American academic John M. Richardson once said that when it comes to the future, there are three kinds of people: those who let it happen, those who make it happen, and those who wonder what happened. We choose door number two and offer five New Year’s resolutions in response to some changes and trends that had an impact on pharma marketers in 2010. #1: We resolve to keep pushing the envelope when promoting brands, despite ...
In pharma marketing, the most critical point in the marketing equation is when the physician's pen meets paper and a script is written. But why does a doctor prescribe one drug over another? What factors into their decision? With today’s regulatory rules governing what we can and can’t do, it is pretty hard to form a relationship, let alone get doctors to feel any sense of loyalty to us — and our ...
Over the last 20+ years I have watched thousands of one-on-one market research interviews with physicians and healthcare specialists to determine what will drive prescribing habits for clients. My findings? Doctors are humans. They take in and analyze a wide range of factors (even some irrational ones) when making a choice. As a veteran specialty pharmaceutical marketing consultant, I’ve dedicated my entire career to influencing and changing the behaviors of physicians and their ...
In this 3-part series, I explore the "tried and true" bag of tricks that marketers rely on; the role the physician plays in changing a behavior; and an emerging relationship-driven era in pharma marketing. I invite you to explore with me by commenting or contacting me. For pharmaceutical marketers, the quintessential moment of truth is when the doctor's pen scribbles on the prescription pad — and then hands the script to the patient. So ...
It is an increasingly rare day when patients, their physicians, and the pharmaceutical industry all agree on something. In this case, the something is the treatment of chronic pain, and they all agree that it is grossly undermanaged. Why is pain so poorly managed in the United States? It's not because the healthcare community has no access to potent analgesic medications. Actually, it is just the opposite. US physicians have a number of effective opioid ...
