Whistleblowers remain the 'center of the universe' when it comes to professional drug promotion. But new data shows that 'non-personal' strategies are also gaining traction.
This is what has been highlighted by an audit organized by Cegedim Strategic Data with doctors, which shows that spending by pharmaceutical companies on raising awareness among healthcare professionals through digital channels increased by 40% worldwide in 2012 compared to 2011. Notably, edetailing grew by nearly 74%. In the US, $534 million was spent on e-detailing, email, and 'e-meetings' (online group information sessions) in the fourth quarter of 2011, a figure that rose to $879 million in the same period of the following year, an increase of 65%.
In Europe, Big Pharma spent $90 million on these channels in Q4 2012, a 40% increase over the same period in 2011. 10% in the US and 12% in the top 5 EU markets.
These three segments are still a small drop in the bucket compared to worldwide drug promotional spending, which totaled $90 billion in 2012, but their growth indicates a more 'holistic' choice by companies grappling with the promotion of their products.
A trend in which Asia is also participating: in particular, China has increased its marketing expenditure by 20% to almost 2 billion dollars.
