Friday, March 06, 2009
Facebook redesign is good news for brands
Facebook redesign is good news for brands
Facebook has announced the redesign of its Facebook "pages" and other product updates features, giving brands more freedom. Under the new design, Facebook pages will look and function more like a typical user's profile. Brand pages will also move from within segregated areas of Facebook to within users' social graphs. These changes will enable marketers to gain more control over the content in their brand profile and communicate more freely with "friends."
Doctors try to prevent patients from writing online reviews
Doctors try to prevent patients from writing online reviews
Some physicians have started asking patients to sign agreements barring them from posting negative comments on physician ratings Web sites, reports the AP/Contra Costa Times. The physicians say they are taking this measure because of concerns about the fairness of the anonymous online reports. A company called Medical Justice will provide physicians with a standardized patient waiver agreement for a fee. The company advises physicians to ask all patients to sign the agreement and refuse care to those who will not. John Swapceinski, cofounder of RateMDs.com, said he opposes such waivers because they force patients to choose between healthcare and free speech.
Brand-name antidepressant and sleep aid sales up in 2008
Brand-name antidepressant and sleep aid sales up in 2008
Prescriptions for brand-name sleep aids jumped 7% despite experiencing cutbacks in marketing efforts, according to IMS Health. Brand-name antidepressant sales are also up 15%, although marketing costs aren't as clear. Experts say the economy is to blame for the rise of sleeping pill sales, with 31% of respondents in a National Sleep Foundation poll reporting they are losing sleep over the economy and their personal finances. Increased sleep aid sales are especially notable because of the drastic decrease in marketing spend. According to TNS Media Intelligence, Ambien CR spending fell from $190 million in 2007 to $150 million in 2008. Lunesta spending also dropped from $271 in 2007 to $107 in 2008.
Thursday, March 05, 2009
Supreme Court Rejects Preemption
Fard Johnmar writes: "In a much anticipated decision, the Supreme Court
today held that individuals have the right to sue pharmaceutical
companies for harm even if the Food and Drug Administration certifies
that a medication as safe and effective."
Click below for more.
http://www.healthcarevox.com/2009/03/supreme_court_rejects_preempti.html
Abbott Labs Fires Agency That Screwed Up Humira Ads
Abbott Labs Fires Agency That Screwed Up Humira Ads
By Jim Edwards March 5th, 2009 @ 11:10 am
source: http://industry.bnet.com/advertising/10001138/abbott-labs-fires-agency-that-screwed-up-humira-ads/
Abbott Labs has put its $70 million Humira ad account in review. The review follows a warning letter from the FDA about Humira’s advertising, which the government called “misleading.” The incumbent agency on the business is Harrison & Star, according to Adweek. The shop has had Humira since 2005, per Pharma Exec.
When drug agencies are fired after a high-profile screwup, the temptation is to figure out who to blame. Was it the agency that made the ad? Or the client, whose compliance department no doubt signed off on it before it ran? In this case, Abbott appears to have decided that H&S is at fault.
Link to ad:
http://i.bnet.com/blogs/humira.jpg
The ad in question is a doozy. It ran in a trade journal for the American Academy of Dermatology. See a closeup here. It featured a closeup of diseased body under the headline, “Now approved for moderate to severe plaque psoriasis.”
That turns out not to be true. Humira is technically approved for “the treatment of adult patients with moderate to severe chronic plaque psoriasis who are candidates for systemic therapy or phototherapy, and when other systemic therapies are medically less appropriate.”
With the FDA, the devil is in the details.
You’ll notice that the safety information at the bottom of the ad is almost unreadable unless you magnify it by more than 100 percent. The FDA didn’t like that at all:
… the presentation of the complete indication is written in white text on a pink background in an extremely small font size, rendering this information nearly illegible, while the broad, misleading statement of the indication and the accompanying graphic of the patient are presented very prominently and can be easily seen by viewers of the advertisement.
