GSK'S Alli Blog: Currently the Most Interesting DTC Experiment Out There

Check out GSK’s new blog for its OTC weight loss drug Alli. Yes, it’s another corporate drug blog. But what’s different about this one is its tone and style, and the way it has been upfront about some of the negative side effects of the drug.

Here’s an example. This was posted by Steve Burton, the GSK vp on Alli:

“The rule of thumb is to limit your calories from fat to about 30% per meal, or about 15 grams of fat per meal.  I learned this the hard way when I ate a fish sandwich and french fries from a fast food drive-through WITH TARTAR SAUCE, and a soda.  Really smart, huh? Good thing I was close to home so I could change my clothes.*  But you know what? It hasn't happened since. Yes, I still see occasionally undigested fat floating in the toilet. But I'd rather have the fat flushed away when I go to the bathroom than have it wrap around my waist or clog my arteries.”

I can’t think of any other marketing vp who would talk about their product that way. The strategy on the Alli blog actually seems to be to play up that particular side effect, with lines such as:

“Toilet humor never seem to lose its appeal, whether you’re in kindergarten or on YouTube.”

“Caryn had one  ‘alli-oops’ episode after eating a chicken with crispy noodles appetizer, according to People. alli, she says in the article, ‘is forcing me to eat healthier. Yup, alli will punish cheaters if you don't stick to a low-fat diet.”

The blog is also punching back at media critics. This post responds to a BusinessWeek story that called Alli a lifestyle drug.

Another interesting part is that some of the posters are part of the Allifirst 400, a bunch of Alli consumers who’ve been picked by GSK to blog about the drug. It’s an interesting approach to consumer generated media.

GSK is even upfront about the fact that it’s a corporate blog, and that corporate blogs tend to have a high cheese factor. “I've spent my career writing business memos so my blogging may sound a little, er, corporate,” says Burton in the opening post.

It’s weirdly refreshing. GSK seems to have understood that by being honest about your product’s flaws – and this is a product with some major flaws – you inoculate yourself from criticism about them.

Comments

[John Mack]

I don't GSK and their bloggers/marketers are being honest when they call side effects "treatment effects" (see my post here: http://pharmamkting.blogspot.com/2007/06/alli-newspeak-oily-spotting-is.html). If you believe that, then you might also believe other Newspeak phrases like "war is peace."

[Jim Edwards]

It is true they have renamed "side effects" or "risks" as "treatment effects" and attributed them to the "power" of Alli. But to be fair, they have then listed them in the video you reference in plain English:
"Loose Stools, More frequent stools that may be hard to control, and Gas with oily spotting."