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Viral Marketing Power for Over-The-Counter (OTC) drugs Gomathisankar K. & Selvarasu A. (2013)

Business Administration – Marketing, Faculty of Arts, Annamalai University

au.kgs39@gmail.com & aselvarasu@me.com

Abstract The study is to develop standard tools for review of the power of viral marketing in OTC drug market in particular. The growth of the Indian over-the-counter or OTC market (that is advertised non-prescription medicines) has outperformed globally with a market size of $3.4 billion. With the internet as an increasing locus for consumption, consumer have unparalleled access to information, and the ability to share/receive the messages as ever before, along with the opportunity to interact with other consumers and companies in different ways. Viral marketing is defined as “marketing techniques that use social networks to produce increases in brand awareness through self-replicating viral diffusion of messages, comparable to the spread of pathological viruses” (Kiss and Bichler, 2008). The customers have habituated to receive/share messages exponentially is social network both company’s message content and people’s intent messages. Based on the orientation of Blake Rohrbacher (2002) ORCI, a new operational viral marketing power have been proposed by Gamothaisankar K and Selvarasu A. (2013) as a tool for qualifying viral messages of OTC medicine in social network on internet. The reliability score of the scale has been found with a Cronbach’s alpha value 0.584 and based on standardized items 0.606 with a KMO sample adequacy of 64%. The study is based on multistage sampling that involves random sampling of lottery method have been adhered in the selection of sample respondents. To determine the sample size as 460, the researcher has used the formula of Schaeffer, Mendenhall and Ott (2005). The study tools are pre-tested with Friedman test and shows significant value. The concept of viral marketing power comprises of seven subscales namely self medication value (SMV), OTC drug value (ODV), emergency value (EmV), vital value (VV), guile value (GV), spiral value (SV), and vile value (ViV), six independent variables namely net savvy, social network savvy, click, referral share, see/receive and OTC web content, and eight covariates namely market maven (MM), customer knowledge (CK), product knowledge (PK), time (Ti), treatment (Tr), money (Mo), fun, and attitude (Att) are used to study the effects of viral messages. Individual effects of each subscale have been studied. Also the interaction effects of the subscales in viral marketing power have been studied. 1. Introduction Indian pharmaceutical industry is in the forefront of nation’s science-based industries with wide ranging capabilities in the complex field of drug manufacture and technology. A highly organized sector the Indian pharmaceutical industry is estimated to be worth $4.5 billion, growing at about 8-9% annually. Over the counter drugs are the most important sector in pharmaceutical industry. The Indian OTC pharmaceuticals market grew by 7.7% in 2006 to reach a market value of $2.5 billion. In 2011, the market value of $3.4 billion, an increase of 35.9% since 2006. Traditional medicines form the most lucrative sector of the Indian market, with a 27.3% share of the market by value. India accounts for 6.4% of the Asia-Pacific market by value. Pfizer is the leading company in the Indian market, with a 5.1% share of the market by value. Pharmacies and drugstores form the most profitable distribution channel, with a 73.6% share of the Indian market by value. 1.1 Over the counter drugs OTC Drug means drugs legally allowed to be sold ‘Over the Counter’, i.e. without the prescription of a Registered Medical Practitioner. In India, though the phrase has no legal recognition, all the drugs that are not included in the list of ‘prescription drugs’ are considered as non-prescription drugs (or OTC drugs). Prescription Drugs are those that fall under two schedules of the Drug and Cosmetics Rules, 1945: Schedule H and Schedule X.

