PR as important as pharmaceutical sales teams, says study

Medical executives value PR as much as their sales teams, Pharmafocus.com reports.

A survey for the Healthcare Communications Association (HCA) asked 30 executives, 15 of whom work in communications, to value various types of media in terms of their own opinions and how the rest of the company perceived them.

It found that sales teams were the most highly valued amongst the rest of the company, earning a score of 9.1. But whilst PR was only rated at 6.1 in terms of what the firm thought, in personal opinions it scored 8.1.

Executives also felt that their companies underrated medical education, and placed too much emphasis on advertising.

“This survey shows that those who are less sure of PR’s effectiveness will lean more heavily towards sales forces, direct mail and advertising.” said Fiona Hall, chair of the HCA’s benchmarking subcommittee.

“But they are missing a trick; if you join all of your marketing investment up you’ll get a better return on investment,” she added.

It also discovered that 69 per cent of executives felt that, in light of new ABPI codes, increased attention to pharmaceutical marketing will make the need for diligence in media practice ever more important

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