The purchasing of prescription products is a complicated multi-step process that requires a behavior pattern not well developed by consumers. Unlike the behaviors involved with a non-Rx consumer product purchase, which is ingrained from childhood, a prescription purchase is much more complex. It requires a consumer to first recognize that they may have a certain condition, then whether it is treatable by a prescription medicine, and then determine if such a medicine exists. Once determining that there is a product, they must make an appointment to visit their physician. Once an appointment is made they then needs to obtain the right information in order to have the confidence to discuss their condition with the physician and convince them that there is a specific treatment in which they are interested. The physician must then write the prescription, which the patient needs to take to their drug store to have filled. Upon receiving the filled prescription, they then must comply with their physician’s instructions, consuming the appropriate dose of the prescribed medication for the prescribed period of time.

Marketers are beginning to recognize that a one-page print advertisement, or a :30 to :60 TV spot broadly delivered to a passively observing consumer may not provide enough information for the above scenario to take place at the speed and level of influence required for the purchase and consumption of their brand.

This helps explain why the Internet has become an optimal tool in the marketing mix. It efficiently and effectively provides the right amount of customized, targeted information in a private environment, accessible by both the consumer and the healthcare professional at their convenience.