By Michael Auerbach, Editor in Chief
“The Future Ain’t What It Used To Be.”
The late, great Yogi Berra was credited with saying a lot of crazy things.
From “It ain’t over till it’s over.” to “Nobody goes there anymore. It’s too crowded.” Berra was adept at mangling the English language but yet, you kind of, sort of, knew what he meant.
Today, I’m here to talk about his line, “You can observe a lot by watching.” and how it relates to the pharmaceutical industry.
I have no compunction about admitting that I watch television - perhaps too much television. I am also one of those people who tend to also watch commercials – and not just during the Super Bowl. Most are boring, or predictable, but some are clever and humorous. The “Jake from State Farm” commercial is particularly good – and always gives me a chuckle. I also find the Subaru commercials that feature dogs amusing and effective.
Commercials for pharmaceuticals are fairly predictable. Thirty seconds of silly, contrived situations designed to emulate what companies think/hope will get potential consumers to identify with – all the while making sure to include all the required legalese and side-effect information – most of which normal people can’t stomach.
While the style of the commercials is usually the same – the types of products being advertised is what is interesting, and as Berra once said, “You can observe a lot by watching.”
For example, just a few short years ago advertisements for ED treatments were on ALL THE TIME. Most noticeable during sporting events, you were practically guaranteed to see at least one ED advertisement during a commercial break. And you have my sympathies if you ever had to explain what ED was to a young child who happened to be watching the game with you.
More recently, commercials for low testosterone filled the commercial breaks. Remedies for Low-T as it was called seemed to replace many of the spots for ED during sporting events. Then, just as quickly as they arrived, they disappeared.
Today, there appears to be two new hot indications: irritable bowel syndrome, and psoriasis. Both must be very tough for marketers to make “sexy” as they did for ED and Low-T, but they sure are trying. And, just like the prior ads, spots for these indications are now taking over prime-time and sports programming.
So, if you are looking to see what’s on the minds of pharmaceutical marketers, you need look no further than your TV screen because, as Yogi said, “I never said most of the things I said.”