Us+P Social Media Series Pharma #4

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Tweet This! Your Healthcare Brand Can Be Social SOCIAL MEDIA SERIES #3 Pharma/Healthcare 2011 US+PARTNERS 1674 Broadway 4th Floor New York, NY 10019 T 1-212-712-9119 [email protected] www.usandpartners.com

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Transcript of Us+P Social Media Series Pharma #4

Page 1: Us+P Social Media Series Pharma #4

Tweet This! Your Healthcare Brand Can Be Social

SOCIAL MEDIA SERIES #3

Pharma/Healthcare 2011

US+PARTNERS 1674 Broadway 4th Floor New York, NY 10019 T 1-212-712-9119 [email protected] www.usandpartners.com

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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW. RIGHT NOW.

In today’s virtual world, social media conversations are having a direct impact on pharmaceutical sales and brand reputations. Every day, patients are questioning their treatment options and making product choices based on their online conversations, many of which consist of un-edited and un-qualified user-generated content.

With the increased popularity of tools such as Twitter, Facebook -- and now Google+, among other social networks and online communities -- patients and their caregivers are able to interact with each other from across the globe. They’re doing this in unprecedented numbers at unprecedented speeds. For many patients, the first place they seek medical information is online.

Patients and healthcare consumers also are sharing invaluable information online about their pref-erences and behavior. Correctly understood and leveraged, these insights can potentially help all functions of drug development - from R&D to pharmacovigilance - to produce and promote more effective and safer treatments.

We -- at US -- are delighted to share this latest “state of social” briefing on pharma and healthcare, part of our ongoing executive series on trends in new and social media. At US, we help companies and organizations leverage and navigate the Second Digital Age -- in which brands become social and consumers drive the terms and speed of engagement.

Read on>

US+PARTNERS 1674 Broadway 4th Floor New York, NY 10019 T 1-212-712-9119 [email protected] www.usandpartners.com

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THE CONTEXT & THE NUMBERS

Good health is now as important to some consumers as having the shiniest, biggest status symbols: increasingly, consumers will expect health products and services to prevent misery if not improve their quality of life, rather than merely treating illnesses and ailments. Some signs of the times:

• 73% of US consumers consider being physically fit important to being ‘well’, with 74% in-cluding ‘feeling good about themselves’. (Source: The Hartman Group, August 2010)

• An estimated 500 million people worldwide are expected to be using mobile healthcare applications by 2015. (Source: Reasearch2Guidance, November 2010)

• There were nearly 17,000 health apps available in major app stores in November 2010, with 57% of them being aimed at consumers rather than health care professionals. (Source: Research2Guidance, November 2010)

• The heaviest use of health or medical related apps is by young adults: about 15% of those aged 18 to 29 have such apps, compared to 8% of users aged 30 to 49. (Source: The Pew Internet Project, October 2010)

In the next 12 months, count on even more “personalization” (self-monitoring) technologies be-coming portable or even wearable, as well as getting cheaper (the smartphones held by many con-sumers are now more advanced than most dedicated medical devices).

Also, both regular and dedicated medical social networks give audiences a platform to share, compare and discuss their personal health issues with other consumers. Patients are engaging in online conver-sations about medications/health products and services - whether companies participate or not.

US+PARTNERS 1674 Broadway 4th Floor New York, NY 10019 T 1-212-712-9119 [email protected] www.usandpartners.com

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THE NEW LANDSCAPE

The 'consumerization' of health means that more consumers will choose products with embedded health benefits that are actually well-designed, desirable, accessible, fun, tasty, interesting or storied. Some examples:

• The Strollometer is a device that tracks all aspects of a new mother's strolling routine. On the display screen of the gadget, moms can check their speed, distance traveled, time spent exercising, average and maximum speeds, and the temperature outside. Once the strolling session is over, moms can then enter their data on the Fit4Mum.com website and see their results in terms of calories burned.

• Sleep On It is a mobile app that allows users to track their nightly sleeping patterns. The free tool can determine what factors may be affecting their sleep and how much sleep they need each night to feel rested and energized. Sleep On It allows users to track the length and quality of their sleep, as well as time spent snoozing and mood to see how sleep im-pacts their overall health and quality of life.