Bottom line: Agencies pitching this account should assume that Abbott is now hypersensitive to FDA review, and thus you’ll need a creative strategy that fits well within the regulatory lines.
ePharma Summit: Thoughts, Themes, and Takeaways, Part 1
Excerpt from Shwen's blog on ePharma 2009:
(source: http://www.med20.com/blog/2009/03/epharma-summit-thoughts-themes-and-takeaways-part-1/)
"Seeing that this conference covered all aspects of eMarketing in Pharma, a variety of topics were covered, from reaching MDs online to online media mix to market research. Of course, there were also panels that covered Social Media — which was a recurring theme that was brought up throughout the conference — including Josh Bernoff’s great keynote on leveraging Groundswell, with some new and interesting data on health/pharma topics. By the way, this is another good example of where the organizers have thought outside the traditional box and invited a non-pharma KOL in social media.
Of all the sessions, however, I do think that the best discussion of the conference had to be the panel on “Driving Policy/Guidelines Around the Use of Social Media in Pharma“, which featured an esteemed panel consisting of: Robert Goldberg (moderator), Marc Monseau, Fabio Gratton, and Fard Johnmar. You can read more about it at the ePharma Summit blog and I also recorded the session, but will need to check with all parties involved before being able to publish it, so let’s hope.
So, if I had to narrow it down to three key takeaways from the meeting, here’s what they would be…"
Cick here for the full article:
http://www.med20.com/blog/2009/03/epharma-summit-thoughts-themes-and-takeaways-part-1/
Diabetes online community contest opens
Diabetes online community contest opens
Online diabetes community DiabetesMine announced the opening of its 2009 DiabetesMine Design Challenge, a competition created to promote innovation and encourage new tools to improve the lives of diabetics. The Web-based competition is underwritten by the California HealthCare Foundation and endorsed by Medgadget.com, the Internet journal of emerging medical technologies. The grand prize is $10,000, with total prizes awarded equaling $17,000. Sanofi-aventis advertises its drug Apidra on diabetesmine.com.
Wednesday, March 04, 2009
Monday, March 02, 2009
MS&L Launches Proprietary Social Activism Marketing Offering to Leverage New Age of Cause Marketing
MS&L Launches Proprietary Social Activism Marketing Offering to Leverage
New Age of Cause Marketing
BOSTON, Feb. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- MS&L, one of the world's leading
communications firms, today announced the launch of its Social Activism
Marketing specialty, a bold approach that blends the power of corporate
social responsibility and cause marketing with the penetration of
digital tools to spawn social movements that move messages, product and
profit on behalf of companies and brands.
The new specialty will be launched at an evening event in Boston on
February 26 featuring cause marketing experts who will explore the power
of social activism. Attending the event will be Thomas Gensemer,
managing partner of Blue State Digital, which spearheaded Obama for
America's extensive online fundraising and peer-to-peer networking
initiatives, and Eleanor Dowling, editorial and community leader of
changeagents.com and a key player in the success of Timberland's
Earthkeeper Heroes Program. Gensemer and Dowling will join MS&L's CSR
and marketing experts to explore the renewed focus on cause marketing in
the context of President Obama's spotlight on community service and the
increased corporate interest in connecting to a higher purpose.
MS&L's proprietary Social Activism Marketing (SAM) Optimization process
includes four stages of social movement that corporations can utilize to
develop unique cause programs. The SAM process takes into account the
current economic environment, research on the relationship between
corporations and service, and the power of relationship management via
digital tools. MS&L will help clients identify the intersection of
corporate social responsibility and cause marketing to facilitate social
movements, drive influence and maximize the reach of a particular
program.
"We consider 2009 the year when values and activism will come together
to transform communications and marketing," said Scott Beaudoin, senior
vice president and director of cause marketing at MS&L. "Our methodology
for Social Activism Marketing pinpoints the best ways to hyper-engage
consumers and influencers in support of a powerfully relevant cause,
producing maximum business results and social impacts for the sponsor."
