social media marketing for pharmaceutical companies on weibo (china)
Post on 13-Sep-2014
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Healthcare in general, and pharmaceutical industry in particular, are both heavily regulated industries, prone to reputation exposure, and at the heart of web users conversations with more than 20% of topics related to this field. If "big pharma" is now efficient on social media in the West, it is still absent from Weibo, one of China's main social media platforms. Obstacles exist, but opportunities lie ahead of those able to have a clear strategy, tools such as guidelines, processes in case of a crisis, and the spirit of social media. Discover what is social media in China, who the Weibo users are, what are the main issues for pharma companies, and inspire from successful best practices of social media marketing and campaigns on this micro-blogging network.TRANSCRIPT
Social media marke-ng for pharmaceu-cal companies
on Weibo July 2013
Social media in China The most connected and social country
• China has the world’s largest online community, with 564M web users in 2012, 74% of which on mobile devices
• 95% of people living in Tier 1, 2 and 3 ci-es are on social media
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
China
Japan
Korea
USA
Cross-‐country Comparison of Social Media Usage [1]
No. of mins avg Internet user spend on social media/day
% of Internet Users Using Social Media
Social media in China An ecosystem of its own
• Facebook, TwiUer, Youtube, all have Chinese counterparts, which are similar, but not clones
Weibo key features A TwiUer-‐like under steroids
• 140 characters in Chinese packs much more informa-on than 140 characters in English
• More tools are available for interac-ons than on TwiUer (comments, emo-cons, polls…)
• Pos-ng of pictures and video is easy, giving more flexibility for online campaigns
Pharmaceu-cal players on Weibo Brands vs. influent vigilantes
• Few pharmaceu-cal companies are on Weibo except Quin-le and Bayer China
• General mistrust & health scandals have vigilante groups taken to Weibo to evaluate pharma brands & product.
• Vigilante groups publish industry news, and are managed by well-‐respected members of the medical profession, with significant influence.
Profile page of China Pharmaceu9cal Associa9on Credibility Evalua9on Branch
Rules & use of social media in China Real-‐name system & poli-cal censorship
• To crack down on poli-cally sensi-ve issues, Weibo users nos have to register their real iden-ty
• As a result, new registra-on dropped from 20M new accounts per month to 2.5M
• That being said, commercial ac-vi-es are largely unaffected
Rules & use of social media in China Vigilante Communi-es
• A 2012 Dartmouth study shows Weibo helps to reduce bad drugs by pushing authori-es to monitor and deter its produc-on
• In provinces where Weibo usage has doubled, bad drug produc-on has been discovered to fall by up to 42% in the same period
• Vigilante groups can be highly benefical for established brands with FDA approved products
Pharmaceu-cal industry online Reputa-on as a new risk and opportunity
• Pharmaceu-cal companies are slow to go on social media, even when US physicians are 84% to turn to internet to look for pharma-‐related informa-on (2008)
• Chinese pharma company Renhe Pharmacy lost 1bn RMB in March 2013 due to an uncorrected rumor, re-‐posted by celebrity Wen Zhang to its 26M fans
• Proper guidelines and processes can mi-gate these risks, as well as monitoring and
crisis management training.
