Category Archives: Internet

Some new fundamental features that every health site should have

Posted on December 15, 2011 | 10 Comments

The Internet is moving at light speed but a lot of IT organizations move at a turtles pace compared to what’s happening with technology.   Here are some fundamentals that every health site (product.com website) should have now. Continue reading →

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Conflicting medical information forcing more consumers to go online for health

Posted on October 29, 2011 | 1 Comment

Some sports medicine specialists are taking a stand against overreliance on M.R.I.’s, saying they are easily misinterpreted and can result in misdiagnoses and unnecessary, even harmful, treatment.   Some physicians are telling patients not to get PSA tests and there is a heated debate on whether to treat prostate cancer in some patients or just leave it alone.   In the meantime an international survey of cancer doctors shows many question U.S. health advisers’ 2010 rejection of Roche’s drug Avastin to treat advanced breast cancer.   What is an empowered patient to do think or do with all this information ? Continue reading →

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Pharma digital marketing: Targeting opportunities

Posted on July 6, 2011 | 3 Comments

According to a Context Web Report: Few verticals are as challenged by online marketing as the pharmaceutical industry. When it comes to digital targeting, pharma is between a rock and a hard place, even though its annual digital spend is over $1 billion dollars. While widely used in other industries, cookie targeting is generally avoided in pharma due to privacy concerns, even though the practice is not outright forbidden by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Yet finding other targeting means is not always easy. Beyond targeting, drug companies are hyper-sensitive to brand safety issues and can ill afford to have an ad displayed on a page with inappropriate content as it can undermine their credibility. Continue reading →

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The Social Life of Health Information, 2011 Key Findings

Posted on May 12, 2011 | 1 Comment

Pew Internet continues to be wealth of information for marketers.  Their latests report is called “The Social Life of Health Information, 2011″ and it has some good information but also raises some more questions.  Above all marketers should realize that this information is generic and may not apply to patients of their particular product or health condition. Continue reading →

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57% say “it’s OK for a website to track my activity to target ads”

Posted on February 7, 2011 | 4 Comments

There’s little question that web users understand a tradeoff is necessary to receive free content. The vast majority accept that they’ll have to view ads in exchange; according to a January 2011 survey from Krux Digital, 87% believe such a tradeoff is reasonable. But as marketers know, opinions become less favorable when those ads are targeted.  While 57% of internet users surveyed said it was OK for websites to serve targeted ads based on their activity on that website, less than half as many had positive attitudes toward tracking that followed them from site to site.  Now what did the Center for Digital Democracy say again ? Continue reading →

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Top pharma websites driving consumers to ask for Rx

Posted on January 31, 2011 | 4 Comments

Manhattan Research recently released the ePharma Consumer® v10.0 study, which explores the online behaviors of ePharma Consumers, or U.S. consumers using the Internet for prescription drug information.  The study found that pharma product websites are effective at driving post-visitation action. 74%* of ePharma Consumers visiting these websites take a product-related action afterward – either discussing product info with their doctor, family or friends; requesting or filling the prescription; or searching for more product info online. Continue reading →

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Why each brand should have a dedicated eMarketing person

Posted on December 11, 2010 | 4 Comments

Internet marketing is too important to have one person lead and execute for a lot of brands within pharma.  There are too many people using the Internet for health, too much bad health information and it’s time to ensure that a dedicated eMarketing person can leverage the knowledge of marketing, branding and the Web to ensure that dollars are allocated to provide maximum ROI. Continue reading →

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Why don’t drug companies provide better content on websites ?

Posted on December 2, 2010 | 5 Comments

Content drives conversations. Conversation engages your customers. Engaging with people is how your company will survive and thrive in this newly social world. In other words, online content is a powerful envoy for your business, with an ability to stir up interest, further engagement, and invite connections.  Why hasn’t the healthcare industry focused more on better content that drives engagement and creates trust ? Continue reading →

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Some rules to follow for effective patient relationship management

Posted on October 30, 2010 | 1 Comment

As a pharma marketer and patient I have signed up for some patient relationship management programs but it seems after a couple of months the relationship is usually terminated on the brands end.   Effective patient relationship management can be very effective in both recruiting new patients and compliance but in order for it to really provide a good ROI you have to think of patient segments, a lot of patient segments. Continue reading →

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Online Health Research Behavior

Posted on October 12, 2010 | 5 Comments

The type of website consumers turn to for health and wellness information and the reasons they go online for such information is greatly influenced by the stage of the condition they are experiencing and varies by ailment type, age and gender, according to research released today by Kantar Media.

