Health Care Marketing Reflection Essay

Health care marketing is the new approach to public health; it is an industry that keeps growing as health care trends frequently change. The internet has changed health care a we know it social media website have been reported as the most effective tool to the marketing approach especially for pharmaceutical companies who have pop-up ads on just about every site consumers visit. The purpose of this paper is to reflect on marketing techniques, what types of trends that are being used and how they are used, how they are affecting consumer trends, and the negative and positive affects of the current techniques. Types of marketing trends Direct to consumer pharmaceutical trends have become increasing popular to promote products to health care facilities, providers, and patients. While there are many approaches and techniques used in the DTC pharmaceutical trend, the most effective are; â€Å"help seeking ad† which have been know to provide patients with medical information about a specific illness and advises consumers to contact there health care provider for more information but does not mention type of product, another is the â€Å"reminder ad† which often mentions type of product, name, dosage, strength, and price, the most commonly used trend is the â€Å"product claim ad† which will include the product name and it’s indication, safety claims, and efficacy (Ventola, 2011). The trends are being used to promote a variety pharmaceutical products regulated and approved by the FDA for people who may suffer from various illnesses the product was create to manage such as depression, chronic pain, heart disease, and respiratory diseases. Current health care marketing techniques and trends The internet has become and effective technique for health care marketing  because of it large data base, it has influenced many health professional in there decisions on medication management in addition to what other products are available to manage health issues. The internet has allowed consumers to research pharmaceutical companies and get information about products, the side affects of its use, and its effectiveness. The marketing trend and techniques of health care marketing on the internet has offered variety and convenience to patients and providers and have influenced more patients to actively become more involved managing their health by researching pharmaceutical information and discussing it with their health care provider. Are current techniques affecting consumer trends? There are many challenges associated with the pharmaceutical marketing techniques that can both influence and affect consumer trends, for example the accelerating of health care spending on advertising to promote the products, cost of the products, escalated or new found illnesses related to the side affects of the product, advertising of incorrect information, product not approved by the FDA but already being advertised, and the most common, the products not being covered by insurance companies. Although these challenges exist, they will not have a significant impact on consumer trends. Positive or Negative affects of current techniques and trends? Current techniques and trends can have both a positive and a negative affect, primarily based on how the product is being marketing and to whom. Direct to consumer pharmaceutical advertising as previously mentioned uses a variety of techniques for promoting products, a negative affect would be promoting and allowing trial use of non FDA approved products, which can lead to chronic or major health issues, a positive affect can be consumer driven approach to encourage others to talk with there physician about a product used that helped with a current medical condition. The same would apply to internet marketing trends, they could be both positive and negative affects based on how the information is researched and documented. Conclusion The internet approach to current trends of health care marketing establishes new and creative ways for pharmaceutical companies to advertise there products related to current health care and consumer trends, the internet has helped to influence health care providers decisions for medication  manage along with researching other available products to help with a variety of health conditions, it has provided opportunities for consumers to learn about pharmaceutical companies and the products they advertise. As trends change challenges will occur, how well pharmaceutical adjust and change there marketing techniques will determine there success in the health care industry. Reference Ventola, C. L. (2011, October). Direct-to-Consumer Pharmaceutical Advertising. Pharmacy and Theraputics, 36(10), 669-674, 681-684. doi:PMC3278148