A unique relationship between corporate values, activism and reputation
has emerged, influencing the launch of MS&L's SAM specialty. Proprietary
research from the MS&L Worldwide Global Values study, conducted in May
2008 in partnership with GfK Roper Public Affairs, underscores the ripe
opportunity for companies and brands to leverage consumer activism on
social issues and their unprecedented access to information about
corporate behavior.
The study of 1,000 U.S. consumers found that:
* 72 percent believe a company or organization can have "values"
just the way people do;
* 85 percent believe a company can be financially successful by
behaving in "a responsible way;"
* 56 percent of describe it as "very important" to them to know
about the values of the companies with whom they do business;
* 77 percent almost always or sometimes pay attention to company's
values when deciding whether to give it their business; and
* 59 percent said they can a lot or some about an organization's
"real values" through online information.
"It's clear that the concepts of value and values are rapidly merging in
the minds of consumers," said Jim Tsokanos, president of MS&L, North
America. "People want to be engaged with companies that share their
values. Our Social Activism Marketing specialty will help organizations
capitalize on the growing expectation that profit should be pursued in a
responsible way locally, nationally and globally."
The launch of this new specialty builds on MS&L's innovative CSR work in
the consumer, corporate and healthcare areas. In 2008, MS&L was honored
as the top agency in CSR by Corporate Responsibility Officer magazine;
won Cause-Related Campaign of the Year from PRWeek in 2007 and Best Use
of the Internet honors from PRWeek in 2006 and 2007; and is currently a
PRWeek finalist for Cause-Related Campaign of the Year. MS&L works with
companies such as Sunkist Growers and Procter & Gamble on
ground-breaking cause programs that empower individuals to contribute to
social causes in their communities and around the world.
About MS&L
MS&L is a leading global communications firm and part of MS&L Worldwide,
a network of communications brands and consultancies with 54 offices in
North America, Latin America, EMEA and Asia, as well as an extensive
affiliate network. The agency specializes in using research, insights
and technology to create and execute powerful communications strategies
that are critical to client success. With a unique combination of
advice, advocacy and action, MS&L delivers measurable business results
for many of the world's largest companies and most successful brands.
MS&L Worldwide (mslworldwide.com <http://www.mslworldwide.com/> ) is a
member of the Publicis Groupe (Euronext Paris: FR0000130577), the
world's fourth largest communications group, and a global leader in
digital and online advertising, media consulting, and healthcare
communications. With some 45,000 professionals in 104 countries, the
Groupe's activities cover advertising through three global advertising
networks: Leo Burnett, Publicis, Saatchi & Saatchi, as well as through
its two multi-hub networks Fallon Worldwide and 49%-owned Bartle Bogle
Hegarty; media agencies with two worldwide networks ZenithOptimedia and
Starcom MediaVest Group; and marketing services, including digital and
interactive communications through Digitas, relationship and direct
marketing, public and media relations, corporate and financial
communications, multicultural communications, and event communications.
The Groupe is also the world leader in healthcare communications. Web
site: www.publicisgroupe.com <http://www.publicisgroupe.com/> .
CONTACT: Sara Donaldson
MS&L
(212) 468-3893
sara.donaldson@mslworldwide.com
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
A Revolutionary Time for Ad Agency New Business
A Revolutionary Time for Ad Agency New Business
<http://fuelingnewbusiness.com/2008/07/18/a-revolutionary-time-for-ad-ag
ency-new-business/>
History is in the making with the socialization of media and
information. This is our Industrial Revolution.
A Communications Revolution.
This revolution is already impacting ad agency new business practices.
There is definitely a revolution taking place in the way agency new
business is acquired. The new business paradigm shift that is taking
place requires agencies to position themselves where they can be found
by their prospective clients. This will require the use and greater
dependence upon Web 2.0 tools.
Agencies must practice what they preach and participate in the use of
these tools for themselves to have credibility. They also will be forced
to identify their best target audience and be positioned as having the
kind of expertise and leadership that makes them irresistibly appealing.