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In India, the import, manufacture, distribution and sale of drugs and cosmetics are regulated by the Drugs and Cosmetics Act (DCA) and its subordinate legislation, the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules (DCR). In most under developed countries (LDCs), almost any drug available on the markets were purchased over-the-counter (Ferguson, 1981; Krishnaswamy et al, 1983; Logan, 1983; Tomson and Sterkey, 1986; Greenhalgh, 1987; Hardon, 1987; Van der Geest, 1987; Haak, 1988; Price, 1989; Goel et al., 1996; Trostle, 1996; Van der Geest et al., 1996).Also in India like developed countries OTC drugs plays a vital role in self medication. 1.2 Leading OTC drugs in India Now a days the clinical rationality of prescription practices, self-medication inclusive of over-the-counter (OTC) drug use for acute and chronic illnesses, the purchase of nutritional supplements (tonics and vitamins) which have questionable therapeutic value, and the self-regulation of prescribed medicine dosage (Conrad, 1985; Nichter and Vuckovic, 1994; Ross-Degnan et al., 1996; Van der Geest et al., 1996; Madden et al., 1997). Some of the top OTC brands in India such as Vicks VapoRub, Amrutanjan Balm, Zandu Balm, Iodex, Moov Pain Cream, Itch Guard Cream, ENO Fruit Salt, Vicks Cough Drops, Halls Lozenges, etc., are registered as ‘Ayurvedic Medicines’ because of their plant-based natural active ingredients. Considering the above framework, key categories with OTC potential in India would be: • Vitamins and minerals • Cough and cold • Gastro intestinal • Analgesics /Dermatological 1.3 Reasons for over the counter drug usage Self-care is a behavioural response of individuals to promote or restore their health through OTC medicines. Encouragement of self-care is seen as giving patients every opportunity to take responsibility and build confidence in their ability to manage their own health. Patient empowerment is viewed as a positive step in the development of the relationship between patient and healthcare provider and is considered as an important health policy concept.1 form of self-care is self-medication. The Merriam - Webster dictionary defines self medication as, “Medication of oneself especially without the advice of a physician”. The WHO has also recognized the validity of self medication in a variety of settings. In 1995, the WHO Expert Committee on National Drug policies stated: “Self-medication is widely practiced in both developed and developing countries. Medication with OTC medicine is approved as being safe for self-medication by the national drug regulatory authority. Such medicines are used for the prevention or treatment of minor ailments or symptoms, which do not justify medical consultation. 1.4 Root map to viral marketing The word ‘viral’ is a pattern that is able to induce some agents to replicate it, resulting in many copies being produced and spread around. Without any medium virus can’t survive as living organism, likewise word- of- mouth spreads through media in the form of viral marketing. In this present work, we are dividing word of mouth into several categories although in reality, according to Dr. Paul Marsden, WOM/Viral/Buzz all are same thing, namely network enhanced Word of Mouth. Viral marketing leverages digital networks; buzz leverages media networks; and WOM leverages social networks. Viral marketing employ either an idea virus or shock virus approach, while social networking is typically managed as influencer relations. Pure word of mouth has no limits on distribution vehicles. 1.5 Definitions 1.5.1 Word-of-mouth communication (WOM) Wom is defined as oral person to person communication between a receiver and a communicator whom the receiver perceives as non-commercial, regarding a brand, a product or a service” (Arndt, 1967).

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1.5.2 Referral marketing Referral marketing is a structured and systematic process to maximize word of mouth potential by encouraging, informing, promoting and rewarding customers and contacts to think and talk as much as possible this is the next step of WOM (Buttle, 1998) 1.5.3 Electronic word-of-mouth communication (eWOM) Electronic word of mouth is defined as: “any positive or negative statement made by potential, actual, or former customers about a product or company, which is made available to a multitude of people and institutions via the Internet” (Hennig-Thurau et al. 2004). 1.5.4 Internet marketing Internet marketing is defined as “the process of building and maintaining customer relationships through online activities to facilitate the exchange of ideas, products, and services that satisfy the goals of both buyer and seller” (Imber & Betsy- Ann, 2000, as cited by Ngai, 2003). 1.5.5 Viral marketing Viral marketing can be defined as “marketing techniques that use social networks to produce increases in brand awareness through self-replicating viral diffusion of messages, comparable to the spread of pathological viruses” (Kiss & Bichler, 2008). 1.5.6 Definition for Viral Marketing Power The objective or the purpose of sharing information with many persons simultaneously through internet has proved positive results in business. The purpose varies with the content of information and these are ‘value’ (experience), guile (sell for incentive), vital (before buying products), spiral (fun/interesting) and vile (warn@-ve experience). Positive viral message are four categories like value, vital (purchase), guile (sell) and spiral. Negative viral message is vile (warning). Types of Viral

When people talk about viral marketing, they do not realize that they're really talking about several variations of the same theme. These variations of viral marketing operate for different reasons and by different mechanisms, and they have different effects. However, most seem to have the same mechanism at their core -- a focus on providing the user with quality products or experiences. The way it is seen are five types of viral marketing: four "good" and one "bad." Below is a little primer in viral marketing. Note that in four examples out of five, you can't "make it viral." Value Viral: People share quality experiences with others. Guile Viral: People try to "sell" to others in exchange for incentives. Vital Viral: People want to share experiences with others, which requires certain products. Spiral Viral: People want to share funny, dirty, and/or interesting experiences with others. Vile Viral: People warn others of negative experiences. According to Blake Rohrbacher (2002), Opinion Research Corporation International (ORCI), a new operational development of Viral Marketing Power has been proposed as a tool for designing strategies to prove that the message shared in the social network becomes viral because of the purpose or benefit or value or the power of viral message of a product or a service. 2. Review of literature 2.1 Word of mouth marketing The term word-of-mouth (WOM) was originally coined by William H. Whyte, Jr. in his article “The Web of Word of Mouth”, published in Fortune magazine in 1954 (as cited by Kimmel, 2004). Based on his observations, Whyte suggested that people who talk about products and services together, also display similar purchase behavior and have similar product preferences. Academic WOM research entered the stage the following year when Katz and Lazarsfeld (1955) introduced their breakthrough theory on public opinion formation. They argued that in a variety of decision-making scenarios, individuals are more influenced by their exposure to each other, than their exposure to the media. This basic principle explains the attraction of WOM and has made it an increasingly popular research topic. The idea that social interaction brings congruence to purchase behavior has been since supported by many researchers (Stafford, 1966; Arndt, 1967; Reingen et al. 1984), and now, a half a century later, it is commonly accepted as a fact in WOM research. All in all,

