Purchasing Influences

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Prior to buying a medicine or remedy at a pharmacy or shop, people across Europe seek out information from as many sources as possible. The greatest influence on product purchase is the recommendation of a doctor (84%), pharmacist (71%) or previous use of the product (76%). To compare these results by country click here.

The influence of the pharmacist on purchase has increased by 20% since 2006.

Influences my decision to buy

More people also agree that product packaging and labelling are likely to influence their purchase decision at point of sale. Packaging is valued especially highly in Finland (37%) and Switzerland (23%). To compare results by country click here.

Few admit to being affected by in store promotion or advertising. 73% claim that advertising doesn’t affect their purchase of medicines, higher than in 2006. Less than half (42%) find the information in advertisements useful, this is 12% lower than in our previous survey. However, people do say they have more confidence in a product’s quality if they know who made it (56%) and they’re more likely to trust a new brand if it’s made by a well known pharmaceutical company (50%). To view full results by country you may request a copy of the full report by email here.

Conclusions for Marketers:

People want to know who makes the drugs they buy and 59% expect to see the manufacturers’ names in ads for their products. Prior to purchasing remedies and drugs people seek information from a range of sources. There is a role for advertising as long as it’s informative and relevant. Brochures and product packaging can provide additional reassurance at point of sale.