PR’s image problem prompts agency name change

pharmafile | October 29, 2003 | News story | Medical Communications  

The pharmaceutical industry's negative view of PR has persuaded healthcare agency Jo Spink Public Relations to re-brand itself as Spink Consumer Relations.

Agency founder and director Jo Spink said the name change would be more appropriate to the company's wider offering of consumer-focused campaigns.

"We do feel that the new name enables us to capture a much stronger essence of what we are about in our brand," she said.

The company aims to highlight its range of services beyond traditional PR, such as media training, branding and new ways of reaching the consumer.

The company is also hoping the healthcare industry will acknowledge the contribution communications agencies can make to the way drugs are branded.

Jo Spink said: "Pharmaceutical marketers need to understand that rational decisions are driven by emotion: communications agencies have the expertise to unlock the subconscious of the consumer and all who surround them."

"The big pharmaceutical brands of the future will come from those companies who place an increased emphasis on strategic creativity and become less focused on building brands solely on clinical evidence," she added.

Spink Consumer Relations' own research found PR to have a poor image in relation to other marketing disciplines amongst both its clients in the industry and the general public.

A combination of the spin culture seen in the political arena, and a lack of knowledge as to what exactly PR is, has heightened suspicions of public relations.

The company has set up a new website, www.spinkconsumer.com, to support the rebranding process through which it aims to promote the consumer focus to its work.

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