REMEDIUMREMEDIUM1561-59362658-3534Joint-Stock Company Chicot97510.21518/1561-5936-2020-7-8-70-78Original ArticlePrevalence and effectiveness of different types of advertising and PR tools among community pharmacies in Saudi ArabiaBenY. .noemail@neicon.ruPyatigorskayaN. V.noemail@neicon.ruI.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University (Sechenov University)071220207-8707818032022Copyright © 2020,2020This research aims to identify the most effective and prevalent type of advertising and PR-tool used by pharmaceutical companies at com- munity pharmacies. A cross-sectional study design was carried out using the non-repeated random sampling technique in the city of Riyadh (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia). Standardized questionnaires were administered by means of face-to-face interviews or via online software Sphinx. The relative importance of prevalence and the mean evaluation of effectiveness were determined for all studied marketing tools in the differ- ent groups of respondents (pharmaceutical sales representatives, community pharmacists, consumers, and the entire sample). Inter-individual differences in prevalence and evaluation of effectiveness were assessed by computing the coefficient of variation, whereas inter-group differ- ences were determined by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with the Scheffé test as a post-hoc test.Research findings showed that, according to all respondents and to the respondents of certain groups, the most prevalent PR tool in pharma- cies was gifts with company’s logo. The same tool also was rated with the highest mean evaluation as the most effective one in the group of consumers, pharmacists, and all respondents. The most prevalent type of advertising used in community pharmacies was outdoor print adver- tising, and as the most effective was named video indoor advertising, according to the general opinion of all respondents.In conclusion, the results of the present research enable an understanding of which advertising types and PR-tools are commonly used at community pharmacies and which ones are the most effective, mostly influencing consumers’ purchasing decisions.conflictpharmacy organizationpharmacy workerhead of the pharmacy organizationpatientфармацевтическое продвижениепрямая потребительская рекламаPR-инструментыраспространенность и эффективность инструментов продвижения[Al-Haddad M.S., Hamam F., Al-Shakhshir S.M. General public knowledge, perceptions and practice towards pharmaceutical drug advertisements in the Western region of KSA. Saudi pharmaceutical Journal. 2014;22(2):119-126. doi: 10.1016/j.jsps.2013.03.002.][Gagnon M.A., Lexchin J. The cost of pushing pills: a new estimate of pharmaceutical promotion expenditures in the United States. Plos Medicine. 2008;5(1):29-33.][Osinga E.C., Leeflang P.S.H., Srinivasan S., Wieringa J.E. Why do firms invest in consumer advertising with limited sales response? A shareholder perspective. Journal of Marketing. 2011;75(1):109-124. doi: 10.1509/jmkg.75.1.109.][Parker R.S., Pettijohn C.E. Pharmaceutical Drug Marketing Strategies and Tactics. Health Marketing Quarterly. 2006;22(4):27-doi: 10.1300/J026v22n04_03.][Prescription drugs and mass media advertising. NIHCM Foundation Research Brief, 2000. Available at: https://www.nihcm. org/pdf/DTCbrief.pdf. (accessed date: 10.04.2020).][Robinson A.R., Hohmann K.B, Rifkin J.I. et al. Direct-to-Consumer Pharmaceutical Advertising Physician and Public Opinion and Potential Effects on the Physician-Patient Relationship. Arch Intern Med. 2004;164(4):427-432. doi: 10.1001/archinte.164.4.427.][Donohue J.M., Berndt E.R. Effects of direct-to-consumer advertising on medication choice: the case of antidepressants. Journal of Public Policy & Marketing. 2004;23(2):115-127.][Liu Q., Gupta S. The impact of direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription drugs on physician visits and drug requests: empirical findings and public policy implications. International Journal of Research in Marketing. 