Factors predicting consumers\u27 drug inquiry intention after exposure to a prescription drug advertisement: An exploratory analysis

Objective: Advertising campaigns could be better designed to target specific behavioral responses by identifying factors that significantly affect a consumer\u27s response to a direct-to-consumer (DTC) prescription drug advertisement in terms of drug inquiry intention and whether this affects a true behavioral measure (i.e., the actual act of behavior). Therefore, this study examined the following research questions: (1) Which of the following effectiveness measures previously identified in the DTC literature (attitude toward the ad, brand, company, message source, and DTC ad in general as well as attention paid to the ad, pharmaceutical industry credibility, disease state involvement, and perceived product risk) significantly predict consumers\u27 intentions to discuss the medication with their physician (drug inquiry intention)? and (2) Which of the significant predictors of consumers\u27 drug inquiry intention, if any, affect the predefined information search behavior? Methods: In a randomized post-test only survey design, data for 409 U.S. adults were obtained using Qualtrics online survey panel. Using the questionnaire, consumers\u27 responses were recorded for traditional DTC advertising effectiveness measures. Data were analyzed using multiple linear regression and χ2 analysis techniques. Results: As indicated by the multiple regression (F = 63.61; P \u3c0.001), except for consumers\u27 attitude toward the message source and attitude toward the pharmaceutical company advertising the drug, all other variables were the significant predictors of consumers\u27 drug inquiry intention. Except for attitude toward the message source and attitude toward the pharmaceutical company advertising the product, χ2 tests indicated that all other variables had a significant influence (all P \u3c0.001) on consumers\u27 likelihood to look for more information to learn more about the disease. Conclusion: Consumer response to DTC advertising can be predicted by a multitude of factors. Pharmaceutical marketers must be aware of this plurality when designing advertising messages