How does it work?
Success is built on a knowledge base of what worked -
and what didn't.
Case Studies: Sales Promotion
Pharmaceuticals
Sales promotion is the gamble with a big payoff when it's done right. It refers to paid marketing communication activities - other than advertising, public relations and personal selling - that stimulate sales.
Client
In this case, I worked with an advertising agency to create a sales promotion campaign for its client: a pharmaceutical company introducing a promising new drug to treat the symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Actually, the drug was only new for the U.S. market; it had already been used successfully overseas for a number of years.
Challenge
The main competitor was a drug that was well entrenched among patients with MS and their physicians. The challenge was to introduce the new drug and encourage trial in a way that was sensitive, supportive and respected the privacy of MS patients; this had to be a sales promotion that didn't feel at all like a sales promotion.
Solution
The pharmaceutical company sponsored free seminars throughout the country offering MS patients and their caregivers an opportunity to share information and experiences with each other and with the medical professionals who were the guest speakers.
After the seminars, using the names and addresses of the attendees as well as the no-shows, we created a mailing with the light touch the situation required. The mailing arrived in a small discreet box that included a letter (attendees were thanked for their participation while no-shows were told 'we're sorry you weren't able to attend'), a non-branded desk calendar with an uplifting message for each month, and a removable card that included information about the drug and an invitation to find out more. The desk calendar was non-branded because many MS patients prefer to keep their disease from their friends and colleagues.
Result
The seminars were so well-attended that the company scheduled additional seminars. The calendar mailings were also well-received. As for the impact on the bottom line, this sales promotion helped the newly FDA-approved drug make significant inroads in the U.S. market.