Top Pharma Ad Spenders in August 2023, AbbVie Splurges to Take Top Spots

AbbVie packed the punches with its ad spending in August, claiming the top three spots on iSpot.tv’s top pharma ad spenders for the month.

The top two spots were taken by the company’s immunology meds Skyrizi and Rinvoq, followed by its bipolar and major depressive disorder drug Vraylar. Skyrizi maintained its number one position from July while Rinvoq slipped down one spot. Vraylar surprisingly moved up from fifth position in July to knock Regeneron’s Dupixent from the third spot.

AbbVie spent a total of $67.5 million on the three ads, leading total pharma ad spending in August. The company looks to be on track to be the largest pharma ad spender of 2023.

Bristol Myers Squibb’s (BMS) new psoriasis drug Sotyktu earned itself the fifth spot followed by GSK’s respiratory drug Trelegy, which fell two spots from July. GSK took another spot on the top ten list for its newly minted RSV vaccine Arexvy.

Total ad spend on pharmaceutical drugs in August was $146.8 million, an increase from $126.3 million in July but down from $163.2 million in June, and markedly down from the year’s peak so far in May which hit $203.1 million.

Diabetes hits Ozempic and Mounjaro were also in the top ten in August, with Eli Lilly having debuted Mounjaro’s first TV ad earlier this year. A total of three diabetes drugs were on the top ad spend list, including Eli Lilly’s Jardiance.

Read on to find out who rounded out the list of top pharma ad spenders in August. The data in this article was sourced from a report by Fierce Pharma Marketing, which obtained the data from real-time ad trackers at iSpot.

1. Skyrizi

Maker: AbbVie

Treatment for: Crohn’s disease, psoriasis

Total number of TV spots (ads): five for Crohn’s, three for psoriasis

Biggest-ticket ad: “Bare My Skin” — est. $9.3 million

Highlights: Skyrizi (risankizumab-rzaa), an IL-23 targeting immunology drug, remained in the top spot for total ad spend in August. It’s been in the number one position since June. Total ad spend on the drug in August was $26.5 million, which was up from $23.2 million in July.

2. Rinvoq

Maker: AbbVie

Treatment for: Rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, atopic dermatitis, ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease

Total number of TV spots (ads): Two for ulcerative colitis, one for arthritis and one for eczema

Biggest-ticket ad: “Mountains” — est. $10.7 million

Highlights: Rinvoq (upadacitinib) is a JAK inhibitor used to treat inflammatory conditions including rheumatoid arthritis and ulcerative colitis. Total ad spend on the drug in August was $26.5 million, up from $19.5 million in July.

3. Vraylar

Maker: AbbVie

Treatment for: Bipolar and major depressive disorder

Total number of TV spots (ads): Two

Biggest-ticket ad: “A Lift” — est. $9.6 million

Highlights: Vraylar (cariprazine) made a leap from the fifth spot in July to number three in August. This is likely a reflection of AbbVie bumping its total ad spend from $10.6 million in July to $17.4 million in August. The drug was approved at the end of last year as an adjunctive therapy to antidepressants for the treatment of major depressive disorder.

4. Dupixent

Maker: Sanofi and Regeneron

Treatment for: Eczema, asthma, chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis, prurigo nodularis, eosinophilic esophagitis

Total number of TV spots (ads): Ten spots for eczema and four for asthma

Biggest-ticket ad: “Kenny and Mosetta” — est. $5 million

Highlights: Dupixent (dupilumab) was knocked from the third position in July to number four in August by AbbVie’s Vraylar. The dual IL-4 and IL-13 inhibitor is approved for five indications, including eczema, which has been a major focus for Sanofi and Regeneron’s recent advertising for it. However, TV ad spend on it was down from $20 million in July to $16.9 million in August.

5. Sotyktu

Maker: Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS)

Treatment for: Psoriasis

Total number of TV spots (ads): Two

Biggest-ticket ad: “The Feeling of Finding Your Back” — est. $11.6 million

Highlights: Sotyktu (deucravacitinib) was approved a year ago for patients with moderate to severe psoriasis. BMS more than doubled its spending on advertising for the tyrosine kinase 2 inhibitor in August ($12.1 million) compared to July ($4.8 million).

6. Trelegy

Maker: GSK

Treatment for: COPD, asthma

Total number of TV spots (ads): Three

Biggest-ticket ad: “Concert” — est. $5.2 million

Highlights: GSK’s respiratory drug Trelegy Ellipta (umeclidinium bromide/vilanterol inhaled/fluticasone furoate) found itself in the sixth spot in August. GSK spent about the same amount on advertising for the drug in July and August — $11.5 million and $11 million, respectively.

7. Mounjaro

Maker: Eli Lilly

Treatment for: Type 2 diabetes

Total number of TV spots (ads): Three

Biggest-ticket ad: “What If” — est. $5 million

Highlights: Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro (tirzepatide) got its first TV ad earlier this year. In July, Lilly dished out $8.3 million on ad spending for the dual GLP-1/GIP agonist and increased that to $10.3 million in August.

8. Ozempic

Maker: Novo Nordisk

Treatment for: Type 2 diabetes

Total number of TV spots (ads): Two

Biggest-ticket ad: “Family Time” — est. $5 million

Highlights: Mounjaro rival Ozempic (semaglutide) had placed just below Mounjaro in total national ad spend for August. The GLP-1 agonist continues to be popular on social media among celebrities and influencers, but Novo still spent $9.8 million on TV ads for it in August, up from $7 million in July, to ensure it captures a wider audience.

9. Arexvy

Maker: GSK

Treatment for: RSV vaccine

Total number of TV spots (ads): One

Biggest-ticket ad: “The First FDA-Approved Vaccine” — est. $9.2 million

Highlights: It’s been a big year in the RSV space, with not one but two vaccine approvals this year, the very first ones for RSV. GSK’s Arexvy became the first FDA-approved vaccine, and that’s exactly what the name of GSK’s first TV ad for it is, which debuted in August. The company spent $9.8 million in TV advertising dollars for it. The vaccine is approved for adults 60 years of age and older. Pfizer’s Abrysvo, the second approved RSV vaccine, is indicated for older adults as well and also approved as a maternal vaccine.

10. Jardiance

Maker: Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly

Treatment for: Type 2 diabetes

Total number of TV spots (ads): Two

Biggest-ticket ad: “Musical: Bus” — est. $5.6 million

Highlights: Jardiance (empagliflozin) remains a popular type 2 diabetes drug, which makers Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly continue to invest advertising dollars in. In August the companies spent $9.4 million on TV ad spend, which was slightly down from $9.4 million in July.