The Navicor Group, the Executive Creative Director Marvin Bowe's perspective on future advertising trends that will impact Oncology marketing and advertising. Learn more at http://the.oncology.agency

1. ONCOLOGY AD-GUY
September 15, 2010
In general, most
treating oncologists
are approximately
45-55 years of age
which means they
have been utilizing
computers, Internet
and other techno-
What are some increasing advertising/marketing
devices throughout
their entire careers.
trends in the area of oncology?
By Marvin Bowe
In the oncology market, similar to we will see more of in the near A level number of oncologists and
many other markets like diabetes, future: smart phone applications, an increase in baby boomer
female health and HIV, pharma online-rep detailing, and virtual patients in the future means less
companies and ad agencies have conferences. And two that I think time for sales reps, particularly
been pioneering new approaches we will see much less: journal during prime time. However, the
to leverage the cornucopia of advertising and print sales-aids. demand for new information
technologies we have at our about the latest therapies
fingertips. And I believe the main Each year marks another year of continues to rise. This is a perfect
reason why many of the experience with digital technology storm for online-rep details. Each
technologies have been positioned for both oncologists and patients. year web-conferencing
as a fad is because they were not In general, most treating technologies are becoming more
widely understood by clinicians or oncologists are approximately compatible and intuitive for all of
always seen as the right approach 45-55 years of age which means us to use more readily.
to reach the elderly patient. they have been utilizing
Today, hundreds of physicians are computers, Internet and other With all the new developments in
taking the plunge into techno-devices throughout their digital communication platforms,
communications technology. And entire careers. marketers can expect a shift in
every year, a younger, techno- media resources. I believe the
savvy person is closer to Just two years ago, the idea of most vulnerable is journal
becoming the next elderly patient. mobile apps were off the radar, advertising. To be effective with
According to recent studies, now there are thousands of journal advertising, the media
oncologists compared to other educational, assessment and spend has to be significant, at
specialists are most engaged with reference tools, all tailored to least in comparison to on-line
digital media, and baby boomers making the healthcare experience advertising. Online advertising
are the fastest growing online more effective and efficient, not can be more efficient because ads
user. That said, there are three only for the patient but also the can be targeted and linked to
communication platforms I think clinician. specific articles and topics, unlike
INTERESTED IN LEARNING MORE? PLEASE CONTACT MARVIN BOWE @ MBOWE@NAVICORGROUP.COM

2. ONCOLOGY AD-GUY September 15, 2010
being in the beginning or end of a print How is the use of new
journal. I believe there are just better,
more efficient ways to reach the audience technology/online trends
in today’s world. altering advertising and
branding approaches in
Lastly, print sales-aids have seen better
days. In oncology, as with other oncology/oncology
specialties, the major flaw with print brands?
collateral, even clinical reprints is the fact
that they are static whereas a sales As you can imagine, technology is and
conversation is dynamic. Being able to will continue to alter our approaches
link materials together quickly and quite significantly. The fact of the matter
seamlessly as the conversation shifts is that most patients with cancer aging
demands a medium that can rapidly shift 60-75 have had some experience with
and stay on track with the conversation. computers. But, more importantly,
Tablet PCs are being increasingly used, physicians have been leveraging online
however those devices were plagued with information for decades. Trends have
problems, start up times, battery life, shown oncologists making a shift from
processing speeds, etc. New digital reading review articles in magazines to
devices like an HP Slate or iPad should using online sources. This shift may
be able provide a more usable flow of reduce the amount of journal advertising
information. spend. On the flip side, online media
allows for advertising to be more efficient
What are clients needs and dynamic. Now a skyscraper ad can
and how are agencies be placed at a lesser cost and have more
meeting those needs (or relevance. In addition, the Internet has
allowed for “brand on-demand”
how has the agency detailing. Every day another sales rep
done this in the past)? gets turned away due to the physician’s
lack of time. Through video
conferencing, they can reconnect when it
Client needs are similar today as to what is more convenient. Smart phones, pico-
they were in recent past. They include projectors and the new slate devices are
Online communities
increasing brand awareness, all making selling aids more dynamic, like Sermo and
differentiating products from the mimicking the flow of a natural
competition and establishing a brand’s custom digital radio
conversation. For years sales reps have
value. But the rules are always changing; struggled with lugging around the right programs such as
the regulatory environment is much more detail aids for the call. . Even laptops, as
restrictive. Also, new products are being
Reach MD, and other
cool as they were in the nineties were
launched with niche indications. Because never practical for a day of detailing. new media available
we need to work within the confines of a Boot-ups, processing issues and battery today provide
product label, we leverage the strength of life all plagued the devices making print
disease-state communication in addition oncology brands the
documents the preference. Now these
to branded promotion. By painting the more nibble devices give reps the reach of mass media
picture of the ongoing unmet medical flexibility of a dynamic conversation with without the cost.
need, the differences in molecular targets the ease of print selling tools.
and mechanisms of various therapies we Marvin Bowe
are helping the clinician make a more
informed decision when selecting a
treatment approach.
Marvin leads the new media development for
Navicor, focusing on Internet linking strategies;
engaging physicians, patients, and caregivers
through online social community dialogue; tracking
online trends and enhancing SEO by maximizing
user-generated content for client’s brands.
INTERESTED IN LEARNING MORE? PLEASE CONTACT MARVIN BOWE @ MBOWE@NAVICORGROUP.COM