The Hindu Business Line : Branded healthcare

As pharma companies and even hospitals are becoming increasingly conscious about the need for brand building, communication agencies have begun to have specialised divisions to cater to their needs.

HEALTHCARE communication is getting healthier by the day. Most agencies with almost dormant healthcare clients are waking up to the fact that the pharma industry will gather momentum after the end of the patent regime in 2005. Advertising agencies are projecting growth rates depending on the potential of their healthcare clients in the months to come.

While stiff legislation still does not permit branding of ethical drugs, it is the growing OTC (over-the-counter) segment which is likely to fetch advertising agencies additional business, giving them a chance to use their expertise in communication in this area to reach out to the end consumer.

Observes Kinjal Medh, Chief Operating Officer, FCB Ulka, "With increasing competition, pharma companies have realised the need for building brands and creating differentiation while communicating to doctors."

At present, most of the healthcare business is limited to the fraternity of doctors but with the passage of time and change in legislation advertising agencies want to directly communicate with the consumers. This would also be possible as more ethical drugs come under the OTC segment, giving ad agencies a chance to embark upon some serious branding exercises.

Take the case of Bates India, which is already projecting growth rates based on the business it is likely to gather from its healthcare operations. With Healthworld, the pharma communications division of Bates India, commencing operations in Mumbai in the first quarter of 2004, the WPP agency is expecting to grow at 25 per cent. According to J. S. Mani, Executive Vice-President, Bates India, "Apart from the existing pharma clients which Bates has, we would be pitching for new clients for their ethical brands." Bates India already services brands belonging to pharma majors such as Pfizer (for Benadryl) and Dabur. With Healthworld expected to start operations with its first office in Mumbai, Bates is looking at servicing the ethical brands from its existing clients as well.

Besides, communication needs are not really expected to go out of fashion once the market opens up post 2005. "With such a vast population, the pharma industry will always exist in India as there will be that many lives to save," says Mani.

Meanwhile, Contract Health, which recorded a 35 per cent growth rate in the past year, is expecting healthcare communications to give a boost to its billings turnover. Currently, Contract Heath contributes five per cent of the agency's total billings turnover. With healthcare clients such as Himalaya, Dr. Reddy's and Organon, Contract has been beefing up its healthcare portfolio as well.

Soumitra Sen, Vice-President, Contract Health, says: "Healthcare is a specialised service to a specialised industry. Today, it is boom time for the healthcare industry." Contract Health was floated as a division nearly three years ago and its small base has helped the division grow faster.

With a strength of 15 employees, Contract Health has employed health practitioners and medical advisors who can deliver on creating communication for the healthcare industry. "We have technocrats with a passion for adverting in our division," says Sen.

In fact, most agencies are realising that healthcare communications is a rather specialised arena where the average advertising agency professional is not likely to fit in. It is doctors and professionals with a pharmacy background who are expected to deliver specialised communication required for the pharma industry.

Chintamani Rao, President, Integrated Communications, McCann Erickson, says: "Healthcare communications is a different segment and is not like the normal advertising business. There is need for specific knowledge regarding products and ailments. Not anyone and everyone is capable of it."

McCann Erickson Healthcare currently boasts of having the largest chunk of the healthcare business in the country. With clients such as Nestle, Nicholas Piramal and Dr Reddy's, the agency taps into the global healthcare branches in the Asia-Pacific region to draw expertise in the area.

Realising the growing importance of healthcare communications, Lowe has restructured its IMAG (Integrated Marketing Action Group) division to bring healthcare as added service to its clients.

Mr Ashish Bhasin, Director, IMAG, says: "There has been a change in focus regarding healthcare communications. Post-2005, when there will be no patent regime, is when we expect the healthcare area to get more important. The separate unit of Lowe Healthcare will now move under the IMAG division in Lintas India."

Lowe Healthcare had hitherto been a separate unit in Lintas India. Now it will be integrated under the IMAG division, which already has other wings such as Linterland (for rural communication), Lintertainment (for film-based marketing), Aaren Initiative (outdoor advertising) and Dcell (for packaging).

"To begin with, we have hired doctors and medical specialists on board and will be focussing more on OTC advertising," says Bhasin.

It has already bagged clients such as Breach Candy Hospital and Bhatia Hospital in Mumbai. Besides, there would also be OTC advertising for brands from companies such as Biocon Ltd and Dumex India. In the past, it has concluded a nurses training programme for the Wockhardt Hospital as well.

"Hospitals have communication needs and this would include designing their brochures and supplements. There would be regular branding needs for such players," adds Bhasin. In fact, most of the pharma-based assignments have been on a project basis for ad agencies, but with the impending competition in the pharma industry, regular ad spends and branding exercises are likely to happen once the patent regime is over.

"Healthcare communications are at a nascent stage. But with consumers getting more demanding, there is going to be a need to build quality and provide high-end care to patients. There has to be consistent branding and it cannot get need-based anymore," observes Bhasin.

IMAG is expected to sign on a major MNC client in the healthcare industry owning a host of OTC brands. In fact, according to Bhasin, this is going to be one of the biggest accounts for the IMAG division and, apart from healthcare, its other wings such as Linterland and Dcell would also work for it.

"We are basically gearing up for the big explosion which is expected to happen post 2005. Healthcare services are expected to become more professional and will not get treated simply as an emergency service," adds Bhasin.

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