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As Peter Drucker, renowned educator, management consultant, and author, said, “The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well the product or service fits him and sells itself.” This mantra holds true with multicultural marketing in the pharmaceutical industry, especially with Hispanic and Latino populations. Successful pharmaceutical marketing amongst the Spanish groups should focus on providing personalized care to the right individual at the right time in the right place thereby expanding upon the basic tenet of the Affordable Care Act which reaches all Americans.

Below are a few cultural considerations that increase industry profits by positively impacting the development of strategies for pharma marketing to Hispanic and Latino consumers who experience customized care.

Family Dynamics vs. Individualism

• Group interdependence among family is at the center of the Hispanic world. Affiliation, cooperation, and group activities are weighted heavily as Latinos understand there is strength in numbers. Their health decisions rely on an extended family model and are typically made after consulting various family members. Opinions from adult children of the older generation are valued extensively. Pharma branding with marketing campaigns needs to be family-focused.

Imagery vs. Text

• In the Hispanic culture, a picture is worth a thousand words. Incorporating culturally embedded cues into pharma marketing that reflect attire, family values, symbols, ethics, rituals, traditions, material objects, and services in their culture, stimulate how these consumers respond to the pharma industry. Through this identification process both their self-image and confidence in pharma’s judgment of prescription medication is enhanced, resulting in a change in their attitude towards the brand and eventual increased brand acceptance.

Technology Media vs. Traditional Media

• In the past, it was widely believed that the only effective way to deliver Spanish-language pharma marketing messages was through traditional media, such as the television networks Telemundo and Univision. However, the newer generation of Hispanics on the go are not as interested in traditional media; they are more interested in smart phone technology and social media sites. One in three are the primary pharma decision makers as caregivers of an older generation of family household members and make their choices by engaging with technology media. They are three times more likely to use their smart phones to decide about pharma for themselves and other family members. Pharma marketing via technology media will soon become a leading strategy that is mandatory.

Fatalism vs. Optimism

• Many Latinos believe that destiny is predetermined and little can be done to change outcomes. For example, they may believe that death is inevitable after receiving a cancer diagnosis and also believe that any type of prescription drug cannot improve the chance of survival because it is out of their control. A Hispanic participant in a recent NIH study sorrowfully stated, “I worked with a person who had arthritis and was going to get cortisone but the last time she went to get it at the hospital, she didn't return home. Instead, she went to the cemetery.” Pharma marketing must help Hispanics move beyond this mindset by reinforcing examples of positive outcomes in their culture with marketing campaigns targeted at patient support groups on social media, such as Facebook, that encourage pharmaceutical use to recover from an illness.

Natural Healing Remedies vs. Prescriptions

• Home remedies tend to be the first medicinal approach used in the Latino culture prior to visiting a medical professional. However, often times these home remedies are more detrimental than beneficial. For example, recently Hispanic parents treated their infant with star anise tea to cure colic, which resulted in the infant suffering from seizures and needing to be rushed to the emergency room at a Miami hospital. Pharma marketers should see this as a new opportunity to gain market share by targeting Latino consumers with public service announcements about the dangers of consuming natural healing remedies in lieu of advanced pharma medications with proven results.

High Power Distance vs. Low Power Distance

• Pharma marketing in the Spanish culture is impacted by high power distance because Hispanics conform to a hierarchy where everybody has a place in the world which needs no further justification. On the other hand, in a low power distance culture, inequalities of power between doctor and patient require further justification for acceptance. For example, when doctors prescribe a certain brand of medication to Latinos, often times the pharmaceutical is not questioned since the doctor is viewed as an authority figure not to be doubted for fear of appearing disrespectful. Pharma companies may gain a competitive advantage by providing guides to Hispanic patients describing the brand’s impact and side effects in plain, simple, straightforward, 3^rd grade level Spanish language for additional motivational encouragement to stay on a medication regimen with a specific brand.

In summary, minorities are increasingly becoming the new majority and the so-called “average” pharma consumer is now interacting on a complex and multidimensional landscape. Knowing the customer is most likely the single most important concept of a flourishing pharma market across cultures, and in particular with the Hispanic and Latino groups. This growing diversity has had a substantial economic impact as shown by an increase in pharma spending power that has significantly encouraged marketers to take into account various cultural characteristics when formulating a winning marketing strategy.

Resources

Barker, KK and Guzman, CEV. Pharmaceutical direct-to-consumer advertising and US Hispanic patient-consumers. Sociology of Health & Illness. 2015 Nov; 37(8):1337-51. doi: 10.1111/1467-9566.12314. Epub 2015 Aug 3.

Katz JN, Lyons N, Wolff LS, et al. Medical decision-making among Hispanics and non-Hispanic Whites with chronic back and knee pain: A qualitative study. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders. 2011;12:78. doi:10.1186/1471-2474-12-78.

Pinedo, Diana. (2018). The state of multicultural marketing in 2018. Healthcare Success.

