MARKETING ANTIDEPRESSANTS: PROZAC & PAXIL

1) What was the value proposition of the early anti-depressants (MAOI’s & the
tricycles)? Was Prozac similar to MAOI’s or different?

They worked by increasing the levels of 2 related chemicals in the brain, serotonin &
nor epinephrine, which carry nerve signals through the nervous system & are believed
to be associated with mood.

It was different from Prozac as-

• It was clinical treated for depression
• It carried risk of side effects, which could range from headaches & high blood
pressure or even brain haemorrhage.
• It reacted badly with common foods like cheese & dairy, wine, beer, pickles,
fava beans, ripe figs & allergy medication.
• They were mainly for people suffering from the severest form of depression.
• Tricky to administer.

2) Why did MAOI’s fail to achieve widespread acceptance? What factors accounted
for Prozac’s success?

Consider the above pointers for the 1st question.

Strengths of Prozac
• Difficult to overdose on the drug and was therefore safe in the hands of suicidal
patients
• Easy to administer and posed less serious side effects than existing brands
• Positive image: management was able to position Prozac alongside nationwide
efforts to cut costs.
• Positive word of mouth and feedback about the drugs
• Support from major media houses
• they were considered wonder drugs for treating other disorders
• Right market segmentation, effective marketing strategies and public awareness
campaigns.
-Safer in the hands of suicidal patients.
-Its side effects were not considered serious.
-Did not need to be accompanied by constant medical supervision.
-Listening to Prozac mentioned personal experiences of those using the drug.
-Not only effective at treating depression but also transformed the users personality
for the better, gave more confidence, & self worth.
-Effective for treating other disorders like obsessive compulsive disorder, panic
disorder & treatment for smokers, alcoholism, bulimia & kleptomania.

3) How did Lilly & GSK capture value from Prozac & Paxil respectively? Have they
maximized the Products’ revenue potential?

• New tool Direct-to consumer advertising campaign.

• Launched a $22 million campaign which featured a 2 page ad & placed it in
national publications, Time, Newsweek, Parade, Men’s Health & Consumption.
 For Paxil

• Marketers knew that sales depended on their ability to create public

awareness of the disorder.
• “Educating reporters, consumers and physicians about the disease and its
treatments”
• Management focused a direct-to-consumer advertising campaign which
highlighted the disorder instead of the pill.
• Paxil was the first medication to win U.S. approval for SAD
• The makers of Paxil merged with GSK to become the world’s largest
pharmaceutical company

Yes they managed to maximise it revenue it also caused millions of mentions

throughout various mediums and featured patients who claimed to be suffering from
this disorder.

4) What should Lilly do in anticipation of Prozac coming off-Patent? Should it scale

back or ramp up marketing of Prozac?

• Keep tab of the Competition – there were existing competitors in the market
such as Zoloft, and Celexa
• Keep tab of Critics who are outraged about direct-to-consumer advertising and
protested that marketing information was misleading.
• Develop new deliver methods for Prozac ie, 90mg version.
• Reposition Prozac for new indications.
• Develop new anti depressants.

Lilly should maintain marketing of Prozac.