public relations

#PatientInfluencers

Anonymous — Sat, 28 Oct 2023 03:40:23 +0000

#PatientInfluencers Anonymous (not verified) Fri, 10/27/2023 - 21:40

By Lisa Marshall (Jour, PolSci’94; MJour’22)

“Noticing a huge difference in my belly fat. It’s melting away!”

“Wildly happy after losing 70 pounds!”

“Just took my first dose. I’m nervous, but excited!”

In late 2022, TikTok was abuzz with such endorsements, delivered by hopeful dieters clutching blue syringes loaded with the diabetes drug-turned-celebrity “weight-loss miracle” Ozempic. The hashtag #Ozempic swiftly drew more than 1 billion views.

But as the craze went viral, diabetics worldwide faced dangerous shortages. Meanwhile, those using it off-label for its slimming qualities began reporting serious side effects, such as violent diarrhea and extreme facial thinning.

“This is a great example of the power of social media—and the unintended consequences,” said Erin Willis, associate professor of advertising, public relations and media design, and one of the few scholars studying a new kind of social media star—the patient influencer.

Her research has shown they often work closely with pharmaceutical companies, or are paid by them, and frequently offer advice about drugs even though they tend to lack medical expertise.

Ozempic is the most recent example of their power, but the phenomenon dates at least to 2015, when Kim Kardashian drew flack for endorsing a morning sickness drug, Diclegis, on Instagram without mentioning its many side effects. Federal regulators warned the drugmaker, the ad was taken down, and the government implemented new disclosure rules for influencers.

Eight years later, the phenomenon has continued to grow, bleeding into new platforms—like support groups for patients with specific medical conditions—where rules are open to interpretation and nearly impossible to enforce. That’s a concern for Willis: “There is virtually no research on this, and very little regulation.”

Willis has published some of the first academic papers exploring the patient influencer phenomenon, framing it as “the next frontier in direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical marketing.”

DTC marketing is the longstanding practice in the United States and New Zealand that allows drug companies to advertise to consumers, rather than through physicians. From a sales perspective, the practice is effective, according to Willis: 44% of patients who ask their doctor for a drug they see on TV get it.

But, as always, when it comes to social media, there are plenty of unanswered questions. “The fact that patients with no medical training are broadly sharing drug information should alarm us,” she said.

In her work, Willis interviewed dozens of influencers to better understand their motivations. While the influencers she spoke to appeared to have good intentions, she said some might omit crucial information, such as the availability of a cheaper generic option, or unintentionally disseminate misinformation. And consumers might be unable to distinguish between a personal post and a paid endorsement.

That said, she does see some upsides. Patients often know more than their doctors about what it’s like to experience a specific health condition, and sharing their personal experiences on social media can be comforting for others, while potentially helping them discover new coping strategies.

And unlike other forms of DTC advertising, social media enables followers to weigh in with comments sharing both positive and negative experiences with a specific therapy.

Willis hopes her new research will ultimately lead to a set of best practices for both patient influencers and the companies they work with.

“There is both value and risk here,” she said. “Like anything, it has the potential to become dangerous if we’re not careful.”

Take two posts and call me in the morning: Social media’s new role at the pharmacy.

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Public relations students place second in national competition

Anonymous — Mon, 15 May 2023 17:02:25 +0000

Public relations students place second in national competition Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 05/15/2023 - 11:02

The Daily He(a)rd has become the first CMCI student team to win the Bateman Case Study Competition. The team's win is not just a first for CMCI, but for Colorado. The team tackled the issue of misinformation for the News Literacy Project.

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Thinking forward, looking back

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Mar 2023 22:47:57 +0000

Thinking forward, looking back Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 03/07/2023 - 15:47

By Shannon Mullane (MJour’19)

Dawn Doty says she is always thinking forward, but when she received a lifetime achievement award, she took the opportunity to think back on her past—Tiger Woods and tyrannosaurus rexes, included.

Doty is an award-winning teaching associate professor in the Department of Advertising, Public Relations and Media Design, and in 2022, she became the recipient of a new honor—the Swede Johnson Lifetime Achievement Award from the Public Relations Society of America, Colorado chapter. When she learned the good news, Doty was speechless.

“I was just blown away because I never really expected to win this award from PRSA Colorado,” she said. “I’ve known of many award winners in the past, and I just never had that in my sights. But it was a lovely surprise, and I am deeply humbled.”

During her 30-year professional career, Doty worked with corporations, global firms and nonprofits in Chicago, San Francisco and Colorado. Her clients were often high-profile and included the likes of Chipotle, Crocs, Southwest Airlines and the U.S. Air Force Academy. In 2016, she embarked on a new phase of her career and joined CMCI as CU’s first-ever, full-time public relations instructor for undergraduate studies.

