Search Marketing Fact Pack

November 16, 2007 – 12:51 pm

I hope you all had a chance to read the AdAge Search Fact Pack 2007. If not let me give you the highlights I found interesting:

1. Top three categories reached by search: Education: 45% of traffic from search; Health and Medical: 44%; Food and Beverage: 40%. All categories was 25%, up from 20% a year ago. Interesting! This is Hitwise data for four weeks ended 9/29/07. What percent of traffic comes to your site from Search? Do you have a goal?

2. Top sites by share of visits by category: Health: Merck: 3.97%; My Alli (GSK): 2.76%; Viagra (Pfizer): 2.49%; Acuvue (JNJ): 1.88%; Tylenol (McNeil): 1.71%.

3. Just to keep you guys thinking about social media: #1 top search: “Myspace”: 0.86%

Happy Friday!

By Heather | Posted in Catalyst, Healthcare Search, Pharma Marketing, Pharma Search, Regulated Industries, SEM, SEO, Search Engine Optimization, Search Marketing | Comments (0)

Catalyst online’s POV of MSN HealthVault

November 8, 2007 – 9:36 pm

If you’d like to read what Catalyst has to say about Microsoft’s new HealthVault, please check out Catalyst’s Point of View on MSN HealthVault.com.

We’d like to hear what you have to say about MSN’s HealthVault.com. Let us know what you think.

By Heather | Posted in Catalyst, Healthcare Search, Pharma Marketing, Pharma Search, SEM, Search Marketing | Comments (0)

Google Health is coming back

October 19, 2007 – 11:00 am

Google announced yesterday that Google Health will launch in early 2008. Microsoft also recently launched HealthVault Search. Both aim to be part medical search engine and part repository of personal data and health information. We all know the challenges they both face! I would suggest to the marketers out there, test and gather data. As I have said before, however, take baby steps. For example, encourage your search shop to run paid search campaigns on Microsoft. Is there an above average response rate and/or conversion rate on HealthVault versus Live.com?

I am not sure where this is going but we absolutely need to monitor and report on user interaction with these evolving communication models. Happy Friday!

By Heather | Posted in Catalyst, Google, Healthcare Search, Paid Search, Pharma Marketing, Pharma Search, SEM, SEO, Search Engine Optimization, Search Marketing, Search Marketing Conferences | Comments (0)

Planning for query volume surges

October 18, 2007 – 11:13 am

I think we can all agree that an evergreen approach to search marketing is ideal. However, as episodic events present themselves it is important to strategize accordingly. For instance, launching a DTC campaign will create online buzz (we hope). We need to plan for queries and query volumes created by this DTC campaign. A second example, a  topic on Oprah’s show is breast cancer; invariably query volumes rise dramatically after such episodes. A third example, a press release announcing a second indication for your drug will generate increased query volumes.

Therefore, the orchestration of the various aspects of your communications must be in concert. Did I tell you I played “thirds” clarinet in junior high school? The best performances in this arena are by those who include search marketing in their communication tactics with these often disparate entities. Call your search vendor!

By Heather | Posted in Catalyst, Media, Paid Search, SEM, SEO, Search Engine Optimization, Search Marketing | Comments (0)

Internet Ad Revenue is up, are you in the game?

October 5, 2007 – 2:49 pm

In case you have nothing to talk about this weekend, Internet advertising revenue for the first half of 2007 hit $10 billion - an increase of nearly 27% over the same period last year, according to the latest IAB report, released Thursday in conjunction with PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Search (41%), banners/display (21%) and classifieds (17%) continued to account for the highest percentage of ad spending online, the IAB reported.

That is the good news, so my advice, get in the game.

However, there are still obstacles, two reported by the IAB.

First, how do we measure audience. Further, I am asked weekly by at least one client or prospect how do we measure our success? our ROI? Measurement is a challenge. Television has been around for 50+ years and there are still consistent measurement standards. The Internet? No standards. Standard measurement will come,  so get in the game.

Second, interactive advertising is still expensive to manage. For years Catalyst survived because the big shops did not want to spend the time on a small budget, expensive to manage, medium. The big shops are now participating but inefficiencies in the interactive advertising supply chain still exist. The communication community is working hard on this issue, and with the big boys in the game now, it will be resolved soon.

Don’t be discouraged! Search marketing and auction-based media buying have arrived and will eventually transform communication planning and tactics.

By Heather | Posted in Catalyst, Healthcare Search, Media, Paid Search, Pharma Marketing, Pharma Search, SEM, SEO, Search Engine Optimization, Search Marketing | Comments (0)

Can you compete with mainstream healthcare portals?

