Pharmaceutical Marketing

Syllabus

Core Concepts
1. Healthcare environment
2. The Pharmaceutical Industry
Environment
3. The Pharmaceutical Marketing
Environement
4. Marketing Strategy
5. Marketing Research
6. Market Segmentation
7. Situational Analysis

Core Concepts
8. Positioning Targeting and Profiling
9. New Product Development
10 Product Life Cycle and Portfolio
Management
11.Distribution Strategy
12. Pricing Strategy
13. Communication strategy
14. Personal Selling
15. Advertising
16. Public Relations and Sales

Healthcare
Environment
Define Health
Define Illness
Define Disease

Healthcare Structure

Personnel intertwined with

structure
Primary Providers

Personnel intertwined with

structure
Healthcare Professionals

Interelationships

Pharma Industry
Environment
National Laws

Pharma Industry
Components

Understand the role of

stakeholders
Patients

Pyramid of Influences in Rx
Specialists,
KOL
General
Practitioners
Pharmacist in charge

Lets understand us - Patient

Usual consumers Needs and Wants
(Classical marketing based on Kotlers
book)
Patients: Needs, Wants and Rights are
different.
Buying decisions are more complicated
Compliance Huge impact from
pharmaceutical marketing perspective
Examples,

Starting of Disease Management Concept

Patients

20% of Rx are never filled

50% of the patients dont follow the dosage
50% of patients never change lifestyle
Reasons for non compliance:
Complex dosage regiment
Perception of disease
Family Input
Age
Poor communication

Assignment
Identify any disease either you or your
family member is suffering and answer:
Disease symptoms
Treatment regimen
Compliance
Reasons for non compliance
Calculate the loss to you if you if you were
the brand manager
Steps you will take to convert this problem
into opportunity

Besides Patient, let us understand

nature of the industry

Kotler Marketing Pure

vanilla
Analysis of Market

Pharma Marketing Different

What are the other

differences
Pharmaceutical

Consumer

Consumer is decision maker

Mostly not true

True

Consumer pays directly

Not True

True

Brand Loyalty

Not True

True

Government Regulations

Very High

Low

R&D

Complex

Less
complex

Price sensitivity

Low

high

Clinical/Medical
Pros and Cons of current treatment
available
Technical ability to understand the
drug
Knowledge of standard practice
It helps how patients are viewed and
treated by physicians
Helps brand manager to develop
SWOT analysis

Health Outcomes
Epidemiology
Economic benefit of various
treatment
Pricing and reimbursements
Effect of product on QALY (Quality
adjusted life years)

Market Research
Quantitative and Qualitative
IMS
Focus Groups
Treatment pattern
Drug of first choice
Issues to highlight in promotional
message

Show and learn how to use IMS data

Real Life scenarios

Forecasting
Assess the commercial potential
Develop revenue models based on
prescription
Arrive at numerical forecast and not
to have strategic implications

Role of Pharm marketeer

Comprehnsive review of disease
marketplace
Competitive landscape
Pros and Cons of currently available and
pipeline treatment
Assessment of unmet medical need
where new compound can fit it
Ultimately developing a brand
positioning

Developing Product
Strategy
Comprehensive marketing strategy
to meet key objectives of the brand
including
Product Positioning
Market Segmentation
Patient
Physicians

Develops Pricing Model

Roll out plan operational and more
tactical approach

Supply chain
Distributon
Pharmacies
Regulatory
requirements
and Storage

Marketing Mix in Pharma

Product

Defining a Product, Critical

component in Pharma Marketing
Classical way
Efficacy
Safety
Tolerability
Speed of Action
Quality
Cost
Side Effects

Product Defination
New Paradigm
Life Style
Quality of Life
DTP Branding
Redefining the patient population
Redefining disease yardsticks

Price

Brand versus Generic

Duration of patent protection
Competitive landscape
Dosage form
Cost of API

Place
Hospital or Retail Product - Oncology
Controlled or non controlled
-Psychiatric
Cold Chain - Vaccines
Dosage Forms Suppository
Select market or Global launch

