Three Types of FDA Recognized Pharmaceutical Ads, and How They Fit Native Advertising

Native advertising places a sponsored message within the flow of content someone is already reading. For prescription Rx drugs, the format does not change the rules governing the message. The FDA describes three common approaches:

1. Product claim ads name a drug and say what condition it treats or how it helps. They must also communicate relevant risks. In digital ads, advertisers often use scrolling Important Safety Information (ISI) to help present that information.

2. Help seeking ads discuss a condition or symptoms and encourage people to learn more or speak with a doctor. They do not name or suggest a particular drug, so they generally do not require the drug risk information found in product claim ads.

3. Reminder ads name a drug without saying or suggesting what it treats or making claims about what it does. When they qualify as reminder ads, they generally do not require product claim risk disclosures.

Help seeking and eligible reminder ads are the strongest fit for compact native placements. They can deliver a concise message without the risk disclosures (scrolling ISI) required for a product claim ad. Product claim ads can work in digital advertising, but their disclosure requirement makes standard display banners a better fit. For that reason, Tap Native does not serve product claim ads in its native formats and only serves Help Seeking Ads or Reminder Ads. Here’s an example of both and how they appear in a typical Tap Native below article multi-slot consumer ad unit:

Here’s another example of the same Reminder ad appearing in a typical Tap Native in-article single-slot consumer ad unit:

Native ads from Tap Native are image+text ads and are priced on a cost per click basis. Advertisers receive reporting metrics including impressions, clicks and click through rate by creative and campaign. Advertisers can also receive the numbers of conversions by ad and cost per conversion if they are using Tap Native’s conversion tracking code or utilizing a post back integration method. Macros and many other advanced tracking features are available.