Another Reason To Skip The Movies
When you go out to the movies, do you go to watch advertising? Do you go to learn about diseases? Or do you go to be entertained? I’ve loved going to the movies since I was a kid, but the experience has really gone downhill over the years with the high costs of tickets and snacks, and fewer and fewer films that are worth paying to see.
The short ads that play before movies begin can be entertaining, as they often fill the time when people are still getting popcorn or finding seats. But in the near future, if you visit theatres in select cities, you will be able to experience a 58 minute long pharmaceutical ad/disease awareness documentary.
While Innerstate is a highly produced documentary providing a window into three real stories of people suffering from different immune diseases, and it is being offered FREE for anyone interested, I have to say NO THANK YOU!
Disease awareness and patient education campaigns are extremely important for the health of our nation, but TV, web and direct mail already provide excellent opportunities for communication with consumers.
To make a really strong campaign for this new documentary, I suggest a well-developed multi-media campaign:
Offer the documentary as a DVD that people can receive via mail, and view in their homes.
Run broadcast and print ads that promote the film and drive people to a Website where they can request the DVD.
Hit a wider audience overall, and capture a highly targeted audience via DVD requests.
Capture customer data and develop a customer marketing database (including opt-in details, don’t forget HIPAA)
Follow up with a series of emails or other DM to encourage people to visit their doctor and ask about an appropriate treatment.
Pharmaceutical advertising and disease awareness has its place – and it is NOT in movie theatres.