Her first job was as a public relations coordinator for an arts council in Ohio in the late 1980s. By 1995, she landed her first position at a global firm, Ketchum Public Relations, which she describes as one of her most meaningful experiences.

“I was just over the moon because that was sort of the crème de la crème of jobs, to be in a global firm,” she said.

There, she recalled learning how to work with national clients—including some high-maintenance ones—and how to supervise teams. The key is learning from your best supervisors and recognizing that every person has different needs, Doty said.

Then, while working with Burson-Marsteller, Doty helped McDonald's create an educational campaign focused on a tyrannosaurus rex fossil, named “SUE.” The fossil, discovered in South Dakota, was acquired in partnership with the Field Museum of Chicago and is still available for viewing.

“I feel like that’s a neat legacy project. I did it back in the day, but still, kids are going to see it and just find it marvelous and wonderful,” Doty said.

At Foote, Cone & Belding and Burson-Marsteller, she recalled working with the Tiger Woods Foundation and seeing how fans mobbed around the golf celebrity. Later with Linhart Public Relations, her team was a finalist for a PRWeek Award for its work with a different client, Crocs. It was one of the top awards in the field and a source of pride for a firm of their size, Doty said.

After receiving her lifetime achievement award, Doty met with CMCI to share her career highlights, keys to working in public relations and tips for students launching careers of their own.

What made you want to go into public relations?

Doty: I was an education major, oddly enough, at UD (University of Dayton), and I went in and did student teaching at a really tough, inner-city high school. I said to a teacher, “So how do you motivate students?” She looked me in the eye and started laughing and said, “Motivate students?” And at that moment, I really paused and said, “Oh my gosh, this probably isn’t for me.”

My uncle’s partner was an executive at a company in Dayton, Ohio, and I remember talking to him about business. I think he was the one that first suggested public relations. Then I looked into it, and we did have a communications program at UD, so I just switched my major.

How did you feel before graduating as an undergraduate?

Doty: I was so excited to work. I was ready to wear a suit and have a briefcase. I was pumped, I really was. I was so excited about it, and I think I’ve never really lost that enthusiasm, quite frankly. I love work, I do. If you’re doing the right work, I think it’s really interesting and doesn’t feel like work.

I always tell students, too, if I’m talking about my career. You can see, I wasn’t trying to climb any kind of ladder. I wasn’t trying to become a chief communications officer. That was not the path I was on. I didn’t want that. So I always looked for what is interesting to do, and that is how I built my career.

Does your career connect to your work with students?

Doty: Completely. I had a student tell me yesterday that—because of a class she was just in with me, PR Strategy, and her Strategic Writing for PR class—she said, “I finally feel like I really love this profession and really get it.”

It’s when students say that to me, I think, “OK, they’re ready.” And that’s a magical time to me because you see it click, and it really needs to click. It is really hands-on work. So when students can really grasp that, I think they’re really well prepared for what’s next. And I love that. So my career completely informs how I teach.

What do students give back to you?

Doty: So I’ll never forget (when the pandemic started): The first thing I said to our PRSSA student board was “You guys, what are we going to do to be part of the solution for what we’re dealing with right now?” I could see students kind of getting stressed about it a little bit. But I think in the end, it taught them this lesson that, if you’re in communications, when crisis hits, that’s what you’re going to do: You’re going to say, “OK, I’m going to work with my team,” and “How do we need to communicate with our stakeholders to make sure that we manage our way through this?”

That was a real moment of pride for me with students, and I think it taught them really important lessons. I was really proud of what they did. I think when you can get students in this proactive mode, that they’re being part of the solution, it really helps them cope.

Do you have any advice for students as they launch their own careers?

Doty: I start the semester and end the semester with my three important things. Two of those important things are what I think are really important for lifelong advice.

One is the grit theory that Angela Duckworth created. It’s all about putting effort into your life because that really helps you with your achievement. It’s effort, not talent. So I always remind them: If you can put in the effort, I think you will go far.

The second is a line of poetry from Mary Oliver: “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” I remind them that they’re here to figure that out. They’re young adults. They’re on their own. They’re trying to figure out their lives, and I think that’s super important for them to remember and to just hold on to.

The third, that’s servant leadership, a whole different thing. It’s my way of saying, I’m here for you. . . . If my students aren’t successful, that means that I’m not being successful either. I always say, “If you ever need me after class ends, just ask me—because that’s what I’m here to do, is really support you.”

Teaching Associate Professor Dawn Doty received the lifetime achievement award from the Colorado chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. She sat down with CMCI to share anecdotes, tips and keys to working in public relations.

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