DIA Boston, Academic Network and Health 2.0

I'm pleased to be serving as the online strategist for Academic Network (ANW for short), and am currently in Boston attending the Drug Information Association (DIA) show with a few ANW folks. ANW just announced our Health 2.0 initiative, helping pharma, food and other clients negotiate the changing world of communications online safely and securely.

I've been attending shows for years, and this one is one of the bigger conventions I've attended. My background is in technology, so I feel very much at home in a conference with software and other infrastructure suppliers are speaking in TLA's (three letter acronyms) and speaking in a pretty technical language. Lucky for me!

Had I not had that kind of background, I'd be at a loss for words to describe the complexity of the pharma market. Not only are the products complex, but the regulatory environment requirements are pretty stunning. Talk about being held between a rock and a hard place!

In this blog, I hope to begin to help ANW clients envision a world where they can safely:

1) Listen to the online world - where consumers are researching, sharing and engaging online about their health; and the different diseases and medicines, supplements and lifestyle choices they're making in managing health. Because people are talking about their brands online. We might as well have the tools to listen to those conversations.

2) Track conversations online - and protect their brands by reviewing sponsored (and unsponsored) social networks for potential adverse events (AE's). A conservative approach (pre-FDA rulings) is perfectly warranted here.

3) Engage in conversations where applicable and appropriate in a safe, protected and educated manner. I've been a business blogger since 2004, and travel the country helping people understand how to establish, maintain and leverage relationships with bloggers. I train people the rules of the road, and get companies ready to understand the good, the bad and the excitement of entering into conversations online.

I look forward to blogging for ANW here, and for those who'd like to see a little more background on me, I also blog over here: http://www.janetleejohnson.com.

Welcome to ANW's vision of Health 2.0. Our extremely knowledgable, competent and trained medical, healthcare and nutritional folks can help you negotiate your way safely into this whole new world.