Consumers Treat Many Common Illnesses With Prescription & Over-the-Counter Medications.

Information Resources, Inc. announced results of IRI Pulse, the second in a series of ongoing studies focusing on significant trends in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry. IRI initiated an analysis of consumer purchasing habits related to prescription (Rx) and over-the-counter (OTC) products using the firm’s InfoScan retail scanner data and a survey of its nationwide consumer household panel. Ed Kuehnle, President of IRI North America, announced the survey results today at the Institute for International Research’s OTC Switch Marketers forum in Princeton, NJ.

The survey examines how people treat various illnesses with Rx or OTC medications, or a combination of the two. Some illnesses – including high blood pressure and diabetes – were understandably treated almost exclusively with prescription medication, while other conditions, such as seasonal allergies, arthritis and migraines, were treated with both Rx and OTC products.

One reason consumers replaced Rx with OTC products was revealed when IRI asked a subset of heartburn and acid indigestion sufferers to identify the factors in choosing a medication. Respondents identified OTC products as being less expensive and often just as effective.

“Consumers are driven by price, convenience and time constraints,” explains Kuehnle. “As prescription products become available over-the-counter, consumers are able to purchase less expensive relief to common ailments without the burden of obtaining a prescription or the inconvenience of visiting a doctor.”

Using both the ailment survey findings and the firm’s InfoScan(R) retail scanner data, IRI conducted a comprehensive study of products that made the switch from Rx-to-OTC status. While the survey component identified those ailments most likely to lend themselves to OTC treatment and the role of physician versus patient treatment, the store purchase data included an array of factors to measure switch success and failure. Order of new product entry, sales volume, levels and length of distribution, media expenditures, and trade promotion were among the measures included.

Through this analysis IRI isolated the following key Rx-to-OTC marketing success drivers. The success drivers address consumer needs, product availability, and promotional activities. Recommendations include:

Ailment

— Select products that treat common (“less severe”) ailments
— Promote to the medical community to sensitize health professionals/generate referrals

Availability

— Be first to market
— Execute immediate and broad distribution Advertising
— Invest significantly in advertising; allocate weight throughout year and into year two

Activity

— Plan at least 10 weeks of feature support year one
— Study FSI ROI

“By identifying thousands of IRI’s consumer panel households and tracking their ailments with their purchasing habits, we are able to consistently monitor the impact of products that make the switch from Rx-to-OTC status. As pharmaceutical companies move products into the OTC arena, the ability to monitor the acceptance by the public is critical to success,” Kuehnle added.

More information at http://www.infores.com