Worthwhile offering beyond beauty

Advertising is largely focused on creative representation wrapped in motivating and believable brand messaging- that's half the game.

Often times, the full brand value proposition gets lost in "beauty" of it all and that is where smart marketing comes into play. In times of budget cuts, decreased marketing resources and decreased promotional spend within the pharma industry, we all have to be smart about the worth of a dollar. Agencies are poised to (and most often asked to) act as an extension of the marketing team, a reflection of a true client/agency partnership-- offering value-added thinking that augments current promotional efforts.

Often, our clients don't have the time research and are unable to stay current with new offerings so we like to catch the next big idea for them. I like to call this "thinking about your business". Goes beyond revenue-generating campaigns and puts your agency value above the industry norm.

Thinking about your business

Together Rx Access^® and The Together Rx Access^® card was created as a public service by a group of some of the world's largest pharma companies, in order to provide savings on prescriptions to eligible residents of of the US and Puerto Rico who have no prescription drug coverage.

Together Rx Access is the only program offering its cardholders immediate access to savings on brand-name and generic medicines from more than one pharmaceutical company. Medicines in the program include those used to treat many common conditions, such as asthma, diabetes, depression and high cholesterol.

Reading through the program- there are more than 300 medications listed. In January they surpassed 2M cardholders and $100M in savings.

Results from a consumer poll show that nearly half (45 %) of the uninsured may delay seeking health insurance coverage while waiting for healthcare reform legislation to pass.¹ This is of particular concern as more than 11 million working-age people are living with one or more chronic diseases.²

Bringing value to patients beyond clinical benefits.

Aside from the cost savings value this program brings patients, it also centralizes their prescription coverage needs in one place. Who doesn't favor centralized information? It is well proven that the financial burden of care is just as high as the burden of disease itself. The easier you can make it on the patient, the better.

Case example: If the patient takes the following medications:

• Advair for asthma (GSK)
• Diovan for hypertension (Novartis)

This program is one stop shopping assistance for prescription coverage assistance vs. directly joining GSK and Novartis's co-pay/insurance assistance programs.^† Instant "value add" to the patient.

It's not too hard to find Together Rx Access either. They are leveraging social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook, the perfect channels for this target of information seeking consumers.

 In addition, Together Rx Access^® and The Together Rx Access^® Card introduced TogetherONE^™, an online community that connects people to communication and information about saving money, which is especially relevant in today's challenging economy. In this community, people share their savings stories and tips, help others learn how to live on a budget, and find local savings offers and coupons.

Potential uptake for added brand value/SOV?

There are some patients who go through the treatment decision making process based solely on cost. Some patients have to. This aspect is often last on the promotional priority list for many brands.

Branded drugs listed in this program may receive "priority seating" in the medicine cabinets of patients. For brands who flank with price and bolster their patient assistance programs, this may be an excellent driver and dialogue starter for driving brand request with the HCP (especially for brands like Diovan and their impending LOE).

In addition, the brands associated with "pharmaceutical company sponsors" are hyperlinked to the brand site.

- This certainly will augment your brand's existing SEO/SEM tactics to drive brand SOV, mention and request.

Current pharmaceutical sponsors

From an outsiders view with little knowledge of sponsorship level/investment or frequency of site referral metrics (available upon request by pharma companies only), this program is a smart marketing concept. A great way to leverage credible 3rd party associations and programs to drive value for your brand, beyond clinical benefits.

While this program may not meet the objectives of every brand, there are many others similiar to this that do. It's the "thinking about your brand" concept that adds value to the service you bring to your clients and to their brands.

Offering clients a strategic insight beyond "advertising" can not only elevate a brand's SOV beyond the block and tackle efforts of sales reps and CRM programs--but elevates your strategic agency worth beyond the norm of delivering a "fully-baked tactical plan".

references
¹Consumer poll conducted in Dec 2009 by Opinion Research Corporation and sponsored by eHealth Inc. http://news.ehealthinsurance.com/pr/ehi/documen/Executive_Summary_Opinion_Research_Health_Reform_Survey.pdf Accessed October 8, 2010

²Wilper A, et al, “A National Study of Chronic Disease Prevalence and Access to Care in Uninsured U.S. Adults” Annals of Internal Medicine, August 2008.

^†Together Rx Access also directs individuals to the Partnership for Prescription Assistance (PPA), a clearinghouse for more than 475 public and private assistance programs, including nearly 200 offered by pharmaceutical companies. Those who are eligible for the Together Rx Access Card may qualify for additional savings on prescription medicines, or even free medicines, through other patient assistance programs in the PPA. The PPA also connects people to free health clinics in their communities.