Dr. Oz's Growing Media Empire

Oprah is set to end her program in 2011 opening up the field for the queen or king of daytime.  Many say Ellen will assume the thrown while others point to Dr. Oz.  Just the fact that a medically oriented TV program is even being considered for the crown is indicative of how times have changed.  (I exclude Dr. Phil because he does not deal with most medical issues)  I couldn't imagine a few years ago a broad health program even being so successful.

The Dr. Oz brand is growing and has even more potential.  He follows in the footsteps of some powerful personality driven brands including Oprah, Martha Stewart, Rachael Ray and Bill O'Reilly.  So what is his empire comprised of and what potential does it have?  By the way, he received both an MD and MBA from the University of Pennsylvania/Wharton - so we know he doesn't only have medicine on his mind.

1.  Books

Dr. Oz  has published a series of very successful health books, mostly under the series title "YOU:," including "YOU: On a Diet," "YOU: the Owner's Manual" and "YOU: Staying Young."  I read the "You the Owner's Manual" book and was pretty impressed - the writing was accessible, he offered some valuable insight and I thought his approach was logical.  He often looks for certain changes which will improve your life by a reasonable measure.  For example, by eating x less often, you will probably live x more years on average.  As we know from media moguls, books are an important component of an empire.

2.  The Dr. Oz Show

Dr. Oz was a frequent guest on Oprah's program at which point he was granted his own TV show.  His show premiered in 2009 with the best launch of a new syndicated program since Dr. Phil.  In fact in NYC the show does so well the original episode which airs at 3pm is repeated the next morning at 11am.  While I'm not a fan of daytime TV in general, his program is actually surprisingly good.  He takes a difficult subject to translate to TV (health, medicine, etc.) and manages to provide valuable information on a daily basis.  There is no doubt Americans love TV, so having a TV oriented health program which is good and better yet helpful is a powerful opportunity. 

3. Website

Dr. Oz has a website of course.  It's ok, nothing special but it does have potential.  I read that Dr. Oz is further developing his website and that he plans to be more competitive with WebMD.  The comparison between a generic name (WebMD) and a personality driven health site (Dr. Oz) is an interesting fact to consider.  People tend to trust their Doctor, so having an actual doctor's name involved has its benefits.

4. Sharecare

Set to launch soon, Sharecare is the "first truly interactive healthcare ecosystem giving consumers the ability to ask, learn and act on the questions of health."  Dr. Oz has partnered with Discovery Communications and Oprah's company among others on this venture.  Sharecare's goal is to simplify "the search for health and wellness online, offering a breadth of answers and point of view from renowned physicians and hospitals, to local caregivers and healthcare consumers."  All of that sounds good, we'll have to wait until it launches to see if it's good.

It's only a matter of time until there is a Dr. Oz iPhone app, and a Dr. Oz Health Magazine - who knows maybe for the iPad.  There is more potential there including providing Dr. Oz content to schools, and creating some more partnerships where health content could be featured where it is absent.  A large opportunity exists for him to sell either his own brand of products or partner with an existing company.  There are downsides as his credibility could be challenged and any problems with the products would be disastrous.  Expect to see more growth in the Dr. Oz empire soon...