everyone wants to talk about integration and being brilliant at the basics while at the same time touting the game-changing value of deep industry expertise. But if there’s value in such specific experience, there are also insights to be found by looking outside of your own industry for how other sectors grow their businesses. Go ahead – take a page from the consumer playbook!
Palio is an advertising agency revolutionizing pharmaceutical and healthcare marketing to create experiences that will Never Be Forgotten.
