By Arun Sudhaman

Pharma major Pfizer is searching for a global PR agency to handle a multi-million dollar brief focusing on emerging markets.

According to a copy of the RFP, the company is seeking an agency to create a compelling narrative around its anti-infective drugs, a portfolio which began with penicillin and now target such conditions as AIDS, pneumonia and other bacterial, fungal and viral infections.

Pfizer is asking invited agencies to create an "emotional" messaging platform that will tell the story of the company's anti-infective efforts, "from the company's start with penicillin to our present day."

"The communication messages should be both emotional, in terms of explaining our portfolio of life-saving products, and enticing. This agency partner needs to have strong knowledge of the anti-infectives space, especially within the emerging markets."

The brief, which comes from Pfizer's worldwide procurement team in New York, calls for an approach that covers multiple audiences, including Pfizer colleagues, physicians, hospital management and opinion leaders. It should convey the company's "emerging markets vision to serve the needs of patients in developing countries and improve global access to essential medicines."

A source involved in the review said that specific target markets include China, India, Turkey and Mexico. Secondary areas of interest include Taiwan and Saudi Arabia, with the source estimating the account's size in the seven-figure range.

The brief states that the message platform must be in place by the third quarter of this year. RFP responses are due this week, after which agencies will be selected to pitch in mid-June. Significantly, the RFP specifies agencies with "actual on the ground global presence, not just global reach."