Pharma firms were amongst the first to adopt this kind of marketing, but they did it to doctors (who are their customers in the first instance) not to patients. Check out Univadis (www.univadis.co.uk) or doctors.net – both link straight into doctors and are either run or supported by the pharma industry. The technology that pharma firms use feeds directly into their salesforce stats, marketing and targeting of doctors, and is far more advanced than any consumer-driven industry which I’ve encountered.

Pharma is also heavily involved in the Expert Patients Programme (www.expertpatients.co.uk) which seeks to directly involve patients in decisions about their medication.

Yes, the industry is highly regulated and does not typically market direct to the public. This tight framework has actually made many pharma marketeers innovate rather than discouraging them.

I guess my two points are that firstly, despite recent mutterings of consolidation, Pharma still has deep pockets with incredible marketing clout. Secondly, the different regulatory regimes for each country force pharma companies to adopt bespoke strategies. As a relatively strict market, with no direct marketing or promotion to customers, the UK is the perfect place for pharma companies to generate demand by providing ‘information’ on their products. This is especially the case when tied into the new ‘choice’ agenda. Those that do it well will be sitting on the next blockbuster drugs.

The Gardasil page is excellent and shows exactly how to use Facebook. It follows what people expect on Facebook, but also follows FDA’s rules as well. Another slightly smaller one is ADHD Moms (http://www.facebook.com/ADHDMoms), which I usually give credit to for being the first pharma Facebook group, but I haven’t been able to fully confirm.

Another thing to note: users who can create free-text (audio, video or photos too) content within a social network have the potential of posting an adverse event. To the uninitiated, an adverse event is basically a side effect: “I took X and now I have hives.” By law, credible adverse events must be reported to the FDA within a given time frame. A lot of clients are afraid of the amount of time it would take to police user comments to locate adverse events and report them.

A larger issue is controlling the message. The lack of ability to control the brand and image of a product takes many pharma marketers waaaaay outside their comfort zone. Here’s another good post on the topic: http://www.doseofdigital.com/2009/01/myth-adverse-event-reporting/

That being said, there are certainly ways for pharma companies to play in the social media space, and frankly, it would be beneficial for both the companies and the people who use their products.