Online Pharmaceuticals Spending to Rise, But Trust May Not Follow

Online spending within the pharmaceutical industry will jump from $975 million this year to $2.2 billion in 2011, according to eMarketer.

But when pharma firms urge customers to “Ask your doctor” or “Visit our Web site”, are they really getting the best bang for their buck? Perhaps not. According to eMarketer, pharmaceutical Web pages are often text-heavy, or showcase television commercials, and are slow to load.

Pharmaceutical markers hold a rigid view of the Internet as an information-delivery vehicle, according to an eMarketer press statement. This doesn’t merge well with consumers’ use of the Web, which often serves as a medium with which to interact with one another. By not capitalizing on this dynamic, marketers are missing an opportunity to build trust with their customers.

“Messages must be interactive because consumers are looking for a dialogue, especially when their health is involved,” says Lisa Phillips, senior analyst and author of the report, in a statement. “Something as simple as offering mobile or Internet alerts to prompt patients to take their medicine are opt-in tactics that benefit patients and boost compliance.”