How Eli Lilly is approaching GLP-1 marketing and what’s next

Working at Eli Lilly & Co. for over two decades, Lina Polimeni has seen a lot of changes—both at the pharmaceutical brand itself and at the consumer level of what customers are looking for from drug companies. In the last few years, Lilly has sought to reintroduce itself to consumers following a more heightened interest in wellness, along with the rising popularity of GLP-1 weight loss drugs such as Lilly’s own Zepbound and Mounjaro. Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, check us out on Spotify and hear us on Amazon Music/Audible. This is our RSS feed. Tell a friend! “In 2025, we’re really going to step out and express what it takes to be Eli Lilly and what are our values and trying to communicate that to the public while continuing to express our work and what we do to improve patients’ lives,” said Polimeni, Lilly’s chief corporate brand officer, speaking on the latest episode of the Marketer’s Brief podcast. As Lilly is a maker of GLP-1 medications, Polimeni has seen the growth in the use of such drugs firsthand and is adjusting the brand’s marketing strategy accordingly. Also read: GLP-1 weight loss drug marketing trends “We’re really approaching it how we always do, which is keeping the patient at the center, but also understanding —and this is where Lilly has changed a little bit over the years in terms of advertising—the cultural context in which patients operate and which the brand will operate,” Polimeni said. She noted that Lilly is trying not to shy away from such cultural conversations. In some of its GLP-1 ads, it has tackled the shame associated with obesity, for example. Polimeni noted that obesity affects much more than just appearance, also, and factors into other health aspects such as sleep. “There is so much more that comes from treating obesity as a disease, and I think that’s an important conversation that we can help with as a brand,” she said. The company is also focused on making breast cancer awareness more widespread than just the month of October. On Sunday, Lilly aired a spot, “In Your Hands,” during the Grammy Awards about the importance of early detection. The ad, from Wieden+Kennedy, shows a woman who self-screens for breast cancer and goes to see her physician. “In a world where social media and overload of information get a lot of quick fixes to people, we continue to believe that the most important conversation happens with the doctor,” said Polimeni.

How Eli Lilly is approaching GLP-1 marketing and what’s next

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