January 16, 2012
Walgreens Takes Heat for Sponsored Tweets
It’s not totally out of the ordinary that Walgreens would make public its issues with Express Scripts after it failed to reach agreement on a new contract with the pharmacy benefits manager.
What’s unusual is that not only did Walgreens attempt to win the public relations war, but that it paid Twitter to give it preferential placement including listing #ILoveWalgreens as one of the most popular trending topics on the social media site.
As one @JaredKaltwasser put it, per Advertising Age: "Is it just me, or is the trending topic #ILoveWalgreens basically worthless if the company bought placement on the trends list?"
Walgreens, according to Ad Age, also used Social Spark, a site that connects bloggers to sponsors looking to pay for supportive posts. Most of the bloggers who posted pro-Walgreens content included a disclaimer: "This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Walgreens for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine."
Express Scripts did not sit idly by in response to the Walgreens-sponsored bashing. The company went on Twitter to publish a list of six "facts" including:
- "Walgreens’ proposed rates/terms would make them the most expensive pharmacy in our network."
- "With over 56,000 pharmacies in our network, there is plenty of access."
BrainTrust
Recent Discussions
Discussion Questions
Did Walgreens help or hurt itself with its sponsored attacks on Express Scripts? How would you have advised Walgreens to handle the end of negotiations with Express Scripts?
Poll
The war between Walgreens and Express Scripts has no winner. In my opinion the gridlock hurts the images and reputations of both companies and I surmise that most of the public really doesn’t care who was right and who was wrong. The two companies need to work this out and make it right for the public.
In most cases, I don’t think the public cares about the battle between Walgreens and Express Scripts.
As far as negotiations go, if you cannot agree on an outcome, agree to disagree, but remember next year you may want to work with the person you are negotiating with.
Since my use of Twitter is limited, it’s tough to say for sure whether Walgreens came off a net winner in this tussle. But the principles for determining who “won” are the same regardless of the medium.
If the predominant user of Twitter is engaged enough in the medium to know the difference between sponsored posts and listings and the real thing, then Walgreens is likely a loser. Highly engaged and informed users of a medium tend to reject those who game their forum.
On the other hand, if the predominant user is a casual user who is only passively aware of things like trends lists and sponsored posts (e.g. TV), then Walgreens likely got what they were looking for by showing up there.
The best defense is a good offense. In this ever changing communication world, companies need and should tell their side of the story. While I love the internet, there is simply too much disinformation on it to make it reliable. All the social media web sites need to be viewed as a component of their consumer communication program. If Walgreens is going to lose customers by Express Scripts not renewing, they must tell their side of the story to their customer base.
Right battle — could be the wrong weapons, unless of course, Walgreens’ message is aimed not at the consumer, but Express Scripts.
Social media, such as Twitter, are unquestionably playing a larger role in delivering message. However, based on the BIGinsight Simultaneous Media Usage (SIMM) survey of 25,000+ adults, the consumer who is influenced by social media for their medicine / pharmacy purchases is decidedly younger than the Walgreens customer. Of the adults who say they are medicine purchases are influenced by social media, 53% fall between the ages of 18-34.
Of adults who shop Walgreens for prescriptions MOST often, only 29% are between 18-34. 42% are between the ages of 35-54, and 29% are 55+. Social media belongs in the mix, and as long as Walgreens used Twitter in a cost-effective manner (time and resources), and right allocation balance, they can make progress in this ongoing negotiation.
Walgreens, as well as other retailers, have to support their strategies by taking the message to their existing and perspective customers. In this case, Walgreens knows how to determine audiences they are attempting to target. Important that they take their message to the marketplace.
I’m not sure that consumers reading the Walgreens Twitter feed can really relate to an “internal” conflict between the pharmacy and Express Scripts.
But what they will relate to is public bashing or blatant self-promotion. Social media is a risky and sensitive space, we all know that. It’s far too easy for brands to fall off the deep end by misusing their social media properties, and disseminating negativity.
Yes, there are some users that feed off this. But mostly, users are looking to interact with their favorite brands and find out about how they can save time and money by doing so. The majority of people aren’t looking to hear about Walgreens’ dispute with another giant company and, moreover, combating it with self-promotion by sponsoring Tweets.
As marketers, we need to ensure that if we dip into the social media space, we work with people who know what they’re doing, and represent our brands in the right way.
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The war between Walgreens and Express Scripts has no winner. In my opinion the gridlock hurts the images and reputations of both companies and I surmise that most of the public really doesn’t care who was right and who was wrong. The two companies need to work this out and make it right for the public.
In most cases, I don’t think the public cares about the battle between Walgreens and Express Scripts.
As far as negotiations go, if you cannot agree on an outcome, agree to disagree, but remember next year you may want to work with the person you are negotiating with.
Since my use of Twitter is limited, it’s tough to say for sure whether Walgreens came off a net winner in this tussle. But the principles for determining who “won” are the same regardless of the medium.
If the predominant user of Twitter is engaged enough in the medium to know the difference between sponsored posts and listings and the real thing, then Walgreens is likely a loser. Highly engaged and informed users of a medium tend to reject those who game their forum.
On the other hand, if the predominant user is a casual user who is only passively aware of things like trends lists and sponsored posts (e.g. TV), then Walgreens likely got what they were looking for by showing up there.
The best defense is a good offense. In this ever changing communication world, companies need and should tell their side of the story. While I love the internet, there is simply too much disinformation on it to make it reliable. All the social media web sites need to be viewed as a component of their consumer communication program. If Walgreens is going to lose customers by Express Scripts not renewing, they must tell their side of the story to their customer base.
Right battle — could be the wrong weapons, unless of course, Walgreens’ message is aimed not at the consumer, but Express Scripts.
Social media, such as Twitter, are unquestionably playing a larger role in delivering message. However, based on the BIGinsight Simultaneous Media Usage (SIMM) survey of 25,000+ adults, the consumer who is influenced by social media for their medicine / pharmacy purchases is decidedly younger than the Walgreens customer. Of the adults who say they are medicine purchases are influenced by social media, 53% fall between the ages of 18-34.
Of adults who shop Walgreens for prescriptions MOST often, only 29% are between 18-34. 42% are between the ages of 35-54, and 29% are 55+. Social media belongs in the mix, and as long as Walgreens used Twitter in a cost-effective manner (time and resources), and right allocation balance, they can make progress in this ongoing negotiation.
Walgreens, as well as other retailers, have to support their strategies by taking the message to their existing and perspective customers. In this case, Walgreens knows how to determine audiences they are attempting to target. Important that they take their message to the marketplace.
I’m not sure that consumers reading the Walgreens Twitter feed can really relate to an “internal” conflict between the pharmacy and Express Scripts.
But what they will relate to is public bashing or blatant self-promotion. Social media is a risky and sensitive space, we all know that. It’s far too easy for brands to fall off the deep end by misusing their social media properties, and disseminating negativity.
Yes, there are some users that feed off this. But mostly, users are looking to interact with their favorite brands and find out about how they can save time and money by doing so. The majority of people aren’t looking to hear about Walgreens’ dispute with another giant company and, moreover, combating it with self-promotion by sponsoring Tweets.
As marketers, we need to ensure that if we dip into the social media space, we work with people who know what they’re doing, and represent our brands in the right way.