The study found that the type of website visited to research a condition varies by the stage of one’s ailment. While health information websites are used more often than search engines across all stages of the 40 ailments covered in the study, search engines are the preferred next option at early stages of a condition. However, for those recently diagnosed, in recovery, or living with an ongoing condition, websites dedicated to a particular condition are preferred over search engine.

Findings also indicate that men and women use online health research differently. Nearly 84% of women researched for someone else compared to 75% of men who researched for others.  When it comes to reading reviews or ratings about doctors, however, men are just as likely to do so as women.

The study’s findings also show differences in online health research based upon age. For example, 18 to 34 year olds are more likely to go online to find healthcare professionals and read reviews or ratings about physicians, while those 50+ will seek information about a condition or treatment after visiting a doctor.

Among other findings:

  • Of the 178 million Americans who have gone online in the past month, more than 89% have used the Internet for health research, with the typical user being female and under 50 years of age.
  • The primary reason for going online for health information is to gain general knowledge about a condition (71%), followed by researching symptoms that either the individual or someone else is experiencing (59%).
  • 56% of respondents said a health care professional recommendation makes a health website trustworthy, followed by 46% who said the inclusion of academic articles or scientific research does and 39% who said having information that is easy to understand does.
  • 79% said that they feel the Internet provides a wealth of resources when they are searching for health and wellness information, while 74% said they are very cautious about which websites they access for health and wellness information.
  • For those recently diagnosed with a condition, 77% say they first turn to online sources for information, second only to 81% who say they turn to a healthcare professional. Nearly 51% rely on magazines, pamphlets or other print publications.

Implications for pharma marketers

1. Before you determine your online strategy you need to have an in depth understanding of disease state awareness among your target audience and the triggers that cause them to go online for health information.

2. Each disease state is different.  You cannot apply broad online strategies to all products and health conditions.

3. Help your audience get to the relevant information they want and need.  Ensure that your site has deep links to credible sources of health information and update them regularly.

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Online video viewers abandoning clips after just 10 secs

Posted on October 7, 2010 | 2 Comments

According to Manhattan Research adoption of online health video has increased significantly among U.S. consumers online for prescription drug information in particular, growing from 21% in 2007 to 48% in 2009. Marketers should be aware that significantly more consumers watch online health video on general health and news websites than on YouTube.

However, new research has found online video viewers’ attention spans to be limited, with a fifth of viewers lasting only a few seconds before moving on to the next distraction, no matter what the length of the clip.

20% of viewers it takes 10 seconds or less to abandon a video that doesn’t hold their attention, found recent research by Visible Measures.  By 30 seconds into an online video as many as third of viewers have moved on, at 1 minute 44% have left and almost 60% have gone at the 2 minute mark.

According to Visible Measure’s Matt Cutler, “if your online video campaign has 10 million viewers, 2 million of them saw less than 10 seconds of it. Ouch.”

Since I don’t have access to the full report I’m not sure what the recommendation are from Manhattan Research but I can tell you that this is one area that I explored in research with both diabetes and cancer patients.  Here are some of the key findings:

  • Video’s have to have a clear objective and communicate to the patient what the contents are.  Consumers often do don’t have the patience to view videos that “do get to the point”.
  • The shorter the better.  The longer your video (5 minutes+) the more likely consumers will not watch the whole video.
  • Patients and caregivers are very interested in videos that feature other patients and communicate their experiences.  They also “want to see someone like me”.
  • Video’s that are poorly produced score very low in credibility.
  • Allow social media integration of videos so that caregivers & patients can share them with others.
  • Do not have use videos on your website that automatically play when someone comes to your site. Consumers find this annoying especially if they are looking for health information confidentially.

The other key challenge is that FLASH is quickly being replaced by HTML 5.  In fact You Tube already has a test site with HTML 5 videos.  The advantage here is that consumers can view videos on products like iPad’s. Also make sure that your audience is “likely to watch online video” as it tends to skew to younger audiences.

I did find, as did Manhattan Research, that general health videos tend to have a broader reach than specific health information videos.  There is an opportunity for health channels within sites but I recommend that companies conduct market research first to determine what their audience wants to see and what information they feel is missing. Over the coming years we are going to see increases in mobile broadband speeds (Verizon is already preparing 4G) which could lead to higher use of multimedia on mobile devices.

There are tools that allow you to track engagement of online videos.  One that was referred to my by epharmacorp via Twitter is a service called Wistea (see below).  They offer a very user friendly dashboard and can show you just how much of your video your audience is watching.

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