In this new era of agency new business prospective clients will actually
let you know when they are ready to engage by initiating the call. And
when they call, the conversation is a longer way down the road. They are
ready to do business. You won't have to woo them.
In any revolution you have those that are sitting on the sidelines
waiting to see what is going to happen. You have those that are
followers. But then you have those thought provoking leaders out in
front of us all. Brian Solis <http://www.briansolis.com/> , Principal of
FutureWork <http://www.future-works.com/> , an award winning PR and New
Media agency is one of those emerging new leaders. Encouraging his
industry to arise to the challenges of this new era. Brian recently
wrote,
"Media is experiencing a textbook Darwinian definition of survival of
the fittest ... Media will re-emerge as a more dynamic, nimble, and
innovative medium.
In the era of Socialized Media, relationships are the new currency and
participation and collaboration are emerging as the new information
exchange.
Mainstay brands will persevere, but the cost of their education to learn
how to compete for the future will be great. Some will wait until it's
too late only to awaken to a daunting challenge of creating and earning
presence and relevance in a new economy."
Times are definitely changing and the mood of a large number of small
and midsize agencies is somberness instead of an excitement for this new
media revolution. They haven't kept up with the changes and find
themselves behind in by a lack of knowledge of social media and how to
use it correctly for themselves and for their clients.
My encouragement is to get involved now. Experience it for yourself to
know the many great opportunities it provides. Learn the use of new
media to engage your prospective client community. It takes time and
effort to have a working understanding of this new technology, but you
will be amazed at how quickly it will provide benefits to your agency
and allow you to utilize these new tools for your clients. Experience
truly is the best teacher.
The cost of your education is going to be great but if you don't invest
in your education now it will be costlier later.
Source:
http://fuelingnewbusiness.com/2008/07/18/a-revolutionary-time-for-ad-age
ncy-new-business/
<http://fuelingnewbusiness.com/2008/07/18/a-revolutionary-time-for-ad-ag
ency-new-business/>
Site provides info, videos about age-related macular degeneration
Nothing special ... but thought I would pass this along:
Site provides info, videos about age-related macular degeneration
Nutraceutical company EyeScience Labs has launched www.EyeScience.com to
provide consumers with information and education about age-related
macular degeneration (AMD) using online video. The site teaches users
about eye anatomy, screening and diagnosis, risk factors, signs and
symptoms, and treatments for AMD. The site also features more than 20
videos about eye anatomy, AMD symptoms, and other issues. An FAQ section
contains expert answers to more than 30 questions about AMD, and an "Ask
the Doctor" section allows consumers to submit their questions to
EyeScience medical experts, who will answer their questions privately
and for free.
Rebel Physicians Talk Smack on Pharma
More physicians are generating negative word of mouth about pharma
The percentage of U.S. physicians who are deeply dissatisfied with pharma and actively generate negative word of mouth has risen from 12% to 19% in the past year. That's according to new TNS Healthcare research about more than 1,500 general practitioners. The five major European markets--United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain--also show a high proportion of doctors actively creating negative word of mouth, ranging from a low of 19% in Italy to a high of 27% in the United Kingdom. These negative talkers are labeled "rebels," and according to TNS, companies should have no more than 15% of their customer base fall into this category. When rebels make up more than 15%, it becomes more difficult to overcome the negative buzz and promote successfully.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
RE: Breaking News: FDA Approves Pfizer's Depressent Drug for the Annoyingly Cheerful
Where can Jennie get some? ;)
From: Gratton, Fabio
Sent: Tuesday, February 24, 2009 4:14 PM
To: Everyone at Ignite
Cc: skypen.ignitehealth@blogger.com
Subject: Breaking News: FDA Approves Pfizer's Depressent Drug for the
Annoyingly Cheerful
http://www.theonion.com/content/video/fda_approves_depressant_drug_for
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