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WOM has been shown to influence consumers' awareness, expectations, perceptions, attitudes, behavioral intentions, as well as behavior (Buttle, 1998). Researchers East et al. (2008) also describe WOM as informal, interactive and swift. Even though there are certain characteristics of WOM that remain the same across discussions, it is important to realize that WOM always takes place in the context of a specific situation and that the environment in which it takes place is continuously changing (Allsop et al. 2007). Allsop et al. (2007) point out that companies that understand the social networks surrounding their brands and listen to what consumers are saying, are in a better position when faced with negative situations. That is because consumers respect companies and organizations that are honest about their shortcomings. 2.2 Referral marketing Referral marketing that a firm sells its products initially only to a certain number of consumers who are directly linked to the firm, and subsequently continues to sell to consumers who are referred by previous consumers and so on. In network marketing, the sales volume of a firm will depend on the probability that each consumer will refer his neighbor. This probability is, by nature, not exogenously given, but endogenously determined from a consumer’s comparisons between the benefit and the cost of his making a referral. A.F.T. Payne (unpublished) developed taxonomy of referral types, broadly split into two groups: customer referrals and non-customer referrals. Customer referrals may be either customer initiated or company initiated. Customer-initiated referrals originate from current or former customers who have been satisfied or delighted with their experiences. They act as unpaid advocates (Francis buttle,1998) 2.3 E-Word of mouth marketing Compared to WOM, the research field of electronic word-of-mouth communication (eWOM) is younger and undeveloped. This means that various terms and definitions exist for the same phenomenon. Besides eWOM (Hennig-Thurau et al., 2004; Gruen et al. 2006; Hung & Li, 2007), the phenomenon has also been referred to as online wordof- mouth (Duan et al. 2008; Sun et al. 2006), and internet or online word-of-mouse (Goldenberg et al. 2001; Sun et al. 2006). The most descriptive definition of eWOM comes from Hennig-Thurau et al. (2004, 39), who define it as “any positive or negative statement made by potential, actual, or former customers about a product or company, which is made available to a multitude of people and institutions via the Internet”. The platform for eWOM is often called the new media, as opposed to traditional media, such as newspapers, magazines, books, radio and television (Neuman, 1991). The new media can include official and unofficial websites, electronic newsgroups, virtual communities and blogs that offer consumers instantaneous interactions with advertisers, fellow consumers, and other market players (Hung & Li, 2007). The main characteristics that differentiate the new media from the traditional media are interactivity and the possibility for dialogue (Bezjian-Avery et al. 1998), as well as the interconnectedness of the media network that combines different communication forms such as audio, video and text (Neuman, 1991). 2.4 Social network Marketing Communication brings people together under certain reoccurring principles? Rogers (2003) defines communication as a process in which participants create and share information with each other with the goal of reaching a mutual understanding. People want to connect with each other people. A basic principle in human communication is that the transfer of information occurs most frequently between individuals who are similar in certain attributes, such as their beliefs, education and socioeconomic status (Rogers, 2003). Katz & Lazarzsfeld (1955) go as far as to say that like-minded people seek each other out as companions to begin with. By staying actively connected to each other, these individuals form powerful and influential social networks. For marketing theory on the diffusion of innovations was first introduced by Rogers in the early 1960s with the purpose of explaining how people share information about new ideas. Some years later, Arndt (1967) continued with the theme and looked at the role of product-related conversations in the diffusion of new products. In Rogers' (2003) definition diffusion “is the process in which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among the

