Eye on FDA Opens Up YouTube Channel

It occurred to me that I can't keep harping on pharmaceutical companies to delve into the YouTube world unless I also do it myself and so Eye on FDA has a new YouTube channel - check it out.  And by all means, become a subscriber.  My good buddy Brian Reid (rebeldad to his friends) has already signed up.  Thanks Bri!

The advent of the new GSK channel mentioned in yesterday's posting (which doesn't allow embedding of their vids which is just plain WRONG) which has now 53 subscribers, and the Johnson & Johnson channel which now has 109 subscribers, have both set examples for pharma, though in the case of the former, it is still a mystery where they are headed.  I decided Eye on FDA will collect vids and store them in a YouTube library that collect public health-oriented vids from the public domain, and any I happen to be in, that can be housed on one site.

Accordingly, I have the vid of your's truly, demonstrating my unparalleled speaking skills (shameless self promotion) at a recent conference on the future regulation of food.  But I've also stored a CDC vid that was recently produced and put up by the CDC on public preparedness for emergencies. 

I've also begun moving some of the FDA patient alert vids, especially since the FDA seems to do almost nothing to promote them.  If you go to the FDA Web site and look under "V" of the alphabetical index, there is no listing for videos and if you look under "Y" for YouTube, one of the only two entries is for Y2K.  Hello?  That is over with man.  In fact, if you go to the FDA News channel, they only have 5 subscribers.  That is just sad.

Happy YouTubing everyone.   

Comments

[Rob]

Mark,
I think it's a great idea to be a video aggregator for health related videos. I've signed up as a subscriber, and look forward to another health care companion in the "tubosphere" (is that a word yet? - if not it should be!)

Rob
On behalf of jnjhealth

[Jay Byrne]

Mark:

You're certainly on the money with this counsel. Pharmaceutical companies (and in particular their legal and regulatory counsel) have been too slow to effective participation in this and related Web 2.0 spaces.

Many continue to seek (usually without great success) direct control over their content by only allowing it to be posted on platforms they control.

Success today is measured much more by the effective syndication of your content (especially video) than the number of hits or views on spaces you fully control. JnJ, GSK, and others creating brand-dedicated YouTube channels and posting content are good examples of baby steps into the shallow end of a vast pool of opportunity.

With more than 11 billion videos viewed online monthly in North America alone, the real challenge will come when brand managers, regulators and their relevant counselors fully embrace the behaviors and manners in which content is consumed online today and begin to make commensurate investments.