By Sven Larsen
Remember this moment at last month’s MTV Video Awards? Chances are you didn’t actually see it live, you probably saw it on You Tube (where it has registered over 6 million views) or embedded on a blog like we’ve done here. Clips like this or the equally ubiquitous Susan Boyle performance from earlier on this year reach millions of people. And digital video is one of the hottest growth categories on the web.
There’s no question that video is a very powerful way to send a message. That’s why organizations like Rock the Vote and Move On have used it so extensively. So, as Pharma dip it’s toe in the water of social media, how are they effectively utilizing videos to get their message out.
Here are the top four results when you type “Pharma” in to You Tube’s search box:
Ex-Pharmaceutical Rep. Speaks Out
Pharma Not in Business of Health, Healing, Cures, Wellness
Big Bucks, BigPharma: Marketing Disease & Pushing Drugs
Not exactly painting a rosy picture of the industry is it?
The sad thing is that any size company could create a professionally produced video highlighting the good things about their company’s programs and services for a few thousand dollars. And in some humor and these videos could compete with the literally thousands of anti-Pharma videos that are proliferating in this space.
As we all design our social media strategies we need to be reminded that this type of marketing doesn’t end with Facebook and Twitter. Any channel in which the users engage with content can become a vehicle for spreading good news about our own efforts and Pharma in general.
So let’s see an explosion of informational videos talking about drug benefits, R & D programs, medical breakthroughs and more. With enough attention paid to content and proper SEO, these videos could easily crowd out the negative commentary. They may even go viral themselves, generating publicity and other benefits for their producers (although if your aim is to spread far and wide you should probably consider casting Kanye in your video).
What about your company? How are you using digital video in your workplace?