Decades into its tenure as a drug seller, CSL Behring has finally dipped its toe into the waters of TV advertising.
The pharma’s first-ever national commercial debuted last month and touts Hizentra as a self-administered treatment for primary immunodeficiency (PI)—for which the subcutaneous immunoglobulin (Ig) was initially approved in 2010.
CSL chose to debut a TV ad after 15 years of Hizentra sales based on “the evolution of healthcare and the role that a patient plays within their decision making,” Priscilla Tavener, the company’s head of U.S. marketing for immunology and neurology, said in an interview with Fierce Pharma Marketing.
“A lot of patients just rely on what their physician is telling them and don’t always understand all their treatment options. So, for us, it was really just an opportunity to support PI patients and really give them a way to feel empowered,” she said, adding that the ad is also aimed at “making sure patients are aware that this is an option for them that doesn’t require them to always have to go to an infusion clinic to get their Ig treatments.”
As for the spot’s status as the first national commercial for all of CSL Behring, Tavener noted that Hizentra is a “flagship brand” for the company, with “probably the broadest target audience” out of all of its products.
PI encompasses hundreds of primary immunodeficiency disorders, affecting an estimated 500,000 people in the U.S. According to the Mayo Clinic, these disorders weaken the immune system, making PI patients more susceptible to germs and therefore to infections, which often occur more frequently and last longer than in people without PI.
Most of the minute-long commercial follows a woman with PI through a grocery store. At first, she’s hesitant to touch anything—her shopping cart, a self-checkout screen, fresh produce—all of which are depicted as being covered in copious amounts of CGI germs.
With Hizentra’s help, however, she’s “turned things around,” the voiceover says, as the woman spins around in a colorful swirl that morphs into the drug’s logo.
Subsequent scenes show her getting up close and personal with the fish counter, unperturbed by strangers standing too close and able to pick up fruits and vegetables with ease—and with no more of the oversized germs on display. Meanwhile, the voiceover describes how her “immune system is being restored,” with a reduced risk of infections and steady Ig levels thanks to Hizentra.
The ad ends with the woman venturing beyond the grocery store to grab a cup of coffee with a friend at a café, as the voiceover encourages viewers to talk to their doctors about Hizentra.
The commercial’s imagery was based on real conversations with people living with PI, Tavener said.
“One of the things that was really exciting about the commercial is we really leaned into the insights that the patients shared with us about the everyday tasks that can be daunting to them as they go to a grocery store, as they go to their children’s sports events,” she said. “So, we’re really excited that the campaign really is very relevant to those patients, connects with them and encourages patients to talk to their physicians to see if Hizentra is the right option for them.”
The spot is set to run both online and on connected TV, including via streaming platforms like Hulu, Disney+ and Paramount+, according to Tavener. It’s aimed at reaching not only people who are already “navigating life with PI,” she said, but also their loved ones and people who suspect they might have PI but haven’t yet been diagnosed.
In addition to encouraging people with PI to talk to a doctor about Hizentra, the ad also aims to grow a general awareness of the condition, which is “a rare, under-diagnosed disease,” Tavener noted.
That two-part goal of its inaugural commercial echoes CSL’s broader aims in all of its patient outreach, she said.
“Patients are at the core of what we are centered on—our patient values and our patient-centric focus,” Tavener said. “So, this is just one additional way of us connecting with patients and the importance of ensuring that they’re educated, aware of their treatment options and feeling that they have the support of CSL across all patients that we treat, across all diseases.”