Topin and Advanced Clinical Concepts Join Forces: “Science Bridge” Approach Helps Drive Brands

Topin & Associates, a Chicago-based healthcare marketing communications agency, and Advanced Clinical Concepts (ACC), a medical and scientific communications agency located in Bridgewater, N.J., have joined forces to create a new strategic partnership which provides clients with continuity in science-based messaging, creative and content development.

“The relationship is a new business approach that aims to help clients bridge the gap that often occurs when companies separate their promotional advertising efforts from their promotional scientific and educational programs,” said Al Topin president of Topin & Associates (topin.com).

“The industry has created necessary firewalls between scientific exchange and promotion,” said David Rear, R.Ph., president of ACC (advancedclinical.net). “Many pharmaceutical companies, however, have created an unnecessary division between a brand’s on-label medical education and its advertising — resulting in a loss of continuity in brand messaging.”

Continuity problems begin when separate client teams develop separate plans, which are then executed by different agencies, often with little communication between them.

“The result can be a brand story that’s not aligned in all channels,” added Topin. “We saw a real opportunity for us as agencies to work together to align that story.” The approach the agencies are taking, dubbed the “science bridge,” is to help clients create core scientific content that provides continuity throughout the entire promotional plan, from pre-launch market development activities through product launch and lifecycle management. The goal is to link all brand promotion activities — from peer-to-peer programs to sales force promotion to patient communication — to a brand’s scientific core. It’s this link, according both agencies’ presidents, that drives brand meaning and ultimate value for all audiences.