The global launch of a brand website represents a critical point in a new product's entry into the marketplace. Brand websites provide an important information portal for healthcare professionals, payers, patients, and advocacy groups. Creating and launching a website that fulfills the diverse needs of key stakeholders while being mindful of regional differences in regulations and cultures are factors that can heavily influence how a new drug performs at launch. This benchmark study probes current and evolving approaches for site development and optimization for brand websites as part of a global launch. The study also provides evidence-based benchmarks on what critical success factors are important for understanding and engaging key stakeholders, particularly physicians.

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Optimizing Global Brand Website Launches
Strategic Benchmarking Research

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Table of Contents
 Study Overview 3
 Participant Demographics 5
 Key Findings 7
 Resources and Timing 14
 Website Content Creation, Approval and Review 19
 Website Structure and Factors Shaping Development 23
 Website Objectives, Functions and Performance Metrics 30
 Website Optimization Best Practices and Lessons Learned 35
 About Best Practices, LLC 38

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Study Overview
Best Practices, LLC conducted this benchmarking study to help brand leaders charged
with optimizing the web presence of their products to manage the complexities of a global
marketplace.
Key Topic AreasStudy Objective
This study was designed to
illustrate how to best
leverage the global online
presence of a product at
launch and fulfill the diverse
needs of key stakeholders,
while being mindful of
regional differences in
culture and regulatory
environment
 Resources and Activity Timing
 Website Content Creation,
Approval and Review
 Website Structure and Factors
Shaping Development
 Website Objectives, Functions
and Performance Metrics
 Website Optimization Best
Practices and Lessons Learned

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Participating Companies
TOP 10 PHARMA
COMPANY
TOP 20 PHARMA
COMPANY
Responses reflect the global product website optimization strategies used by 11 major
pharmaceutical companies, 9 responses came directly from the participating companies, two
responses came from agencies charged with owning the company’s website creation and
maintenance (their clients are represented by their revenue ranking the previous fiscal year)

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Level of Participants
Participants in this study were either directly tied to brand strategy or are part of their
respective organization’s digital/e-marketing teams.
• Global Brand Director
• Global Brand Manager
• EVP Global Brands
• Global Product Manager
• VP Brand Strategy
• Associate Director -
Marketing & Business
• Global Digital Marketing
Manager
• Head of e-Marketing
• Digital and Innovation
Director
• Solution Lifecycle
Manager
• Sr. Manager, Global
Digital Strategy

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Key Findings Sample: Global Website Optimization
The following key findings and insights emerged from this study.
Key Topic Areas
 Multiple Product Website Preferred Approach: The majority of companies reported
preferring a multiple product website approach over a single website due to regional regulatory
concerns and the timing of approvals
 Disconnect on Product Intricacies : The development and maintenance of global product
websites is handled by a centralized digital/e-marketing team at several companies (if handled
internally at all). This shared services model is more efficient from a cost perspective but can
lead to a lack of depth on particular product issues because digital/e-marketing team members
are often working on multiple products at once.

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Q. Please estimate the total annual budget for maintaining your global website post-launch in USD (e.g. site
infrastructure, content refresh, hosting):
Maintenance Costs
(N=9)
Less than
$100k, 44%
$100,000
to
$250,000,
33%
$250,000
to
$500,000,
22%
A consistent theme heard throughout this study is the need to maintain a steady pool of
resources post-launch to manage websites. If your company isn’t frequently working
and refreshing your webpage, you are dramatically impacting the potential success of a
critical customer-facing medium.
Over ½ of
participating
companies are
dedicated more
than $100,000
annually, purely in
maintenance
expenses

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Q. How was the Medical, Legal, Regulatory (MLR) approval process for your global product website
structured?
Structure of Review During Site Development
(N=8)
Centralized
in one lead
country
25%
Decentralize
d by
geography
12%
Hybrid
63%
The MLR approval process is structured almost exclusively in a centralized manner for
all regions.

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Q. Please select the variables -- unique to your global website launch -- that necessitated your team
structure around multiple websites. (choose all that apply)
Variables Favoring Multiple Regional Websites for a
Global Product
(N=6)
Interestingly, the ability to market to patients within each country, privacy regulations and
funding/budget concerns were reported as variables that necessitated a multiple website
structure but were mostly ranked as minor influences in the data that follows.

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About Best Practices, LLC

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Copyright © Best Practices, LLC
Best Practices, LLC is a research and consulting firm that conducts work based on
the simple yet profound principle that organizations can chart a course to superior
economic performance by studying the best business practices, operating tactics
and winning strategies of world-class companies.
Best Practices, LLC
6350 Quadrangle Drive, Suite 200, Chapel Hill, NC 27517
919-403-0251
best@best-in-class.com
www.best-in-class.com
About Best Practices, LLC