The FDA’s new Bad Ad Program conveys many messages, both overt and subtle. The obvious ones: the FDA believes there are misleading prescription drug promotions out there, and the government needs the help of health care providers to identify them. The underlying but nonetheless crystal clear message:  Healthcare providers –and by extension patients, their families, consumers–should not trust the pharmaceutical industry and certainly not their ads and promotions.

That the Rx industry continues to be cast in the role of the villain is not news.  Poll after poll show the need for pharma companies to improve trust. It’s not as if the industry isn’t listening.  The industry invests significant time, energy and resources—people and financial— into programs that give back globally and locally, and on corporate reputation. Just look at any company’s website to see the good that’s being done at home and around the world.

But with this new black cloud, the negative perceptions may come dangerously close to overwhelming any of the realities.  In today’s world where the public trust has been compromised in so many different arenas –Madoff, Toyota, BP, Wall Street –the pharmaceutical industry is in pretty shabby company and Americans are in no mood to forgive.

Now, more than ever, credibility is everything, and PR has long been the communications “credibility” vehicle of choice.  PR can help companies dial up the trust factor in brand marketing by providing the communications balance to DTC investments through programs that deliver against a higher cause – patient education, disease awareness, free screenings, easier access to important information for at-risk patients and families. Moreover, we can help build relationships and establish partnerships with the full range of players from the for-profit and non-profit sectors on important health issues, and support company communications with important stakeholders using clear language and decisive actions.

According to a recent Harris poll, only 18% found pharma advertising most trustworthy compared to ads from four other major US industries.  Although every word of every claim and every visual that appears in a pharma ad is regulated, whether it’s a “good” ad or a “bad ad” isn’t clear, not even to the regulators.  Trust is at the heart of the issue, and we in PR should embrace this latest challenge and do what we do best to help our healthcare clients with counsel and programming that will help to close the the credibility gap.

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 10th, 2010 at 11:17 am and is filed under Public Relations. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

Please be courteous and refrain from using profanities, please avoid contention and be respectful and please be respectful of others' views and opinions.