Pharmaceutical brands’ websites are “content-poor” despite the fact that two-thirds of consumers want relevant and meaningful content to help them make better decisions, a new study published by Gartner has found.
The L2 Digital IQ Index for the pharmaceutical industry in the US shows that brands have largely failed to pivot away from corporate, brand-focused messages to a more patient-centric narrative. Gartner says that consumers are now more savvy and skeptical than before, and digital content is very important for guiding and helping them.
Gartner’s Chris Beland noted that pharmaceutical brands are generally performing “above average” in an industry where regulation and scrutiny are an ongoing challenge but urged them to create better social and mobile experiences to meet the needs of end users.
He added: “It’s not enough to have average digital capabilities these days – pharmaceutical brands must ensure that their content is present, relevant and meaningful enough to take action on.”
Gartner ranked each of the 88 brands that it analyzed using 1,200 data points. Only three were able to secure the top-rated “Genius” classification, while 20 were either “Challenged” or “Feeble”. To improve output, the research company said that brands should try to create more conversation guides and incorporate better patient storytelling into content. The study also found that brands that are willing to experiment with mobile, social and email generally see much better returns in terms of driving higher website traffic and better performance. The need to be mobile-optimized is highlighted by the fact that 83% of all traffic is now centered on brands’ mobile sites