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members of a social system“, with the message involving new ideas. Such channels may include mass media, interpersonal, and interactive channels. Innovation diffusion relates directly to WOM because in many cases, people tend to talk about things that are new such as new products, new campaigns and new companies. 2.5 Viral marketing The term viral marketing was originally mentioned in a PC User magazine article in 1989 (Kirby, 2006), but it did not become a powerful internet buzz word until nearly a decade later, in 1998 (Helm, 2000). Although the phenomenon has grown tremendously since then, different people still have various interpretations of the term. Kiss & Bichler (2008) defined viral marketing as “marketing techniques that use social networks to produce increases in brand awareness through self-replicating viral diffusion of messages, analogous to the spread of pathological and computer viruses”. In other words, a company uses consumer communication as means of multiplying a brand's popularity through customers spreading the message to their contacts (Hennig-Thurau et al. 2004). Viral marketing takes advantage of the fact that people like to talk by giving them something to talk about. Kirby (2006) highlights the story telling aspect of viral marketing and suggests that viral marketing campaigns needs to generate conversation, not just spread the viral marketing agent. Ferguson (2008) agrees with Kirby by arguing that if viral content does not encourage customer identification or dialogue, it is simply a digital form of mass-marketing. The dissemination of viral marketing messages can be either active or passive (Thomas, 2004). Although intentional, active promotion is a more common method, passive, unintentional promotion can work just as well, if not even better (De Bruyn & Lilien, 2008). According to Hennig-Thurau et al. (2004), the most significant benefit of viral marketing is that marketers potentially reach a large number of people in a short amount of time, and multiply the brand's popularity through customers who spread the message. Kirby (2006) finds that viral marketing also improve brand advocacy and mass market brand awareness. The author points out that when a product is generic, it is difficult to create buzz around the product, and in such case, the company try to create buzz around the viral marketing campaign. However, for the target group to actually make a purchase as a result of the campaign, Kirby finds that they still need to find the product appealing enough. 2.6 Research gap In the 2000s, viral marketing became a new media phenomenon, gaining increasing interest in marketing literature (Jurvetson & Draper, 1997; Helm, 2000). A decade later, Cruz & Fill (2008) find that only a little is known and has been agreed on about the nature, characteristics and dimensions of viral marketing. The researchers also suggest that only a limited amount of literature has been written about viral marketing measurement and evaluation. There is no literature found, in the past decades, about the power of viral marketing. So it is identified that there is gap between viral marketing concepts and its power. 3. Methodology This section of the research report contains a frame work of all the stages of research from research problem to the scope of the research. Presentation about the need for study, research problem, research objective, research propositions, design of research, sampling method, sample size, Viral Marketing Power (VMP) scale, statistical tools, data collections, limitations and scope of the study. The description of all the aspects of methodology has been presented in the following sections. 3.1 Need for the study In India, the import, manufacture, distribution and sale of drugs and cosmetics are regulated by the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 (DCA), the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945 (DCR). Indian market faces the problem of ‘deemed OTC market’ where in ethical drugs sold without a prescription due to poor monitoring and control by FDA. Self medication tendency is traditionally very high due to high availability of traditional medicines, the awareness and acceptance of which is very high among the public (Ajith paninchukunnath,2007). Marketing method of OTC drugs is a complicated one which is controlled by customers knowledge and attitudes (Nicholas Hall,2006), WOM potential, nature of the social network (Kamala Krishnaswamy,2005), customers referral (Paninchukunnath,2007) advertisement through mass media (Neale John-2000) and market mavanism((Ferguson, 1981; (Krishnaswamy et al.,

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1983; Logan, 1983; Shiva, 1985; Fabricant and Hirshhorn, 1987; Greenhalgh, 1987; Van der Geest, 1988; Goel et al., 1996; Ross-Degnan et al., 1996; Van der Geest et al., 1996). Here is a need to coordinate the above said factors for the better performance of OTC drug marketing, the innovative marketing method namely viral marketing used. As there is a gap in the review of various literatures the researcher has attempted to verify viral marketing power as one of the new marketing theory in the field of OTC drug marketing. Viral marketing power has been operationally defined as the power of viral marketing message with which the persons in the social network intend to transact information about OTC drugs in a specific purpose or benefit or value or power. 3.2 Research Objectives For the purpose of describing The Viral Marketing Power for Over-The-Counter (OTC) drugs, the following objectives have been proposed:

1. To Examine the power of viral marketing for self-medication drugs category available over-the-counter (OTC) among social netters.

2. To measure the effect of value, vital, spiral, guile, and vile viral messages on the power of viral marketing.

3. To Describe the power of viral message of OTC brands sharing & receiving in social networks for self-medication.

4. To find the influence of market maven, knowledge & attitude of self-medicating persons on the power of viral (marketing) message.

5. To reveal the interdependency of OTC referral, believability of advertisement in sharing viral message via social network groups.

