"It was a really integrated approach," says McGovern. "There is so much confusion in the marketplace and women are not getting enough information. We wanted to make sure women had enough information to make decisions with their doctor. So the TV and print are designed to raise awareness and drive people to the Web site [ http://www.talkingtoyourdoctor.com/] for deeper information. And Cheryl is the common element throughout. She guides you through all the experiences, offline and online."

The second kind of integration involves weaving together the various components of a complex online campaign into a cohesive Web presence.

"Having a single http://brand.com/ Web site is not going to do the job," says Peter Espo, former senior manager of neurology marketing at Biogen/Idec, who led the development of a collection of disease and brand Web sites in support of Avonex, Biogen/Idec's multiple sclerosis medication. "You really need three different kinds of properties: the http://brand.com/, of course, but also a disease state Web site, and also a third-party Web site, perhaps supported by an educational grant."

"In response to people who say it's not building the brand, I say it's a continuum," says Espo. "With MS, it's a high-consideration product decision. There is a series of steps that patients have to go through. And you want to be involved with these patients very early on. They won't just go to http://NMSS.org/ [the National Multiple Sclerosis Society Web site]; they will also go to MS ActiveSource [Biogen/Idec's non-branded site] as a trusted source. Our messaging is very much geared towards education and resources, and not branding. But of course we include subtle ways to bridge to the brand."

Bob Harrell of Shire agrees. "It's less about a http://brand.com/ Web site and more about deploying a wide range of tactics to reach your customers all across the Web. If you do that effectively, the branded Web site can then serve as the destination for active information seekers and the home base for all your online content."

3. IMMERSION

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A small percentage of your targets may take the initiative to seek out your brand's Web site. And if you've done a good job of search engine optimization (SEO), they shouldn't have any trouble finding it. But what about the huge swath of your audience that's not necessarily looking for your branded site? That's where immersion comes in. You need to extend your contact beyond the Web site itself into other online avenues; the goal is to immerse your target audiences with your messages wherever they happen to be.