Multicultural marketing: Embrace the New Normal. (2016). PM360 Online.

The Case for Culturally Competent Health Marketing. (2016). Newlink America.

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Confused about point-of-care (POC) validation measures? I’m not surprised. The transparency and accountability of the POC channel remains a hot topic in the media; some are even calling POC one of the most misunderstood media spaces. I understand why, given every point of view  seems to report on a different “must-have” approach.

While there is no one right approach to POC validation, the bottom line is clear: It all comes down to trust and delivery. When choosing a POC provider to partner with, you not only have to ask whether you can trust the experience of this provider, but also whether they can substantiate with facts that you are indeed getting what you pay for.

Here's a brief overview of the checks and balances PatientPoint® uses to guarantee client deliverables and ensure that trust remains at the center of all our client relationships.

Confirming the Reach is Real

There are two key components to reach verification: providing clients with a list of installed locations and healthcare professionals they are being billed for, and confirming that the POC program purchased is physically there and on. Every brand or agency has the right to this vital information.

PatientPoint has selected SK&A (now IQVIA) as its official arbiter for physicians practicing in a given location. SK&A contacts practices a minimum of every six months to refresh its database. PatientPoint also has a direct line of communication with SK&A to reconcile practice and provider data that doesn’t align. This ensures the most accurate and current data is sent to our clients at all times.

While PatientPoint has been doing physical audits for years, we’ve further elevated our standards, having SPAR and PlaceBridge/J. Knipper take our entire list of installed offices and conduct a physical in-person audit across a statistically valid sample. As an additional action step, we also have the Alliance for Audited Media (AAM) certify the digital device counts we provide to our client partners.

Digital confirmation of device counts across 100% of our installed offices + physical audit verification = information you can trust.

Delivering the Data Behind Your Digital Ad Play

PatientPoint has invested significant capital into a digital signage platform that enables us to capture and track every client ad played in a physician’s office – even if the content is cached. That’s not an easy feat, and we’re proud of our efforts to ensure this can happen. AAM certifies our digital ad play reports we share with clients, and our platform also supports API integration, allowing access to and integration with third parties designated by our agencies or clients.

Validating Script Volume

PatientPoint pioneered the evaluation of POC using script lift data versus CPMs more than 15 years ago. We meet upfront with client research experts to gain alignment on methodology before executing a campaign study. While Symphony is our primary supplier, we have also worked with IMS and Crossix to evaluate our programs. To avoid any concerns surrounding manipulation of results, Symphony can forward results directly to clients and participate in meetings on results of PatientPoint programs.

Moving the Industry Forward

This is just an overview of the standards PatientPoint has in place to ensure clients’ trust and confidence remain in not only PatientPoint, but the entire POC channel. While news about POC transparency and accountability will continue to surround those companies trying to make up time for breach of trust, PatientPoint will demonstrate and deliver the reach and results we’ve always said we would. There’s a saying that it takes years to build up trust and only one moment to lose it. I’ve never forgotten that, and neither has PatientPoint.

I welcome the opportunity to speak with you personally regarding PatientPoint or all things point of care. Please connect with me at linda.ruschau@patientpoint.com or (513) 936-3549.

The theme of this month’s newsletter is consumer trends. Here’s a recent one worth talking about: According to new research, consumer trust in pharma has hit a new low, dropping 13 points from 51% to 38%.

How can an industry that does so much good have such low credibility? Listen to patient testimonials in focus groups and those that are seeking treatment are incredibly appreciative of their prescribed treatment — especially when it allows them to breathe easier, or control their sugar levels, or prevent a heart attack. So why the drop? According to the research, the high cost of healthcare was partly to blame. Most respondents also said they believed pharma companies put profits ahead of patients.

This latter sentiment uncovers a real need for pharma brands to discover new, more personal ways to connect with patients. 68% of consumers said they would trust a pharma company more if it also provided them with information, tools, and support to help them manage their disease.

So let’s give the patients what they want! This doesn’t require a complete overhaul of your current marketing strategy; rather, brands can identify the right engagement opportunities where refined messaging will resonate most with patients — both inside the physician’s office and out. Promote the patient savings programs to make your drug affordable; explain the how and why of how your drug works in easy-to-understand terms (if regulatory will allow you!).

Putting the focus on the patient first, offering information, and resources throughout his or her care journey that helps them better understand their own condition, more effectively talk to their doctor and more easily find and follow the right treatments, is exactly what is needed to start to turn this trend around.

Point-of-care platforms are already providing patients and caregivers with disease-specific education and information in the waiting room, exam room, and beyond. Take advantage of these channels and feature accompanying content to show you empathize with patients and are truly a trusted partner in their care.

While trends are transitory, we can’t afford to ignore these perceptions of our industry. We all know the good work we’re doing to help patients live better, healthier lives. This research, however, should serve as an important reminder that we could be doing even more to show patients that their best interests are truly at the center of everything we do.