• by Larry Dobrow , October 1, 2003

When planning the launch of the second edition of The Merck Manual of Medical Information, Ignite Health faced a fairly common dilemma for healthcare marketers. On one hand, the firm hoped to provide a level of creativity generally not seen in the healthcare publishing sector, especially online. On the other, it didn't want to meddle with the established Merck Manual brand.

The solution, company execs say, came in the form of Eyeblaster and its rich media technology. Ignite's campaign, which ran on both health- and non-health- related Web sites, drove book sales and site traffic, bettering what the Merck Manual had previously seen from its online marketing efforts.

The campaign featured six creative concepts and 15 different executions, including Eyeblaster's floating ads and so-called "polite" banners. Research tools provided by Eyeblaster helped Ignite recognize what was working and what wasn't, allowing the firm to tweak the campaign to emphasize the top- performing ads.

"Web promotion in the healthcare space, when properly executed, is a worthwhile endeavor that can provide a tangible return on investment," said Ignite principal and director of interactive services Fabio Gratton. Eyeblaster director of business development, western region Chip Russo added that the marketing push was "one of the most successful campaigns we have seen in the healthcare space."