Testimonials do not convert patients from brand to generic medication.

Area of Science:

• Health economics
• Behavioral science
• Pharmaceutical marketing

Background:

• Promotional mailings are used to encourage switching from brand-name to lower-cost generic medications.
• Peer testimonials are sometimes included to enhance the persuasive impact of such communications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if peer testimonials in informational mailings increase conversion rates to lower-cost prescription drugs.
• To investigate if disclosing a shared affiliation between the testimonial provider and recipient enhances testimonial effectiveness.

Main Methods:

• 5,498 union members were randomized to receive one of three letters: no testimonial, a testimonial without disclosed affiliation, or a testimonial with disclosed affiliation.
• Conversion rates to lower-cost therapeutic equivalents were compared across the three groups.

Main Results:

• The conversion rate was 12.2% for the no-testimonial group, 11.3% for the unaffiliated testimonial group, and 11.7% for the affiliated testimonial group.
• These differences in conversion rates were not statistically significant across the groups.

Conclusions:

• Short peer testimonials do not significantly impact conversion rates to lower-cost, therapeutically equivalent medications.
• Disclosing a shared affiliation between the testimonial provider and recipient does not enhance the testimonial's effectiveness in this context.