October 3, 2007 – 2:06 pm

You may have heard the announcement to day, the NYTimes is offering health content supplied by A.D.AM. a company that maintains an online compendium of information on health conditions, treatments and insurance, among other topics. The content is written by physicians and reviewed by a network of third-party doctors. No big surprise, Hearst bought RealAge.com in mid-September and several big consumer magazine publishers have recently opted to buy online health information Web sites.

Why is this important? Because online health portals are being established (or acquired) by some really large media outlets. For example companies like the NYTimes heavily invest in SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Marshall Simmonds works as chief search strategist to institutionalize SEO as part of the regular editorial production at the New York Times.

The next time you’re reading something at the New York Times or Realage (or WebMD etc etc), remember it was probably SEO that got you there. Furthermore, the next time a consumer or HCP does a search, the outlets like the NYTimes may be providing competing content for your drug, condition, symptoms, etc.- because their primary marketing tactic is SEO.

By Heather | Posted in Catalyst, Healthcare Search, Pharma Marketing, Pharma Search, SEM, SEO, Search Engine Optimization, Search Marketing | Comments (1)

Drug ads and Congress

September 24, 2007 – 10:34 am

So we all sighed after the House and Senate passed the Food and Drug Administration bill last week. An article in Friday’s WSJ titled, ‘Media Industry Helped Drug Firms Fight Ad Restraints’ highlights the drug industry

…”found powerful allies among media and advertising firms who were determine to protect one of their biggest and fastest growing advertising category.”

I am happy to participate, once again helping out our clients. As you may know Catalyst online is owned by WPP, the worlds largest (debatable) advertising and marketing company. I know, I know, of course we helped you out, it was also a success for the advertising community. In the US, pharmaceutical companies were the tenth biggest advertiser in 2006, spending $5.3 billion, or 3.5% of the total $149.6 billion US ad market (source: TNS Media Intelligence).

However, there are still many people that were not happy with the changes. There are many out there that believe a moratorium on consumer ads is imperative, especially for a drug that raises ’safety issues.’ I am not sure how the term safety issues is being defined - we all know every drug has some safety issues.

So what is my point you ask? Search marketing, of course. A consumer looking for information on a drug or condition, is that advertising? Yes… maybe, no. Search finds people when they are looking for a particular item at the Moment of Relevance (MOR). As always, I am on my soap box about search marketing. There are so many reasons to invest in search marketing, even political.

By Heather | Posted in Catalyst, Healthcare Search, Paid Search, Pharma Marketing, Pharma Search, Regulated Industries, SEM, SEO, Search Engine Optimization, Search Marketing | Comments (0)

Pharma Industry: Embrace Web 2.0

September 13, 2007 – 2:02 pm

I am not sure how many of you saw the article published yesterday, “eMarketer: Pharma Industry Failing at Web 2.0.

“Despite accounting for an ever-increasing spend of online ad spending, the pharmaceutical industry is still failing to embrace the Web 2.0 strategies that could help it better engage consumers looking for health care assistance, according to eMarketer research.”

The industry is tracking to spend $975 million online in 2007, 4.5% of total Web spend, and is predicted to spend $2.2 billion by 2011, 5% of total Web spend.

The article goes on to say, the pharma industry is not exploring with blogs, social networks, etc. Well we all know why. Interestingly, the article highlights the Rozerem website and the video aspect of the site. I think the idea is good, the site continues the DTC experience with the three characters in the TV ads. This example of Web 2.0 is safe, it is in video form, so the content is controlled. This site is a very basic example of the use of Web 2.0. The bar is low.

We as an industry can do some exploratory work without ruffling the regulatory committee’s feathers. I also noticed they are doing a pretty good job with their search marketing efforts relative to their competitors. Rozerem could further leverage their video assets by optimizing the videos and other digital assets for GUS, Google Universal Search.

By Heather | Posted in Catalyst, Healthcare Search, Paid Search, Pharma Marketing, Pharma Search, Regulated Industries, SEM, SEO, Search Engine Optimization, Search Marketing, Search Marketing Conferences | Comments (0)

Wikipedia and Pharma

September 4, 2007 – 2:29 pm

We at Catalyst always advise our clients to read their brand’s Wiki entry. Is it accurate?

Why? The Wikipedia listing is usually on the first page of the SERPs (search engine result page).

However, like anything a little knowledge can be dangerous. Perhaps that is what happened to Abbott and Astra Zeneca this summer.

Abbott: In a “Patients not Patents” press release it is stated Abbott Labs is a serial Wikipedia tamperer. “From one Abbott computer over 1,000 edits were made to Wikipedia.” Of course if it was simply updating the information, this would not be newsworthy.

