Marketing News: Dan Hawtrey asks... Why do medical device companies not use the communication techniques that have been proven, refined and perfected by consumer goods companies?

News Release from: MarketingUK
22/07/2010
Dan Hawtrey ,Content Formula ,Araldite ad , medical device websites,

Dan Hawtrey from Content Formula says...

A client asked me the other day to provide a cost estimate for some creative work. He wanted a concept that clearly communicates the unique benefit of his product. Something simple, powerful and persuasive. Something like the old Araldite ad with the car stuck to a billboard (ok, we might not come up with something quite as iconic as this but who knows?).

This concept would be used on the website, on newsletters and potentially offline too. Nothing strange in that… but then I realised that this request was actually quite unusual.

The product in question was a medical device to help prevent deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in hospital patients. I thought I'd try and find some other examples of medical devices that use a creative concept to get across their USP. I found very little indeed (there's a list of the best examples below). Most medical device websites launch straight into the product features, often ignoring the benefits. If you're lu

Why is this? Why do medical device companies not use the communication techniques that have been proven, refined and perfected by consumer goods companies? Will healthcare professionals (HCPs) not get it? Will it make them angry that a medical company uses advertising techniques on them? I think we’re all guilty of thinking of doctors and surgeons as boffins who are somehow different to the average (hu)man in the street. HCPs want long, dry copy, no pictures, just features and clinical studies, right?

One of my friends is a surgeon and he is really rather normal. He watches TV, he likes beer, cars, girls, football. He seems to have been totally seduced by Apple’s marketing given the money he’s spent on their products. I think if a medical device company were to try and market their product using conventional FMCG techniques, he might find it rather refreshing.

Here are some of the best examples I found:

• A great online video for ambulance trolleys – fully focused on the benefits of the products – use sound!
• An animation that gets the point across rather well for this tissue fixing device
• A good, succinct headline for spin sealant

If you have any good examples, do let me have them and I will add them to this list.

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