Cross-channel message consistency in herbal medicine advertising: A comparative analysis of packaging information and radio presenter mentions
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Date
2020-02-03
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International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing
Abstract
Purpose – For many developing country citizens, traditional herbal medicines offer affordable alternatives
to expensive orthodox options. Consumers learn about them from different sources including the packaging,
which by regulatory demands must provide certain information. In countries such as Ghana, many herbal
medicine brands combine packaging information with radio presenter mentions (PMs) as the primary modes
of advertising. The purpose of this study is to compare radio PMs of herbal medicines to their packaging
information to see how consistent they are in providing credible information to consumers.
Design/methodology/approach – The study uses comparative qualitative content analysis to compare
information about disease indications, directions for use and warnings/cautions as provided on the packaging
and in PMs to gauge the extent of their congruence.
Findings – Findings show that there are substantial cross-channel message differences. These differences
range from under-representation to sometimes, blatant misinformation, suggesting the possibility that
audiences will have difficulty relying on them for decisions.
Research limitations/implications – This study only addressed issues with the manifest content of
herbal drugs’ packaging and PMs. It does not include any interviews with consumers to gauge the extent of
their consciousness of the lapses identified, and how they are affected by such. In addition, the study sample is
context-specific. Ghana presents an interesting setting for the study but it is none-the-less only one country,
denying us the power to generalize the findings.
Practical implications – The study points to a need to pay closer attention to message salience and
consistency where multiple channels are used in promoting herbal medicinal products. Due to their historically
traditional context of consumption in many developing countries, regulatory frameworks on herbal medicine
markets are often lax. This study calls attention to a need for better policing on how herbal medicinal products
promote themselves, particularly where they use multiple media channels that introduce variations into their
messages.
Originality/value – The study calls attention to the credibility of cross-channel messages in supporting
consumers of medicinal products. Secondly, because of the predominance of the normative view in medical
advertising, channels such as PMs that accommodate message variation and improvisation have eluded
critical analysis. By its focus on the presenter mention advertising format, the study also draws attention of
health communication scholars to begin to include emerging modes of medical advertising in their analysis
Description
Research Article
Keywords
Cross-channel advertising, Herbal medicines, Message consistency, Radio presenter mentions