BRANDKARMA THOUGHTS

Fighting fake drugs in Africa

It’s estimated that counterfeit pharmaceuticals comprise 10% of the global medicine trade. That number is much higher in developing nations, such as in Nigeria, where 50% - 70% of all drugs sold are counterfeits [...]

Stop saying you are sorry and just do it right!

This week I stayed in a hotel. Granted, it was not top-of-the-line, but it was a mid-level brand—you know, the kind that’s a little too run down to be the flagship brand [...]

We need ghostwriters—but transparent ones

The recent revelation that Eli Lilly used ghostwriters to write favorable articles on the use of Zyprexa and sought out physicians to put their names on the respective papers brings up the issue of the common practice of medical writers [...]

Disrupt the disruption

I really like the term "disrupt". I especially like it in the true way that it was meant to be used when we talk about marketing. I do fear that this powerful word, and even more powerful concept, [...]

What’s next for DTC?

The FDA recently published their draft guidance for DTC advertising. The document, titled "Presenting Risk Information on Prescription Drug and Medical Device Promotion," proposes that marketers use a reasonable consumer standard, similar to the FTC standard, to determine whether [...]

Death of a Salesman

What a crappy time to be a salesperson. It feels like they have everything against them right now. At the retail level people just aren't spending — or don't have the money they used to. [...]

To regulate or not to regulate?

We have all been affected in some way by deregulation and the current mess that is Wall Street and the banking industry. More and more, it seems like there can never be a balanced approach to societal behavior [...]

Tweaking Tweets for Marketing Purposes

All eyes are on Twitter as both the company itself and legions of salivating marketers try to figure out just what advertising will look like on the hot microblogging site. Of course, advertising is nothing new to Twitter [...]

Speaker Training: Content vs Delivery

Speakers' training meetings are conferences organized by pharmaceutical or device manufacturers, designed to bring together and train a group of key opinion leaders on the company’s product or disease state so they can speak at various events organized by either the company of medical associations.

Risky Business

Nothing great has been discovered without taking risks... Fabulous failures tend to generate phenomenal innovations. So why, in an era where we value innovations, do we no longer take risks? [...]