Testosterone Advertisements

Why are the vast majority of Testosterone commercials about Axiron & AndroGel? Has anyone seen a commercial about Cypionate?

You have to look at this from the manufacturer's / company's POV. Aggressive marketing isn't new in the Pharma business -- especially for blockbuster drugs (Viagra is an example). A blockbuster drug is one for which the sales exceed $1 billion in the financial year [1]. Aggressive Sales comes from aggressive Marketing. I have worked with Pharma companies as a business consultant and their marketing ploys are crafty, to say the least. They have wealth (bottomless pits of cash), a battery of lawyers (a tank of sharks), strong lobbies (long arms shoved into all the right pockets), and they know how to twist data (most marketers are outright liars). I have routinely seen pharma talent crossover into litigious industries such as tobacco -- both industries need strong-arm tactics to thrive. Aggression is the norm in the pharma sector. Aggressive politics and aggressive business tactics can both be dirty -- and when the two come together, it's called the pharmaceutical industry.

As for AndroGel:

1. There is HEAVY demand for Testosterone -- from all quarters and populations. TRT is growing dramatically. Apparently, sales of Testosterone products have surpassed the sales for Viagra. This is a big deal -- Pfizer literally wrote the textbook on blockbuster drugs (with Viagra showing the way).

2. Gel based products are far more convenient than IMs (no self-injecting, no doc visits). Plus they can be discreet as well. (No disposing of needles, etc.)

3. It's a loop -- more sales means more advertising, and more advertising often means more sales. AndroGel is a blockbuster drug -- US sales were in the range of $1.4 billion in 2013 [2]. It is among the top 40 products sold in the US market [3] (which is the largest drug market in the world). Believe me -- this is BIG. There is a LOT at stake for the company and its shareholders. IMs cannot compete -- I believe the worldwide sales for Nebido (T Undecanoate) in 2013 was in the range of $140 million (calculated using 2010 data and an optimistic growth rate of 30%) [4]. Compare the worldwide sales of Nebido ($140 million) with US sales of AndroGel ($1.4 billion) -- that's 10 times the sales volume. Where would you put your money? (I chose Nebido as an example because it is designed for convenience (1 injection every 12 weeks), and is well-advertised.)

Most people don't have the time, or the enthusiasm, to study gels vs. IMs -- or even research the side-effects, etc. Most people also watch a lot of TV and believe everything big companies say -- which is why we need forums like this one.

I also wonder how many men stop using it, for whatever reason, so that the drug companies need to keep coming up with new customers to keep their sales number up.

James: T cypionate and enanthate are generics, so you will not see ads for them.

HarryCat, look at how many men stop the T gels:

https://www.excelmale.com/forum/sho...estim-Stop-Using-Them&highlight=androgel+stop

Mocha said:

Most people don't have the time, or the enthusiasm, to study gels vs. IMs -- or even research the side-effects, etc. Most people also watch a lot of TV and believe everything big companies say -- which is why we need forums like this one.

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I agree 100 percent.

Nelson Vergel said:

HarryCat, look at how many men stop the T gels:

https://www.excelmale.com/forum/sho...estim-Stop-Using-Them&highlight=androgel+stop

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Thanks Nelson, I should have known that that information would be on this site. This is the most comprehensive TRT site on the web.

Wow. I had no idea so many patients stop using AndroGel within the 1st year!

That's a drop from 15,000 to 2,000 (a massive 85% drop!). That's a lot. No wonder these companies are so aggressive in their marketing.

HarryCat said:

This is the most comprehensive TRT site on the web.

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Amen.

EDIT: From the link Nelson posted above:

"Lesson: Expectations should also be clearly described at the start of therapy (for more on what to expect, read this) so that patients have realistic views. Stamina and sexual function are multifactorial and testosterone blood levels are only part of the puzzle."

This is spot on. The patient relies heavily on what the company tells him in the sales brochure (which is often inflated), and doctors often do a poor job of laying out the expectations of the therapy to the patient. Terrible mismatch.

Mocha said:

Wow. I had no idea so many patients stop using AndroGel within the 1st year!

That's a drop from 15,000 to 2,000 (a massive 85% drop!). That's a lot. No wonder these companies are so aggressive in their marketing.

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That curve certainly doesn't look sustainable. The marketing guys must be worried, at some point every man in America will have tried this stuff, and most will give it up. Then they have to finally start looking at what they can do to increase compliance. Maybe the mainstream Doc's will finally start looking at what Dr's like Crisler and Shippen are doing, or even read Nelson's book.

Nelson Vergel said:

James: T cypionate and enanthate are generics, so you will not see ads for them.

HarryCat, look at how many men stop the T gels:

https://www.excelmale.com/forum/sho...estim-Stop-Using-Them&highlight=androgel+stop

Click to expand...

Interesting but the same article also says "Approximately 50% of men who discontinued treatment resumed therapy; most men used the same medication and dose" so couldn't that suggest that part of the reason for stopping gels is that they are being used incorrectly as opposed to just not working?

Also what are numbers for men starting and then discontinuing injections? My guess would be that they are similar. Many people just have a hard time sticking with anything long term.