Consumers Getting More Drug Info From Blogs
6 CommentsBy Ed Silverman // April 11th, 2008 // 1:16 pm
No, this is not a self-serving post. But it turns out that when consumers search the Internet for info about their meds, blogs and forums often show up among the top results, according to a new study. This is a challenge for drugmakers, because v-Fluence Interactive says the info consumers find at those sites “often occurs in a manner that’s not friendly or favorable to the brands.” The issue is that some blogs and forums are more likely to compare various brand-name drugs and discuss side effects. Ironically, v-Fluence notes, drug ads are sometimes placed on these sites.
“Up until now, blogs and discussion spaces have remained virtually invisible to most search engine users. They’ve been out there, but they’ve largely been invisible unless someone actively looks for them,” says Erin Borrini, who led v-Fluence’s research and analysis team, in a statement. “Our research shows this dynamic has changed measurably over the past two years. Now, people searching for pharmaceutical brands are encountering blogs and forums in visible search results. What’s more, these consumer-generated media participants are actively talking about the brands and their comments are often negative toward brands and physician-prescribed treatment options.”
For instance, v-Fluence found that discussion forums often address multiple brands and make head-to-head comparisons. A discussion group that surfaced in the search results for one of the branded cholesterol drug also appeared in the search results for 11 of the remaining 12 meds. The reason: Forum participants often discuss various treatments and compare efficacy, side effects and related issues and observations.
Of course, this all depends on the site. Some are different and v-Fluence says pharma has to learn to sort them out. “This is clear evidence that some pharmaceutical companies deploy a ‘broadcast’ strategy to tap into Web 2.0 spaces without full knowledge of their respective online environments,” Byrne says. “Regardless of their levels of outreach and engagements, our research suggests brand managers and marketers should be paying more attention and provided better analysis for their online investments.”
Laurie
Roflmao!! GSK is on my site ALL the time!!
CNTO411 » Blog Talking
[...] information from the internet that they are going to discover blogs. Ed Silverman writes in his latest post about the influence blogs are having over consumers. More and more blogs are coming up in search [...]
Just A Thought
Sometimes when you have a problem with a medication a blog site is the ONLY place to find information. When someone has a problem with a drug and has to change to another, of course he is going to discuss alternatives with his peers.
Ultimately it is up to the doctor though.
(Joe, should I buy a Ford or a Chevy?)
For a physician to make a decision, all he has is the word of a drug rep, who is going to paint the drug in a good light. It’s his job. Is that fair?
Drug companies report adverse reactions based on limited clinical trials on otherwise healthy people. Sometimes with one dose instead of after a drug has built to it’s full potential. It’s not so strange for thinking people to try to dig up the answers to their problems if they don’t fall into those situations.
It sure must be difficult when the world is able to see the results of every post marketing study, via blogs. I think it’s an awful lot to expect blind faith in an industry where deception runs rampant. People are going to talk.
Laurie
It is only with the creating of internet based blogs and bulletin boards that people from all over the world can put together information from other drug users. It is this compliation of data that striking similarities are found. It is always pharmas claim that the true side effect risk is seen after a drug is out to the general population. Sites like this are a viable database of personal experiences, which can highlight stunningly similar reactions.
truthman30
GSK monitors all the Seroxat-Paxil blogs , every day somtimes mulitple times a day.. (we can see them on our web stats)
I am glad though that consumers have at least one powerful medium and media domain in which to voice their concerns..
Without the internet , many of us would feel powerless ..
Pharmalot is quite good too.. :)
www.worldpharmanews.net
Pharmalot » Consumers Getting More Drug Info From Blogs…
No, this is not a self-serving post. But it turns out that when consumers search the Internet for info about their meds, blogs and forums often show up among the top results, according to a new study. This is a challenge for drugmakers, because v-Fluen…