Astra Zeneca: The original Wikipedia entry said: “Despite a general National Institutes of Health recommendation against its use in children or those under 18, as well as a known risk that teenagers taking the drug may be more likely to think about harming or killing themselves or to plan or try to do so, Seroquel is controversially marketed to parents of moody and irritable teenagers in magazines such as Parade Magazine and TV Guide.”

An Astra Zeneca employee changed it, deleting the first sentence and simply letting it read: Seroquel is controversially marketed to parents of moody and irritable teenagers in magazines such as Parade Magazine and TV Guide. The article goes on to say, “Not only is this edit questionable because it reduces the accuracy of the Wikipedia entry, but it violates the FDA’s fair balance regulations.”

The events that occurred this summer clearly indicates that we should be thinking about how we can minimize the risk employees will expose pharma company to potential FDA citations and product liability lawsuits due to their use of social media technologies.

Wiki Scanner is a tool that allows the user to see who has made an update to a Wikipedia entry. See what is going on with your brand at www.wikiscanner.virgil.gr

By Heather | Posted in Brand Monitoring, Catalyst, Healthcare Search, Pharma Marketing, Pharma Search, Regulated Industries, Reputation Management, SEM, Search Engine Optimization, Search Marketing, Social Networking, Social Search | Comments (3)

Catalyst Releases Q2 SEO Rankings for Pharma

August 7, 2007 – 3:45 pm

Catalyst just finished compiling the Q2-2007 SEO Pharma Analysis Report. As you remember we started this analysis last quarter in our Q1-2007 SEO Pharma Analysis Report (see methodology at end of post).

As a reminder, Catalyst (that’s us) is a search marketing agency with pharmaceutical clients. You can find more about What We Do and who Our Clients are by reviewing our website. Several of the companies covered in this analysis report are clients of ours. Several are not. Sometimes one or more of the company’s top five revenue producing brands (see methodology at end of post) included in determining the company’s overall SEO rank are or have been clients of ours. Sometimes none of the top five brands are clients of ours. You get the idea.

We do this analysis because it’s interesting to us. We hope it is interesting to you too. We’re applying basic search marketing analysis to brands that exist in the highly competitive and intensely regulated pharmaceutical industry. If you follow our methodology you just may come up with the exact same results. Then again, because its’s SEO and we’re dealing with the dynamics of search engines, you may produce different results. Welcome to our world. Our goal with this quarterly analysis, as with most SEO campaigns, is to measure which pharma companies obtain valuable marketing real estate and then sustain those rankings over an extended period of time. Here are our Q2-2007 results.

Catalyst Observations:

  • Although it appears Novartis is producing superior SEO rankings, keep in mind that a perfect score is a 6.0. There is plenty of SEO opportunity for even the leaders.
  • As Boehinger Ingelhem (BI), as a company, exceeded growth expectations, as did its Q2 SEO rankings. BI experienced the greatest leap in SEO rankings from Q1. It will be interesting to see if they will maintain the progress over the next few quarters. From a search perspective it appears they are investing in brands like Flomax to lead their search marketing charge.
  • BMS experienced an SEO rankings bump primarily due to their top producing schizophrenia drug, Abilify. We’ll keep an eye on BMS brands to see if they continue progress across the board in their SEO strategy.
  • There has been some industry buzz about AstraZeneca refocusing advertising and marketing budgets to the online world. With popular drugs like Nexium and Crestor nearly non-existent from an SEO perspective, we’re glad that they at least acknowledge the internet.
  • As for Merck and Wyeth, we just don’t know. Anybody??

As always, please share you comments and observations. We’ll always respond to your questions, concerns and inquiries.

Methodology:
Using the simple, yet time consuming methodology below, gleaned from the most recent publicly available financial information, you too could produce similar results.

  1. Data compiled between April 1 and June 30, 2007
  2. Examined top 5 brands based on revenue from most recent financial statements provided by each company
  3. Searched 4 keyphrases for each brand:”[indication]” and “[indication] treatment” and “[indication] medication” and “[indication] symptoms”
  4. Recorded brand’s website rankings per each keyphrase on Google, Yahoo!, MSN and Ask and scored by defined Search Ranking Score (below)
  5. Applied the formula Index = (search ranking score*search engine market share)/11
  6. A perfect score = 6.0

Search Ranking Score:
Top 5 Rankings = 15
First Page Ranking = 10
Second Page Ranking = 3
Third Page Ranking = 1
Not Listed on First Three Pages = 0

By Heather | Posted in Catalyst, Healthcare Search, Pharma Marketing, Pharma SEO Rankings, Pharma Search | Comments (1)