• Philips DirectLife is a small, lightweight, wearable monitor that builds up a detailed record of users' daily activities. Users' data is uploaded to their personal DirectLife site, showing how many calories were burned throughout the day. Users track their progress against their per-sonal targets, and have access to an online personal coach. Users can also compare them-selves to other members and connect with the online community to encourage them to share tips and stay motivated.

• Both Microsoft and Sony have recently released motion-sensing game controllers: the X-Box Kinect and Playstation Move. The systems use cameras (and a controller for the Move) to detect users' movements during gameplay. The controllers were designed not only to heighten the gaming experience but also, much like the Nintendo Wii, to add a physical and healthy dimension to it, with games like EA Sports Active 2 and Get Fit with Mel B.

And don’t rule out “personalized” services. Patients are creating their own social net-works to help them to become active and discuss their individual health concerns and monitor their efforts to become healthier. Non-corporate and non-industry “helpsites” are cropping up to supplement and challenge “company-speak.” Some examples:

* Temptd - a new platform that helps individuals take small, measured steps towards improving their personal health and stick with it using the power of social networks

* Flow - an Android mobile phone app that monitors water safety for member groups

* Patients Like Me - and 23andMe, Alli Circles, MSWatch and other branded patient communities and rival websites offer new ways to help patients share and learn from social networks

US+PARTNERS 1674 Broadway 4th Floor New York, NY 10019 T 1-212-712-9119 [email protected] www.usandpartners.com

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“People share what works; what they trust to be true. If your mental model is that you need estab-lished companies to help you to become and stay healthy, that’s not how the market works anymore. There’s been a dispersion of activity; networks of individuals versus institutions and established

brands. Those informal, social networks are the most trusted and comfortable ways to explore new health care approaches; they are the most influential in purchasing decisions. They carry the most clout as sources of medical information. That’s what health care looks like in 2011.”

CASE STUDIES/ Going Social

WHAT IS. How are some companies and brands responding to the challenges so far? By turning the prevailing wisdom that pharma is too regulated to “go social” on its ear. True, there are impor-tant legal and privacy considerations and policies that exist in the pharma and healthcare worlds. Yet we, at US, applaud some of the creative efforts that companies and brands have taken so far to “go social” despite these challenges. It’s not about deciding whether or not to “go social.” Your pa-tients and consumers are already there. Rather, it’s more a matter of how to “go social” in new ways. With less risk. US is innovating how brands in this sector can embrace digital more effectively.

Here’s a look at some ways that key companies are experimenting so far with social media to boost sales, raise awareness and build affinity for select products and services:

* Glaxo’s myalli.com

* Bayer-Schering Pharma’s World Contraception Day

* Johnson & Johnson’s BTW Blog

* Psoraisis 360 by Janssen

WHAT’S NEXT. At US+Partners, we think it’s all just the beginning. Much more is possible.

US+PARTNERS 1674 Broadway 4th Floor New York, NY 10019 T 1-212-712-9119 [email protected] www.usandpartners.com

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QUICK TIPS

Should you be on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn? LinkedIn is a business network and a great place from which to source physicians. The problem is that not a lot of conversation happens there. It’s good for introductions and for trying to take conversations elsewhere. There are LinkedIn groups, and some are very active but many are not. Twitter is a great place to share thought lead-ership and find out which conversations you’re missing.

Pharma Wall. This is an alternative to Facebook that allows you to protect the conversations that your company is having from just any old commentator that happens along. The purpose of Pharma Wall is not to censor conversations or mute people who disagree. Rather, it’s to honor the practices and policies that Pharma has in place, yet still allow engagement among key consumers. It’s important to have workflow tools for social media in Pharma, and this is one of them.

It’s not totally about YOU. One of the things people do when they start conversing on social me-dia networks is forget to talk from the “we” side of things. Instead, drug companies tend to tell people what they should buy and why. Patients, though, are looking for information from their side of the conversation. They’re not just looking for information about your drug; they are looking for new ways to maintain and improve their lifestyles. If someone has diabetes, they what to know what to avoid, what they can do better and how you can help them to make tough decisions more easily. They’re looking to have a conversation from their side of the fence. They want conversa-tions that make the patient the hero -- not a conversation that pushes your drug.