3.3 Research Propositions Proposition 1: The power of viral message is not significantly varying with the category and brands of self-medication drugs available over-the-counter. Proposition 2: The power of viral message is not significantly vary with heavy and light users of social network and netsavy in sharing/receiving web contents about OTC drugs. Proposition 3: The power of viral message is not significantly influenced by the social nettizens, market mavens, referral and self-medication attitude. Proposition 4: The power of viral message is not significantly influenced by the knowledge about OTC drugs of social nettizens. 3.4 Research Design The present study is descriptive in nature and it describes viral marketing power (VMP) for over-the-counter (OTC) drugs. The survey has been conducted in Tamilnadu which is one of the southern states of India. The study has been designed based on a new marketing scale developed by Gomathisankar.K and Selvarasu.A (2010). 3.5 Scope of the study The companies float their marketing messages though various media. The customers are used to intent the messages the implications of viral messages in both company’s content of message and people’s intent of message.

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Table-1 Positioning messages of OTC

Company’s message of OTC People’s message about OTC Is it Viral message? Message spread by company Social nettizens/Doctors/Pharmacist/Customers Experience 1.Ooh Aah Ouch (Iodex) 2.One dose can stop diarrhea (Immodium AD)

Experience 1.World-renowned cough syrup (Benadryl) 2.Women suffering from Back ache (Iodex) 3.Immediate relief (Vicks)

Guile(sell) 1.Make it your expert on cough treatment (Benadryl) 2.Removes your headache (Iodex head fast) 3.Save $2.00 (Gelusil)

Guile(sell) 1.No.1 doctors prescribed (Volini) 2.Acid neutraliser (Gelusil) 3.Special Health supplement for women (Revital)

Vital (Buy) 1.Gets to work in 2 mins (Iodex) 2. Pain should not come in the way of your life 3.Take the bite out of acidity and gas (Digene)

Vital (Buy) 1. Available in various forms (Iodex) 2.Indian medical association approved(Gelusil) 3.Keeps fit and active (Revital)

Spiral (Fun/Interesting) 1.Sleep is beautiful thing (Vicks) 2.Chess challenge (Crocin) 3.Hertburn needs a medicine not a mint (Gelusil)

Spiral (Fun/Interesting) 1.Sleep like a baby (Vicks) 2. Relief in every work (Iodex) 3.Live life to the fullest

Vile (warning) 1.Why take your headache quit on others (Crocin) 2.Doctors choice to treat acidity (Gelusil) 3. Doctors trust (Digene)

Vile (warning) 1. Allergy alert tool (Benadryl) 2.Continious use cause dependency (Revital) 3.Avoid in pregnancy (Iodex)

Picture -1 Company’s messages about OTC

Picture -2 People’s messages about OTC

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3.6 Viral marketing power scale Description: The viral marketing power profile is 18 items scale operationalised as likert’s type agreement scale, one for self medication value(SMV), 2 for over the counter drug value (ODV), 3 for emergency value (EmV), 2 for vital value (VV), 2 for guile value (GV), 2 for spiral value (SV), and 6 for vile value (ViV). All items are scored on 5 point scales and items are summed within the dimension, then averaged by the number of items in each dimension from scores for each dimension. Development: The power profile was created from 32 agreement items generated by the 5 groups of people namely doctors, pharmacist, patients, higher secondary school students and college students. A large sample of 32 medicine users were gathered in Annamalai University Libra hall. They have been asked to speak about the messages relating to OTC medicine usage. Twenty positive messages and twelve negative messages gathered to rate viral marketing power scale. Seven over lapping messages were removed and other 25 items were analysed using factor analysis. Seven items were eliminated that factor to distinguish the power for the dimension being measured. This results in final 18 items and viral marketing power profile was examined. Validity: The validity evidence for the viral marketing power was limited to factor analysis and predictive validity factor analysis of the VMP supported he seven factor structures of SMV, ODV, EmV, VV, GV, SV, and ViV with VMP as dependent variables, the predictive validity of VMP profile dimensions were examined. By the extraction method of principle component analysis, the cumulative percentage of rotation sums of squared loaded items obtained is 76.983% and the remaining 23.017% are the error variance. The purpose for which the items are intended to measure has been met with the intended measure. By reliability statistics the sample co-relation co-efficient cronbach’s alpha value is .584 and based on standardized items it is .606

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Ranks

Viral marketing scale item Mean Rank

Group

Share The Past Experience Of Otc Medicines

10.27 3

Share Otc Medicine's Effectiveness 11.38 4 to Speak About The Various Benefits of OTC

