Navigating the Legal Landscape of Pharmaceutical Marketing on Social Media: Strategies & Risks
Published on 21st July 2025
Social media has become an integral part of daily life, with billions of users globally, including consumers who seek health-related information online. Pharmaceutical companies as well as other players in the life sciences and healthcare industry are increasingly leveraging social media for marketing, and hence must navigate strict advertising laws and transparency requirements when engaging in ‘medfluencing’ activities.
Legal Framework
Despite the rise of digital marketing, there are no specific legal regulations for online pharmaceutical marketing. Instead, traditional advertising laws apply to social media marketing. Key regulations include the prohibition of misleading advertising, which ensures that advertisements do not mislead consumers about the nature, benefits, or risks of pharmaceutical products. Additionally, there is a prohibition on off-label advertising, meaning marketing must adhere to approved indications of the product.
Advertisements must also include mandatory information, such as the product's approved uses and potential side effects. Furthermore, prescription drugs cannot be advertised to the general public, and certain advertising practices, such as using celebrity endorsements, are prohibited outside professional healthcare circles.
Transparency Requirements
The German Act Against Unfair Competition introduces certain transparency obligations that are particularly relevant for online marketplaces, rankings, searches, and customer reviews. These requirements include the disclosure of paid rankings, ensuring that any payments made to achieve higher rankings in search results are clearly disclosed. Companies must also provide a general description of the main parameters used to rank products, including their relative weight compared to other parameters. With (med-)influencer marketing having become a popular strategy, companies must clearly distinguish between commercial and private actions. Therefore, in order to provide transparency and prevent misleading advertising, influencers are required to disclose when their posts are intended to influence consumer purchasing behaviour (for more details see below).
User-Generated Content and Legal Responsibility
Generally, companies are fully responsible for content created by their employees or paid agents. However, the legal responsibility for user-generated content, such as comments or reviews, depends on whether the company endorses or moderates such content. If a company actively engages with or promotes user-generated content, it may be held accountable for any legal violations.
Pharmaceutical companies must also monitor their digital platforms for adverse drug reactions and report them as required by pharmacovigilance regulations. This involves regular checks of company-controlled websites and social media channels to identify and address any potential safety concerns.
(Med-)Influencer Marketing
As mentioned above, influencer marketing plays an increasingly relevant role in social media strategies, including those in the pharmaceutical and medical devices industry. This approach is particularly effective among younger generations who more and more rely on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat for information.
In the context of prescription drugs, influencer marketing faces stringent restrictions. Prescription drugs can only be advertised to qualified healthcare professionals, not the general public. This means that companies must ensure that any influencer content related to prescription drugs is only accessible to these professional circles. Currently, technical solutions to restrict access to such content are limited, making it challenging to use influencers for prescription drug promotion effectively.
For over-the-counter drugs, influencer marketing is more feasible but still subject to strict regulations. The German Medicines Advertising Act prohibits advertising that includes recommendations from individuals who, e.g. due to their fame, can influence drug consumption, i.e. influencers, who are often seen as trusted figures by their followers, may face restrictions when promoting OTC and other drugs. Companies must therefore carefully design their influencer campaigns to avoid direct product endorsements that could be interpreted as (mere) recommendations.
Takeaways
With the growing use of social media in pharmaceutical marketing, companies must navigate the complex legal landscape around digital marketing. Adhering to advertising regulations, ensuring transparency, and monitoring user-generated content should be essential elements of any company’s toolbox to avoid legal pitfalls.
However, as a first step pharmaceutical companies must evaluate the level of risk they are willing to take in their social media marketing efforts. This involves assessing potential legal consequences and deciding on a strategy that balances effective marketing with compliance. In that regard companies should establish clear internal guidelines (Do’s and Don’ts) and policies to manage social media interactions, ensuring that employees understand the legal implications of their actions online. Most importantly, the various stakeholders, including, inter alia, marketing, business development and legal must work hand in hand to assess whether a given campaign is within the set boundaries, and if not, whether a launch may still be commercially justifiable.
