Continuing our free advice for Big Pharma marketing groups on ways to reclaim the high ground. (And yes, you do get what you pay for...)
Yesterday, we suggested a new mission statement for marketing.
Today, step two: Combine the Codes
PhRMA has statements of principle governing professional promotion, direct-to-consumer advertising and clinical trial disclosure. But industry’s critics do not see them as separate issues. Neither should industry.
Let's start with the two "marketing" codes, one for DTC and one for interactions with physicians. It is easy to see why there are two: there are very real differences in the regulatory oversight of DTC and professional promotion, reflecting the fact that DTC is a "new" phenomenon (at least in the sense of broadcast television ads), while sales reps calling on doctors is a venerable industry institution.
PhRMA has statements of principle governing professional promotion, direct-to-consumer advertising and clinical trial disclosure. But industry’s critics do not see them as separate issues. Neither should industry.
Let's start with the two "marketing" codes, one for DTC and one for interactions with physicians. It is easy to see why there are two: there are very real differences in the regulatory oversight of DTC and professional promotion, reflecting the fact that DTC is a "new" phenomenon (at least in the sense of broadcast television ads), while sales reps calling on doctors is a venerable industry institution.
But when it comes to defending marketing in the political realm, it is silly to try to differentiate. Indeed, association CEO Billy Tauzin acknowedges that many of the public perception issues facing the industry require addressing both DTC and professional promotion. So PhRMA is upgrading its principles of consumer advertising too.
In an era when informed patients often know more about their medical conditions than the physicians who treat them, it is also absurd to argue that there is a fundamental need to craft different messages based on who has the MD. (Different messages based on knowledge level yes, but sometimes that means dumbing it down for the docs and engaging more scientifically with patients.)
In an era when informed patients often know more about their medical conditions than the physicians who treat them, it is also absurd to argue that there is a fundamental need to craft different messages based on who has the MD. (Different messages based on knowledge level yes, but sometimes that means dumbing it down for the docs and engaging more scientifically with patients.)
We might also highlight the danger for industry if doctors—not the biggest fans of DTC in the first place—begin to really get upset about it now that they spend more time in front of the TV and less time at industry sponsored dinners.
Updating the DTC code is a nice first step. But PhRMA and its members should go further. In age when Big Pharma is rethinking everything (or should be), it is time to challenge the mindset that professional marketing and consumer promotion are two different activities. A sales rep visit is indeed different than a TV commercial during the Super Bowl. But both are probably equally inefficient.
If industry wants to reclaim the high ground for marketing it must take a stand on who the marketing is supposed to benefit. The updated PhRMA code does that, by the way: "Our relationships with healthcare professionals are regulated by multiple entities and are intended to benefit patients and to enhance the practice of medicine."
If the goal is to benefit patients, then it is nonsensical to consider sales force activities and DTC as in any sense separate. If either the patient or the physician lacks the necessary information to make an informed therapeutic choice, then the marketing campaign failed.
The code of conduct for clinical trials is less obviously part of the same picture, but PhRMA would do well to look at it in that light. Industry bristles at claims that its big R&D budgets are really just to support marketing. But let’s face it: the questions asked and answered by clinical trials and other industry sponsored research are indeed the primary source of information about medicines—and so the very essence of all industry marketing.
Put another way: no one objects to industry sponsored research. They object to the perception that the results are skewed or hidden based on a commercial agenda. In other words, they think marketing trumps R&D.
PhRMA’s current clinical trial code covers issues related to reporting and disclosure, but Congress has already taken that issue much further. If PhRMA wants to reclaim the high ground, the association will need to take another look at that policy—especially in the context of even bigger steps to rebuild its reputation.
Tomorrow: Step Three—Let the Sunshine In
Updating the DTC code is a nice first step. But PhRMA and its members should go further. In age when Big Pharma is rethinking everything (or should be), it is time to challenge the mindset that professional marketing and consumer promotion are two different activities. A sales rep visit is indeed different than a TV commercial during the Super Bowl. But both are probably equally inefficient.
If industry wants to reclaim the high ground for marketing it must take a stand on who the marketing is supposed to benefit. The updated PhRMA code does that, by the way: "Our relationships with healthcare professionals are regulated by multiple entities and are intended to benefit patients and to enhance the practice of medicine."
If the goal is to benefit patients, then it is nonsensical to consider sales force activities and DTC as in any sense separate. If either the patient or the physician lacks the necessary information to make an informed therapeutic choice, then the marketing campaign failed.
The code of conduct for clinical trials is less obviously part of the same picture, but PhRMA would do well to look at it in that light. Industry bristles at claims that its big R&D budgets are really just to support marketing. But let’s face it: the questions asked and answered by clinical trials and other industry sponsored research are indeed the primary source of information about medicines—and so the very essence of all industry marketing.
Put another way: no one objects to industry sponsored research. They object to the perception that the results are skewed or hidden based on a commercial agenda. In other words, they think marketing trumps R&D.
PhRMA’s current clinical trial code covers issues related to reporting and disclosure, but Congress has already taken that issue much further. If PhRMA wants to reclaim the high ground, the association will need to take another look at that policy—especially in the context of even bigger steps to rebuild its reputation.
Tomorrow: Step Three—Let the Sunshine In
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