2011;28:205-217. doi: 10.1016/j. ijresmar.2011.04.001.][Hughes D.E. This ad’s for you: The indirect effect of advertising perceptions on salesperson effort and performance. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science. 2013;41(1):1-18. doi: 10.1007/s11747- 011-0293-y.][Корыстов И.Л. Маркетинговые факторы, определяющие рост аптечных продаж. Экономический вестник фармации. 2004;(11).][Brown J.L. Physician Exposure to Direct-to-Consumer Pharmaceutical Marketing: Potential for Creating Prescribing Bias. The American Journal of Medicine. 2017;130(6):PE247-E248. doi: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2016.12.023.][Wazana A. Physicians and the Pharmaceutical Industry: Is a Gift Ever Just a Gift? JAMA. 2000;283(3):373-380. doi: 10.1001/ jama.283.3.373.][Weinmeyer R. Direct-to-consumer-advertising of drugs. Virtual Mentor. 2013;15(11):954-959. doi: 10.1001/virtualmentor.2013.15.11. hlaw1-1311.][Rosenthal M.B., Berndt E.R., Donohue J.M., Epstein A.M., Frank R.G. Demand Effects of Recent Changes in Prescription Drug Promotion. Forum for Health Economics & Policy. 2003;6(1). doi: 10.2202/1558-9544.1044.][Moser R., Freeman G.L., Loudon D., Stevens R. An empiri- cal analysis of consumers’ attitudes toward pharmacies’ advertising, Health Marketing Quarterly, 2018;35(2):100-119. doi: 10.1080/07359683.2018.1490545.][National Conference of State Legislatures. October 2013. Marketing and direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) of phar- maceuticals. Available at: http://www.ncsl.org/research/health/ marketing-and-advertising-of-pharmaceuticals.aspx.][Zaki N.M. Pharmacists’ and physicians’ perception and exposure to drug promotion: A Saudi study. Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal. 2014;22:528-536. doi: 10.1016/j.jsps.2014.02.008.][Hasenmeyer V., Topić M. The impact of public relations on the pharmaceutical industry: A case study of living like you campaign. Journal of Medical Marketing. 2017;15(3-4):174579041770603. doi: 10.1177/1745790417706036.][Berger J.T. Pharmaceutical Industry Influences on Physician Prescribing: Gifts, Quasi-Gifts, and Patient-Directed Gifts. American Journal of Bioethics. 2003;3(3):56-57. doi: 10.1162/15265160360706615.][Burashnikova I.S., Ziganshin A.U., Ziganshina L.E. Attitudes to pharmaceutical promotion techniques among healthcare profes- sionals in the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia. International Journal of Risk & Safety in Medicine. 2008;20(1/2):57-71. doi: 10.3233/JRS- 2008-0425.][Schramm J., Andersen M., Vach K., Kragstrup J., Kampmann J.P., Søndergaard J. Promotional methods used by representatives of drug companies: A prospective survey in general practice. Scandinavian Journal of Primary Health Care. 2007;25(2):93-97. doi: 10.1080/02813430701339659.][Kremer S.T.M., Bijmolt T.H.A., Leeflang P.S.H., Wieringa J.E. Generalizations on the effectiveness of pharmaceutical promo- tional expenditures. International Journal of Research in Marketing. 2008;25(4):234-246. doi: 10.1016/j.ijresmar.2008.08.001.][Лагуткина Т.П., Таболова А.К. К вопросу построения типологических моделей фармацевтических компаний. Вестник Воронежского университета. Серия: Химия. Биология. Фармация. 2004;(2):232-237.][Бен Саид Ю. Изучение распространенности маркетинговых технологий продвижения лекарственных средств, применяемых фармкомпаниями в аптеках г. Эр-Рияд. Journal of Medical and Pharmaceutical Research. 2018;1(4).][Чупандина Е.Е., Дагир С. Обзор основных подходов в продвижении лекарственных препаратов на российском рынке. Медицина и образование в Сибири. 2015;(5).][Regulatory Framework for Drug Promotion and Advertising. Saudi Food & Drug Authority. Version 1.2, 2016. Available at: https://www.sfda.gov.sa/en/drug/drug_reg/Regulations/Drug- Req-587324.pdf.][Alamodi A. Assessment of Consistency between Claims and References Referred to in Pharmaceutical Advertising Brochures in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Cureus. 2019;11(1):e3907. doi: 10.7759/ cureus.3907.][Familmaleki M., Aghighi A., Hamidi K. Analyzing the Influence of Sales Promotion on Customer Purchasing Behavior. Int J Econ Manag Sci. 2015;(4):243. doi: 10.4172/2162-6359.1000243.]