The Role and Value of Umbrella Branding for Non- Prescription Medicines October 2015 1
Summary of current landscape • Umbrella branding is well established and accepted in many countries • Names are not evaluated in isolation as packaging information and pack design can both link and differentiate products • Many regulatory agencies review packaging and naming together and risk minimization is agreed between the company and the regulator 2
Definitions • Brands are not ingredients. Brands are a collection of images and ideas, often including a name, logo, slogan, packaging and design scheme. • Branding is defined as all activities that increase awareness of a firm’s offerings and shape how consumers perceive those offerings. • The terms trademark and brand name are closely linked. Trademark tends to be used in a legal context and brand name used in relation to marketing and advertising. • Umbrella branding is a marketing term for the practice of using the same brand name across a range of products in the same or related therapeutic areas. An umbrella brand can help reduce the uncertainty that consumers face when making new purchases. The packaging and advertising for a product within an umbrella brand range will highlight its particular qualities guiding the consumer and helping them make a choice that might best meet their needs. 3
How does branding work for consumers? • Brands guide consumers to the appropriate, safe and effective self-care treatment they need to care for themselves and their families. • A brand name can be the first piece of information that consumers have on a product, and can be a first step in a consumer’s information gathering prior to purchase. • Brands can help consumers distinguish products from one another to help inform choice. 4
WSMI key messages • It is important to the industry to be able to use the same brand name for products with different ingredients in the same or related therapeutic categories • If it is not allowed for OTC medicines then some new products will simply not be marketed • Familiarity with brand names builds consumer confidence and helps them identify products that will treat their symptoms • Regulatory and legal decisions about brand names must be made on a case by case basis • Clear differentiation between the products in an umbrella range is essential and pack design can deliver that • Umbrella branding is a driver of innovation for companies of all sizes, a key intellectual property right and a normal part of commercial life 5
WSMI key message • It is important to the industry to be able to use the same brand name for products with different ingredients in the same or related therapeutic categories 6
Why are brands important? • Brands are an indispensable guide for consumers • Brands allow companies to build reputation and image in the marketplace • Companies rely on brands when communicating their goods and services 7
Why are brands important for consumers? • Brands communicate the benefit, If a brand fails to quality, and promised experience deliver on its a consumer can expect from a promises product consumers are likely to withhold • Through their advertising brands future purchases provide a reputation for functionality, reliability and other or criticise the attributes that inform consumers brand which can about the availability of a product damage the product’s • This awareness plays a key role in reputation decision making for consumers 8
Brand owners innovate • Successful brand A company focussed on building a strong brand takes note of what owners are usually the consumer wants and places the most innovative great emphasis on research and companies setting development to meet their needs and remain relevant. quality standards that Such innovation is the stimulus of are then followed by a living, dynamic market in which others in the market companies constantly strive for improvement. The result is stronger and more diverse competition, based upon quality as well as price. British Brand Group 9
WSMI key message • If umbrella branding is not allowed for OTC medicines then some new products will simply not be marketed 10
Umbrella branding reduces the costs of bringing a product to market • Fixed marketing costs are high whether the product is high or low value, or high or low volume. • Umbrella branding allows the development of products whose sales could not support the fixed marketing costs if they had to be marketed as standalone products – it gives economies of scale. • If the economies of scale offered by umbrella branding are not available to non-prescription medicine manufacturers then some new products will not be developed and made available to consumers 11
WSMI key message • Familiarity with brand names builds consumer confidence and helps them identify products that will treat their symptoms 12
The importance to consumers of trust and confidence in a brand Is something I know will work every time 9.1 Is something I know will be as effective as a prescription 8.3 Is something that does not have many side effects 8.3 Consumers place Is recommended by my doctor 7.7 Is made with ingredients that I know to be safe 7.6 trust and confidence Is backed by clinical research that it is safe to use 6.7 Is a brand I trust 6.5 in a brand high on Is backed by clinical research that it will effectively relieve… 6.5 their list of reasons Is recommended by my pharmacist or in- store healthcare… 6.4 Is something I would use before seeing a doctor 5.5 for choosing an Is made by a company I trust 4.8 OTC product Is made with ingredients I recognize 4.4 Is available as a store brand 3.5 Has easy to understand instructions 3.3 Is safe to give to children under 18 2.9 Is something I would recommend to friends or family 2.6 Has been endorsed by a person, group or information source 2.1 Survey conducted by Neilsen/IM for Consumer Is recommended by friends or family members 2.1 Health Products Association of United States Is something my mother used to use or give to me 1.2 2013 Is something I've seen Q. Why do you choose a particular OTC advertised 0.3 product 13
WSMI key message • Regulatory and legal decisions about brand names must be made on a case by case basis 14
Umbrella branding is widely accepted by regulatory bodies Names must be assessed on case by case basis and in conjunction with the packaging Products containing the same active and for the same or related indications are generally accepted It is harder to get approvals when the actives are different and when the indications are different Recent case law indicates that the courts will tolerate the use of different actives when they are for the same indication and when the pharmacological profiles are similar 15
WSMI key message • Clear differentiation between the products in an umbrella range is essential and pack design can deliver that 16
Names need to be reviewed in the context of the full packaging information • Different products in an umbrella range can treat different symptoms, have different formulation types, have different strengths and be suitable for different age groups • The packaging helps consumers choose the right product and allows the same brand name to be used across the range 17
Packaging signals help consumers identify a product • Brands assist consumer purchasing decisions by identifying different products as familiar and trusted • The different products within an umbrella brand range need to share similar packaging and design attributes… • …however, it is a fundamental principle of branding that brand names should not cause consumer confusion and/or harm. This is not in the interest of consumers or the company. 18
Differentiation within umbrella brands helps consumers choose • For consumers the brand name is the start of their decision to choose a product • Other signals also matter when they choose a product and they help people pick the right one • If consumers are confused about the individual products in a range the company has failed in its marketing objectives 19
WSMI key message • Umbrella branding is a driver of innovation for companies of all sizes, a key intellectual property right and a normal part of commercial life 20
Innovation in OTC medicines Branded manufacturers were the developers of technologies we now take for granted such as: • tablets and capsules, sustained release formulations, patches, dissolving strips, • blister packaging and sachets, • combination products which treat multiple symptoms in a single product, • and new ingredients and new indications brought to the market by switching from Rx to OTC 21
Branded advertising creates awareness of innovation • Advertising spend on OTCs is low in comparison to other product categories because sales of individual products are far lower than other consumer goods • But branded products do advertise and they create awareness of new categories and treatments • This is an aid to innovation and the development of new OTC products and categories 22
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