How it Works — Why Digital Advertising

Advertising that informs people about health-related products, services and behaviors. There are four broad kinds:
Over-the-counter and prescription drugs, medical treatments, vaccinations
Clinics and specialized procedures
Vitamins, supplements, wellness products
Exercise and diet products
Digital health advertising uses data to tailor advertisements to individuals for whom they are most relevant, therefore maximizing effectiveness. It is typically delivered in the following two ways:
Television, streaming, social media and online platforms. This is where most people encounter health advertising.
In addition to healthcare and pharmaceutical companies, federal agencies, nonprofits and medical associations use these channels alongside healthcare companies, because they deliver health messages at scale.
Demographic and other consumer data, which is not sensitive under U.S. privacy law.
Waiting rooms, digital check-in devices and patient portals, at a clinic, hospital, pharmacy or telehealth visit. Here, patients provide authorization to allow their data to be used for this type of messaging.
Digital health messaging reaches people in the minutes before they speak to a clinician and is meant to start that conversation rather than replace it.
Information tied directly to a person’s health, which is often sensitive under U.S. privacy law and requires consumer authorization, strong data minimization and retention standards, and pseudonymized data where practical.
Either setting can carry different privacy obligations, and outcomes may vary depending on the channel and the type of data driving the advertising. This resource therefore distinguishes between the different approaches.
While both settings rely on the processing of consumers’ personal information to maximize relevance to key audiences, they are distinct in various ways, including the types of data used, the privacy obligations related to that data, and often the campaigns themselves. Therefore, outcomes may also vary significantly across campaigns.
What 15 public health campaigns measured and what their evaluation found.
A Network Advertising Initiative campaign.
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