M e d i c i n e A v e 2 )laritin wai one o f the first prominent brands to use a celebrity in DTC Levitra faded, while Viagra and Cialis continue their successful DTC promotion efforts. Celebrities in DTC Advertising As mentioned earlier, celebrity spokespersons in DTC advertising have been used as an effective way to enhance consumer awareness and perceptions for a number of brands. Claritin was one of the first prominent brands to use a celebrity in DTC, featuring Joan Lunden beginning in 1998. Wyeth used Lauren Hutton, Patti LaBelle, and Cheryl Ladd to deliver education messages about hormone replacement; Olympic champions Dorothy Hamill and Bruce Jenner promoted anti-inflammatory Vioxx; Sally Field pitched bone-building Boniva; and dozens of others lent their credibility to the campaigns in which they were featured. But the most prominent recent celebrity campaign was the use of Dr. Robert Jarvik, who appeared in Pfizer's Lipitor advertising. The advertising was challenged, however, for implying that Dr. Jarvik was a cardiologist who prescribed Lipitor for his patients. In fact, while Dr. Jarvik, the famous inventor of an artificial heart, does have a medical degree, he did not have a license to practice medicine. Pfizer pulled the campaign in early 2008 after running the ads for nearly two years and spending some $250 million in the process. Finally, in January 2008, a US Congressional committee began an investigation into the use of celebrities in drug advertising, and the industry began to temper its use of such spokespersons. DTC Goes Online Since 2005, a convergence of factors has led more and more marketers to develop online consumer communication efforts. Certainly more and more 132
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