• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, April 9, 2007

Got acne? This type of rhetorical pitch--like the dairy industry with its long-running "Got Milk" campaign--is proving effective for pharmaceutical marketers using unbranded multi-channel awareness campaigns for everything from acne to Restless Leg Syndrome, according to a new study from Manhattan Research.

Many in the pharmaceutical industry have questioned the viability of this approach and whether it is actually effective in driving consumers to research various conditions online.

According to the health care market research firm, ads focused on building awareness for a certain condition--and encouraging consumers to visit particular Web sites for in-depth information -- have proved to be highly valuable to marketers.

"Unbranded advertisements are building awareness for certain conditions, and encouraging consumers to take action and research these conditions online," said Mark Bard, president of Manhattan Research.

The most researched conditions researched online, according to the study of some 4,965 U.S. adults, are: Restless Leg Syndrome; Smoking/Trying to Quit Smoking; Erectile Dysfunction; Acne; and Human Papillomavirus.

Health care marketers in general have plenty of room for improvement when it comes to reaching consumers online. In particular, seniors ages 50 and up are ripe for the picking, according to recent findings from media agency GroupM and research firm Millward Brown.

While more seniors are seeking health information online than ever before, the majority--52%--remain cool to the idea. About 15% of U.S. seniors--or roughly 13.1 million people--don't currently go online. They would, however, consider doing so if Web sites were simpler to use, they could find the information quickly, or a "gatekeeper" searched for them, according to GroupM.

And it's not only consumer-patients relying on the Web for health information, according to Manhattan Research. According to its data, nearly all--99%--of physicians are online and 90% are using the Web daily. In addition, one-third are accessing it daily for professional purposes, while 79% of the doctors say the Web is essential to the way they practice medicine.