5 reasons why pharmaceuticals shouldn’t use ChatGPT for marketing

For any clarifications, please send an email to: michael.phee@drcomgroup.com / marketing@drcomgroup.com

ChatGPT is a new buzzword in the world of technology. On December 1st 2022, the platform was made available for public beta testing. Amazingly, ChatGPT had over 1 million users within a week of its launch. There is also speculation that the platform will eventually replace Google search and, more importantly, humans.

First and foremost, let us discuss what ChatGPT is and the 5 reasons why pharmaceuticals should not use ChatGPT for marketing.

What is ChatGPT?

ChatGPT is a large language model developed by OpenAI. It is based on the GPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer) architecture, which uses deep learning techniques to generate human-like text. ChatGPT has been trained on a massive dataset of internet text, allowing it to understand and generate a wide variety of text. This makes it useful for a number of applications, such as text completion, conversation, and summarization.

One of the key features of ChatGPT is its ability to generate text that is similar to human writing. This is achieved through the use of a technique called unsupervised pre-training, where the model is trained on a large dataset of text without any specific task or objective in mind. This allows the model to learn patterns and structure in the text, which it can then use to generate new text that is similar to human writing.

ChatGPT is also able to understand and respond to natural language input, making it well-suited for use in conversational applications. It can be used to generate responses in a chatbot or virtual assistant, for example, or to generate text for a dialogue system in a game or other application. Additionally, because ChatGPT is a pre-trained model, it can be fine-tuned for specific tasks such as question answering, summarization and sentiment analysis.

Overall, for the other industries and end-to-end users, ChatGPT is a powerful and versatile language model that can be used for a wide range of applications. However, pharmaceutical marketers should not use them and here are the 5 reasons why.

1) Ethical Implications

One major concern is the potential for manipulation. ChatGPT has the ability to unnecessarily generate highly convincing and persuasive language, which could be used to manipulate individuals into purchasing a drug they may not actually need. This could lead to over-prescription and overuse of medication, which can have negative consequences for both individuals and society as a whole.

2) Misleading and False Information

Another concern is the potential for ChatGPT to be used to create fake or misleading information about a drug. For example, a pharmaceutical company could use ChatGPT to generate fake reviews or testimonials about their product, which could lead to individuals making decisions about their health based on false information.

Even if the above wasn’t intended, ChatGPT isn’t foolproof enough to be able to verify the authenticity of medical content generated. Instead, your MLR teams may be presented with an increment of workload.

3) Transparency and Accountability

Additionally, using ChatGPT for pharmaceutical marketing raises questions about transparency and accountability. Unlike traditional forms of advertising, it may be difficult for individuals to distinguish between information generated by ChatGPT and information generated by real people. This could make it more difficult for individuals to evaluate the credibility of the information they are presented with and make informed decisions about their health.

4) Lack of Personalization

Remember, omnichannel marketing can help pharmaceuticals to personalize their marketing messages. By using data gathered through multiple channels, they can create customized messages that resonate with specific HCP personas.

However, ChatGPT will not be able to specifically tailor messages to suit your HCP preferences and therefore, unable to provide a personalized customer experience.

5) Lack of Creativity & Storytelling

With ChatGPT being already unable to verify facts, it is also unable to get creative enough to make your marketing campaigns ‘stand-out’ from the rest. Furthermore, it won’t be able to understand nor adhere to your brand guidelines nor regulatory restrictions.

Looking to discuss further and to enhance your omnichannel capabilities? We’re just 1 email away: michael.phee@drcomgroup.com / marketing@drcomgroup.com

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