8.02 1

Information About The Categories of OTC

10.13 3

Speak About The Role Of OTC 11.03 4 Educate Side Effects Of OTC Medicines

8.26 1

Speak About The Monetary Benefits 10.49 3 Brief About The Wide Availability 8.80 1 POM should be deregulated to OTC status

9.57 2

I reach for OTC medicines at the first sign of illness

8.74 1

I use OTC medicines only if the illness is quite severe

9.00 2

OTC medicines are totally safe to use 9.03 2 OTC medicines can have dangerous side - effects

9.14 2

The effect of incorrect use of OTC medicines may lead to serious problems

9.39 2

OTC medicine usage can sometimes mask serious problems

9.32 2

Some OTC medicines interface with the natural healing process of the body

9.55 2

With the continual use, some OTC medicines lose their effectiveness

9.49 2

OTC medicines may cause dependency

9.41 2

Test Statisticsa

N 460 Chi-Square 920.000 Df 2 Asymp. Sig. .000 a. Friedman Test for VMP, VMP positive, and VMP negative.

Ranks

Viral marketing power Mean Rank

Weighted VMP 2.00 Weighted positive VMP

3.00

Weighted ViV 1.00

Table-2 Showing the mean rank Viral marketing scale item

Table-3 Showing the mean rank of Viral marketing power

KMO and Bartlett's Test

Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy.

.641

Bartlett's Test of Sphericity

Approx. Chi-Square 8548.115

df 153 Sig. .000

Table-4 Showing sample adequacy

Test Statisticsa

N 460 Chi-Square 258.000 Df 17 Asymp. Sig. .000 a. Friedman Test for 18 items

Table-5 Showing Friedman Test for 18 items

Table-6 Showing Friedman Test for VMP, VMP positive, and VMP negative.

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Table-7 Showing Rotated Component Matrix of Rotation converged in 17 iterations. Rotated Component Matrixa

Component Viral Message Scale

Warning/ Fear/Safety

Guile/ Incentive Vital

Emergency Value

Self Medication Experience

Value

Interesting/ Fun

Spiral

OTC Drug Value

1. Share The Past Experience Of Otc Medicines

.816

2. Share Otc Medicine's Effectiveness .725 3. to Speak About The Various

Benefits of OTC .482

4. Information About The Categories of OTC

.794

5. Speak About The Role Of OTC .811 6. Educate Side Effects Of OTC

Medicines .613

7. Speak About The Monetary Benefits .800 8. Brief About The Wide Availability -

.654

9. POM should be deregulated to OTC status

.622

10. I reach for OTC medicines at the first sign of illness

-.570

11. I use OTC medicines only if the illness is quite severe

.811

12. OTC medicines are totally safe to use

.705

13. OTC medicines can have dangerous side - effects

.946

14. The effect of incorrect use of OTC medicines may lead to serious problems

.978

15. OTC medicine usage can sometimes mask serious problems

.977

16. Some OTC medicines interface with the natural healing process of the body

.981

17. With the continual use, some OTC medicines lose their effectiveness

.989

18. OTC medicines may cause dependency

.976

Extraction Method: Principal Component Analysis. Rotation Method: Varimax with Kaiser Normalization. a. Rotation converged in 17 iterations.

There are seven dimensions have been developed namely Self medication Value (SMV), OTC drug value (ODV), Emergency value (EmV), Vital value (VV), Guile value (GV), Spiral value (SV), Vile value (ViV) (Refer Table-7). Other descriptive variables have been identified namely Net savvy, Social Net savvy, OTC web content, click, Referral share, and See Brand/product. The covariates identified for the study are market maven(MM), customer knowledge(CK), product knowledge(PK), time(T), treatment(TT), money(M), fun/event or occasion(F), attitude(A). The study area has been randomly selected based on multi-stage sampling and distributed in the state of Tamilnadu.

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3.7. Conceptual framework The Concept of viral marketing power comprises of 7 subscales, 6 independent variables and 8 co-variates are used to give weightage for the scores obtained as response. Individual effect of each subscale have been studied. Also the interaction effect of the subscales in viral marketing power have been studied (refer Fig-1).