Listening is the new black in pharma. Use social media to listen and better understand what peo-ple are saying about you and the issues challenging you as a company. What are some of these tools? There are professional tools like Radian6 and Trackur that all have different levels of listening ability. And there are others -- Spiral16 and Crimson, to name just a few. Sure, you can employ some tools to listen for free but that won’t get you all the info you need and it won’t help you to log data that’s needed for reporting. Best yet? Task your staff to do it. This is not idle chatter.

It’s all about the connections. If we had to pinpoint one thing you need to be doing with social media, your No. 1 priority would be to foster new connections with people. Build relationships be-fore you need a business function to come of it. Using social media, this could mean using social networks to promote patient-to-patient referrals or raise awarness by drawing attention to favor-able articles. Be on the social networks that your patients are. If you think patients and consumers are there, they probably are. Go there. If you’re not in those conversations, you’re irrelevant.

US+PARTNERS 1674 Broadway 4th Floor New York, NY 10019 T 1-212-712-9119 [email protected] www.usandpartners.com

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OPPORTUNITIES AND TRENDS

We believe there’s a lot more to be done -- despite the unique policies and regulations of the sec-tor. Some areas we’re forging:

Peer-to-peer networks: As growing numbers of consumers are choosing to turn to social net-works for the information that matters to them, we’re helping some of our clients make better use of private social networks -- member-only communities of consumers that are equipped to help each other grapple with specific illnesses, relationships or experiences. These new types of social networks help support patients as they seek treatment or help others to get it. Example: iava.org

and its private social network of returning Iraq war veterans. We’ve helped them to figure out a digital way to help others help themselves. Their private networks host member-only, patient-to-patient conversations that patients can trust, enhancing their crediblity and yours.

Augmented reality: Embedding the mobile images of a patient’s world with meta-data about health threats and opportunities in real-time. Which foods contain transfats and which do not? Which fish are mercury-free and which are not? Where is it safest to swim? Which herbs can help alleviate your symptoms - right now?

US+Partners is working with “healthcare monitoring apps” that provide a service to companies and offer new ways for customers to engage with them in the name of safer places and experiences.

Personalization: We’ve already alerted you to Temptd. There are dozens of other social networks cropping up that are giving self-help the power of the crowd. Another of our favorite crowdsour-ced self-monitoring apps? FLOW -- giving citizens the power to monitor water safety for branded groups that need it. The new health is data-driven. US+Partners is working to provide branded applications to interested clients looking to out-innovate their competitors in the pharma/healthcare field.

Let US help you innovate -- not simply play catch-up with your competitors.

US+PARTNERS 1674 Broadway 4th Floor New York, NY 10019 T 1-212-712-9119 [email protected] www.usandpartners.com

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GO AHEAD. GO SOCIAL.

* 25% of search results for the top brands link to user-generated content. Like it or not, your customers have taken to social media to express their feelings about your

brand. Now is the time to engage these customers and assure that widespread, viral sentiment generates increased revenue and customer loyalty, not headaches.

* The average person has 195 social media “friends.” Even ignoring the viral capability of social me-dia dialogue, remember that your customers have a direct line to the ears of 200 people. In trying to establish your brand, generate business and rebound from shortcomings, where else can you find such clear influence?

*Word-of-mouth has been deemed nearly six times more effective than television advertisements about shaping consumer opinion. How are you using this knowledge to optimize return on market-ing spend and assure your television campaigns are not being nullified by ill-sentiment online?

#Socialphrm

This summer’s July 12-August 4 Social Media in Pharma Summit has been important so far in detail-ing the pressures and difficulties companies are facing in becoming “more social” in their highly regulated environments. Yet nearly 70 percent of those attending say Pharma needs to become “more social” -- regardless. Indeed. We believe that “going social” is more urgent now in this sector than ever. Played strategically and selectively, social media can provide a great service to society while innovating existing brands, restoring trust and delivering new value to today’s consumers.

What are you waiting for?

Let US help. We’re US+Partners. You, me and everyone we know. US.

US+PARTNERS 1674 Broadway 4th Floor New York, NY 10019 T 1-212-712-9119 [email protected] www.usandpartners.com

Like this report? Contact CEO Steve Stepanek to hear more and to set up a time to meet US, face-to-face.