December 2008

Ethnography: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
As an observational methodology, ethnography provides specific benefits in research on medical topics that other qualitative approaches cannot. Medicine is practiced in a broader context and involves multiple players, a fact that cannot be fully captured by surveys and studio or telephone interviews.

As medical products face tougher competition and pharmaceutical clients need a more thorough understanding of the customer, versus just product features/benefits, they are turning to ethnography research more frequently.

While ethnography has become more valued over the past several years, before moving ahead with a project of this type it is important to first consider the research problem at hand as well as the methodology's particular strengths and weaknesses. Like other research methods, ethnography certainly has its place and can produce extraordinarily rich results. If employed improperly, however, this methodology can be frustrating and expensive: It can produce plenty of "interesting" findings without producing actionable research results.

Targeting the Promotional Needs of Your Audience
By Stacy Vaughn, Vice President, Sales Force Effectiveness, GfK Market Measures

With challenging industry trends, including reduced sales forces, fewer new product introductions and restrictive PhRMA guidelines, health care marketers have expressed the need for new and more efficient methods of detailing within the promotional mix.

GfK Market Measures' fifth annual sales force effectiveness teleconference, Beyond the Vital Signs and into the Hearts and Minds of Your Physician Stakeholders, recently provided insights into the physician interactions that can impact promotional effectiveness. GfK Market Measures examined not just what physicians were thinking, but the whys behind their thoughts. The findings were derived by combining our proprietary Segment Tracker study - which sheds light on the differing promotional dynamics of physician stakeholders, such as their needs and attitudes, and the opportunities these insights present - with our annual sales force effectiveness study.

What resounded loud and clear from this research is that a one-size-fits-all approach to promotional effectiveness clearly cannot assist health care marketers in reaching and impacting physicians at an optimum level, nor does such an approach always engage physicians in ways they would like to be.

God Bless PricewaterhouseCoopers!
This month's published document for The Orange Pages discusses a recent publication issued by PricewaterhouseCoopers' Health Research Institute titled, "Healthcare policy in an Obama administration: Delivering on the promise of universal coverage."

The module flags important points for pharmaceutical marketing researchers to consider and monitor during the first year of the president-elect's administration - and beyond. More specifically, it highlights the suggestions the report makes for reworking the health care system.


Did You Miss the November Issue of Topline?
Click here to read the issue, which includes:

  • The perfect storm in pharmaceutical marketing research
  • The most effective sales forces according to GfK
  • Pharmaceutical markets in Asia: an overview
  • Data Download research highlights: rheumatology and female health

    • Topline archive is available. Skim the directory and select articles you missed. Access subscriber opt-in/comment form.

    Remember When the United States Was Two- Thirds of the World's Pharmaceutical Market?

    This month I want to update you on two topics, important to me, that I have touched on in previous articles and presentations. I won't start from the beginning and proceed through the whole story, but offer up the original premise and cut right to the chase on the update.

    The first topic is the shifting geography of the pharmaceutical industry. Early in my career, the United States accounted for about 66 percent of the industry's business. But now, significantly less than half of pharmaceutical sales come from the United States. I have written often about this phenomenon, and how it will undoubtedly shift the face of the pharmaceutical industry even more in years to come.

    In its September 2008 issue, The Economist charted growth in the pharmaceutical industry by region for the coming year. The message of this chart is relatively self-explanatory; it reveals that precious little growth, by individual region or in the aggregate, will come from the former fountains of profitability, including the United States, the G5 countries and Japan. Rather, the pharmaceutical marketplace is turning into a truly global one, with most of the growth in sales coming from the now often discussed "emerging countries" and, making things really complicated, from the "rest of the world."


    Richard B. Vanderveer, Ph.D.
    Group Chief Executive Officer
    GfK U.S. Healthcare Companies



    Research Highlights: Depression and Managed Care

    Data Download provides highlights of recently released data from GfK Market Measures' Therapeutic Class Studies (TCS). Based on primary market research, TCS provide in-depth analysis of market trends, physician practice patterns and competitive brand positioning.

    This month's selections cover research from studies conducted in the areas of depression and managed care.