FIGURE-1 SHOWING CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK OF VIRAL MARKETING POWER MODEL

Item Item

Item

Item

SMV- Self Medication value ODV- Over-the counter drug value EmV- Emergency value VV- Vital value

GV- Guile value SV- Spiral value ViV- Vile value MM- Market maven Mo- Money

CK-Customer knowledge PK- Product knowledge Ti- Time Tr-Treatment Att- attitude

Model Developed by K.Gomathi Sankar and A.Selvarsu (2013)

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3.8 Description of VMP marketing scale The scale has been prepared, tested and validated for the purpose of measures that are intended to be measured. The scale comprises of Eight dependent variables, seven independent variables and eight co-variants. All this twenty three variables have been used to describe the dimensions of VMP. First dimension self medication value (SMV) of VMP has been adopted by the co-variate market maven (MM) and customer knowledge (CK). The responses for the variable under market maven has been recorded with five intervals from strongly agree maven to strongly disagree maven. A maximum score of five has been given to a favourable response towards mavens’ character and a minimum score of one has been assigned for not maven. The viral marketing power of customer knowledge has been studied with a response from know to don’t know. The total score of market maven less than or equal to 42 and customer knowledge about OTC is less than or equal to 6. The SMV score has been adjusted to the proposition of the weight of market maven and customer knowledge. The second dimension of VMP, over-the-counter drug value (ODV) has been studied with product knowledge (PK), the responses have been recorded with five intervals from strongly agree to strongly disagree. A maximum score of five has been given to a favourable response towards awareness and a minimum score of one has been assigned for unawareness. The total score of product knowledge less than or equal to 15. The ODV score has been adjusted to the proposition of the weight of product knowledge.

Third dimension of VMP emergency value (EmV) has been studied with time, the responses have been recorded with three intervals, and maximum score three has been given to favourable response and a minimum score one has been given to unfavourable. The total EmV score of time less than or equal to 3. The EmV score has been adjusted to the proposition of the weight of time. The fourth dimension of VMP, vital value (VV) has been studied with the co-variate treatment. The responses have been recorded with four intervals namely “immediately”, “within a day”, “within a week” and “more than a week”. A maximum score of four has been given to the response named immediately, and minimum score one has been given to the response named more than a week. The total VV score of treatment less than or equal to 4. The VV score has been adjusted to the proposition of the weight of treatment. Fifth dimension of VMP, guile value (GV) has been studied with the co-variate Money. The responses have been recorded with five intervals. A maximum score of five has been given to a favourable response towards benefit and minimum score of one has been assigned for no benefit. The total GV score of money less than or equal to 5. The GV score has been adjusted to the proposition of the weight of money.

Sixth dimension of VMP, spiral value (SV) has been studied with the co-variate fun. The responses have been recorded with five intervals. A maximum score of five has been given to a favourable response towards fun and minimum score of one has been assigned for attentive. The total SV score of fun less than or equal to 10. The SV score has been adjusted to the proposition of the weight of fun.

Seventh dimension of VMP, vile value (ViV) has been studied with the co-variate attitude. The responses have been recorded with six intervals. A maximum score of six has been given to a favourable response positive attitude, and minimum score one has been assigned to unfavourable response negative attitude. The total ViV score of attitude less than or equal to 6. The ViV score has been adjusted to the proposition of the weight of attitude. 3.8.1 Self Medication Value (SMV) Sharing the experience OTC viral messages has been studied at five levels of intervals from strongly agree to strongly disagree. In order to self examine the same variable, it has also been verified with Customer Knowledge and Market maven character through know to don’t know and maven to not maven. The item sentence used in self medication value is about “like to introduce”, “like helping people”, People ask information”, “where to get the best buy”, “friends think me as good source of information”, “person knows about new products, sales, stores and so on”, “method of request for

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product”, “source of information”. Obtained the score for SMV and the average score. Weighted score of SMV has been obtained with weights established for customer knowledge (Maximum score = 6) and market maven (maximum score = 42). 3.8.2 Over-The-Counter Drugs Value (ODV) OTC viral messages Giving information about OTC and deregulation of medicine to OTC status has been studied at five levels of intervals from strongly agree to strongly disagree. In order to self examine the same variable, it has also been verified with product knowledge through aware to unaware. Three items were used. The item sentence used in ODV is about “committed to buy”, “change brands for variety”, and “don’t see major difference among brands”. Obtained the score for ODV and the average score. Weighted score of ODV has been obtained with weights established for product knowledge (Maximum score = 15). 3.8.3 Emergency Value (EmV) First sign, effectiveness and benefits of OTC viral messages has been studied at five levels of intervals from strongly agree to strongly disagree. In order to self examine the same variable, it has also been verified with time through emergency to normal. The item sentence used in EmV is about “search for purchase information”. Obtained the score for EmV and the average score. Weighted score of EmV has been obtained with weights established for Time (Maximum score = 3). 3.8.4 Vital Value (VV) OTC viral messages - severe illness and wide availability has been studied at five levels of intervals from strongly agree to strongly disagree. In order to self examine the same variable, it has also been verified with treatment through first-aid to permanent. The item sentence used in VV is about “social network message link that leads to making purchase”. Obtained the score for VV and the average score. Weighted score of VV has been obtained with weights established for Treatment (Maximum score = 4). 3.8.5 Guile value (GV) Monetary benefits and safety as OTC viral messages have been studied at five levels of intervals from strongly agree to strongly disagree. In order to self examine the same variable, it has also been verified with the co-variate money through benefit to no benefit. The item sentence used in GV is about “share economical benefits”. Obtained the score for GV and the average score. Weighted score of GV has been obtained with weights established for Money ( Maximum score = 5). 3.8.6 Spiral Value (SV) OTC viral messages about role and side effect have been studied at five levels of intervals from strongly agree to strongly disagree. In order to self examine the same variable, it has also been verified with fun/event or occasion through fun to attentive. The item sentence used in SV is about “join group based on interest”, and “use groups to share or gain knowledge, links and information”. Obtained the score for SV and the average score. Weighted score of SV has been obtained with weights established for fun/event or occasion (Maximum score = 10). 3.8.7 Vile value (ViV) OTC viral messages about incorrect use, mask serious problems, dangerous side effects, cause dependency, lose their effectiveness, interface with natural healing have been studied at five levels of intervals from strongly agree to strongly disagree. In order to self examine the same variable, it has also been verified with attitude of the customer through positive to negative attitude. The item sentence used in ViV is about “Give reason for product purchase”. Obtained the score for ViV and the average score. Weighted score of ViV has been obtained with weights established for attitude (Maximum score = 6). 3.8.8 Independent variables