Pharmaceu-cal regula-ons online Lack of FDA regula-ons
• Strict regula-ons are imposed by FDA and other authori-es, even if they too, have been slow to catch up on social media
• Clear internal guidelines and promo-on of content on ethics, regula-on, is an opportunity both for branding and promo-on
Pharmaceu-cal regula-ons online Fragility of trust
• In the pharmaceu-cal industry, customer trust and confidence are of paramount importance
• Reassurance is a priority, before thinking of sales-‐focused marke-ng campaigns
• Social media can be used to build a rela-onship, leverage personal stories and exert transparency
Collabora9on, transparency and branding: an efficient social media strategy from Sanofi
Pharmaceu-cal regula-ons online Unclear ROI
• Social media ROI can’t be compared with tradi-onal marke-ng ROI
• With significant lower costs to go on social media and the power of communi-es and word-‐of-‐mouth, there is no reason for pharmaceu-cal companies to be deterred from going social
• Insights from social media and trust built with consumers are a first clear return, to name a few
Pharmaceu-cal regula-ons online Customers are solici-ng informa-on
• Brands are expected and needed online, to correct, answer, and interact with customers who speak of them everyday
• In a 2013 LSE survey of online healthcare forums, a quarter of the 800 analyzed posts explicitly solicited informa-on, and informa-ve dialogues comprise a majority of conversa-on threads
• adop-ng an educa-onal and informa-ve approach to social media presence profiling can aid pharmaceu-cal companies
Social marke-ng on Weibo Average Weibo user profile
• Highly likely to be a resident of a major Chinese city (eg. Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou)
• Not likely to create original content; Chinese users have shown a high preference for repos-ng or sharing content
• Likely to have strong engagement with key content creators (eg. celebri-es, conversa-on makers)
Social marke-ng on Weibo Product-‐specific channels
• Certain companies employ different accounts to engage different customers, segmented by its products and services.
• For instance, high-‐class wine producer Remy Mar-n set up separate accounts dedicated to different products, since the customers of each product class have varying profiles.
Social marke-ng on Weibo Event organiza-on and updates
• For companies with a heavy emphasis on event marke-ng and promo-on, Weibo serves as a very effec-ve plaporm to keep followers in the loop on upcoming events and in gathering aUendance.
• A good example is Louis VuiUon, which capitalizes on Weibo to announce cultural events, product launches, post videos of interviews, feature the backstage of fashion shows and even reveal product launch teasers.
Social marke-ng on Weibo Contests & Sweepstakes
• Contests and sweepstakes are the perfect strategies to amp up user engagement in a very short period of -me, which KFC did for Valen-ne’s Day in China.
• The contest involves fill in the blanks on the two images posted by KFC to make a complete sentence. Par-cipants need to write down the answer in comments box as well and repost it for a chance to win a camera. The first fill in the blank image received 1376 comments and 1524 reposts, and the second received 747 comments and 913 reposts.
Social marke-ng on Weibo Social gaming
• Weibo offers social games, similar to those hosted on Facebook. Brands can actually create social games for users, awarding them with brand-‐related awards.
• Certain companies can also add a gaming element to social interac-ons and networking involving their brand. For instance, Nike gave users who share its event informa-on copiously with branded virtual awards, which further proliferated its brand awareness
Social marke-ng on Weibo Crea-ng micro-‐subjects
• Like TwiUer, Weibo also has the hashtags func-on, which allows brands to create micro-‐subjects that users can easily find and follow
. • For example, Lancome u-lizes the hashtags to generate threads of make-‐up -ps and
personal styling using their products, thus making it very easy for followers to be constantly updated of new -ps.
Social marke-ng on Weibo Discounts & promo-ons
• Weibo users, like most consumers, respond powerfully to direct and tangible incen-ves.
• Dell Computer frequently uses Weibo to share coupons, -me-‐sensi-ve flash codes and special promo-ons, which highly incen-ves users to follow Dell’s profile and frequently engage in its threads
Social marke-ng on Weibo Market research & consulta-on
• When customers are included in the product innova-on process, they feel a stronger sense of belonging and loyalty to the brand
• A prime example of a brand that chose this approach is Vancl, which has one of the highest engagement rates on Weibo.
• It frequently asks its consumers ques-ons and organizes polls regarding its consumers’ lifestyle and the brand. The informa-on collected is fed back into the feedback loop and incorporated into the design of future products.
Key takeaways An untapped poten-al
• Weibo holds incredible poten-al for pharmaceu-cal brands
• Many brands are on Weibo, but almost none from the pharmaceu-cal industry
• Pharmaceu-cal brands are on Facebook, TwiUer, LinkedIn, but miss the huge Chinese market
• Obstacles exist, but can be circumvented with methodologies, guidelines, and monitoring
• Messages must be validated carefully, and a follow-‐up must know what is being done with the message
• It seems riskier not to embrace social media marke-ng as all trends show an inescapable shiq of aUen-on onto social media.
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