The independent variables identified for the study are Net savvy, social net savvy, OTC web content, click, referral node, and See brand/Product. 3.8.9 Covariates The covariates identified for the study are market maven(MM), customer knowledge(CK), product knowledge(PK), time(T), treatment(TT), money(M), fun/event or occasion(F), attitude(A).

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3.8.10 Profile variables The profile variables used are about respondent’s age, sex, education, monthly income, family type, and place. 3.9.1 Pilot Study The scale has been developed to study viral marketing power for over-the-counter (OTC) drugs. The field of application has been tested in OTC sector of the pharmaceuticals. The study area has been identified as one of the state provinces of India, viz Tamilnadu. The pilot study has been carried out in Chidambaram town which is coming under the B3 category of socio-economic class. For our study hundred respondents were approached. Researcher has discussed with the selected group of respondents as to how comfortable it is to answer the questions during the survey. The respondents have expressed that the construct of the language doesn’t reflect the regional orientation in terms of English language expression. In order to make the respondents comfortable in answering the questions, the construct of the language have been revised to suite the state of Tamilnadu, India. Researcher has taken necessary care to revise and simplify the usage of items in the construct. The responses collected after the field survey has reflected the easy and quick access to the items in the questionnaire. For our study hundred respondents were approached, and around 95 responses have been used for reliability study, test have been done using statistical software package. 3.9.2 Main Study The study is based on multi-stage sampling method state level districts. The simple random sampling method of statistical probability sampling of “lottery method” has been adhered in the next stage identifying sample respondents. In Tamilnadu among the thirty two districts, researcher has selected five districts such as south district Tirunelveli, south west district Madurai, south east district Trichy, east district Cuddalore and north district Chennai. 3.10 Sampling In order to establish the probability simple random sampling a lottery method of lucky draw has been used. In total 500 respondents have been personally contacted to get a sample size of 460. To determine the sample size the researcher has used the following formula of Schaeffer, Mendenhall and Ott(2005). The sample size is decided using the formula based on normal distribution: n=

(

=( )2

Z /2

Where, n- sample size, z- standard normal variate (1.9645), N- customers of OTC drugs in Tamilnadu (20,00,000), e- accepted error (0.10), and (1.118) of the key variable based on the respondents approached in pilot study. The margin of error value is D (0.0028). The calculated sample size is equal to 446 (Approx 450). Hence the total sample size of 460 numbers has been used by the researcher throughout the study. 3.11 Statistical Tools The researcher has adopted relevant statistical tool for analyzing data describing VMP. The following are the relevant tools such as ANOVA, cross tabulation, chi-square correlation, discriminant analysis, and Factor analysis and multiple regressions. 3.12 Limitations of the Study The present investigation, though carried out on scientific lines, suffers from the following limitations. The study is made for a specific period only and not continuously for all periods. However the above limitations are no way affecting the validity of the findings of the study. 4. Conclusions An attempt has been made to ascertain the viral marketing power for over-the-counter (OTC) drugs in Tamilnadu. The special focus of the study is to evaluate the seven dimensions of viral marketing. All the results of the study have been examined from different perspectives of OTC drug customers. In addition, the top of the mind, social network has been compared with viral marketing power. The

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