Promotion

Advertising
Personal Selling
Public Relations
Sales Promotion
Target Audience
ATL/BTL
Gimmicks
Global Branding

Strategic Framework
Which therapeutic area and geographical
area?
Portfolio selection and resource allocation
Target physicians, target indications
Marketing Mix
Implementation
Discuss the examples of generic and
branded company

Marketing Planning Stages

Evaluation of

Pharma Market Research

Prescribers
Prescription Audit
Patient Compliance
Indications, both approved and off label

Patients
Therapy awarenss
Compliance

Pharma Market Research

Attributes

Quantitative Quality

Question
Nature
Research
Nature
Focus

How many

What if, Why

Exploratory

Results

Quantity
defining
Historic and
Statistical
Measurble

Sample Size

Large

Small

Behavioral
Opinionated

Hoe w to create and analyse IMS

Data
Live demonstration using real life IMS
Rx Audit
Calculations of Market Share, Growth,
Volumes, Values, Performance Index

Concept of Market Segmentation,

Targeting and Positioning
Reasons for Segmentation:
All Doctors and Patients are not
identicle
Their response to same drug could
be different based on perceived side
effects, cost, dosage regiment, off
label indications (discuss with
examples)

Benefits of Segmentation
Optimal Product/Market Match
Optimal, cost effective promotional
strategy
Media allocation

Segmentation in real life

By Indications
Maintenance
Acute

By Patient Profile
Ethnic background
Demographic
Severity of illness

By Physicians type
Specialist versus GPs
Hospital versus Private
Patients economic status

By Dosage Forms
Injectables
Oral
Suppository

Segment criteria

Differentiable
Measurable
Accessible
Actionable
Defendable

Segmentation Analysis
Market
Potential
Potential Market
Size
Available
Market Size
Served Market
Size
Avegrage Rx
Value
Value Potential
Volume
Potential
Market Growth

Therapeutic
B
class/Indicatio
nA

Product Attribute Analysis

Attribute

Your
Product

Competitor B
A

Efficacy
Safety
Tolerability
Adverse
Events
Onset of
Action
Other
Desgin attribute analysis and provide importance/score for
physicians and patients both. Example Escitalopram versus
Venlafaxin (Tolerability versus efficacy)

Targeting
After arriving at segments, company has to
target certain segment based on
SWOT Analysis
Sustainable Competitive Advantage
Evaluation of current and future
resources
Product Life Cycle
Sales force capability
In house talent pool

Positioning
Most important job of marketer as
this is the first message that goes
outside!
Based on product attributes, real and
perceptual
Wrong positioning leads to wrong
message and cascading effect all the
way down to a flop!
Once you are positioned, it is not
easy to shift

Positioning
Questions to ask internally:
What is the licensed indication by FDA/EMEA
Different therapeutic segments to cover
How many physicians
SWOT/Competition/Patent Protection
USP versus other products
Can Clinical Trials support the message
Amount of resources
Can we prove/convince authority/doctors (for eg
undefined MOA is very difficult to sell!

Positioning
Fit with Corporate

Two Dimensional Positioning

Efficacy
Safety

Examples of Product
Positioning

Dosage
Formulations
Drug Delivery/Technology Pk and Pd
MOA
Drug Drug Interactions
Safety in Children and Pregnant women
Product Class
Packaging
Reiumbursement
Onset of Action

Indian Generic Positioning

Unsubstantiated claims by Sales
Force
Difficult to supervise
Difficult to control by regulation
Self regulation is limited
Erroneous claims
Too many claims

Pharmaceutical Branding
Strategy

Is Pharma Branding different than

others?
Discuss attributes of brand and
differentiate versus other industries
Front End branding: Name, Sign,
Symbol, colors, location of
placement, distribution outlets.
Location of advertisement, price,
celebrity endorsement, commercials,
PR, Packaging, Consistency,
Longevity, Design

Branding
Back end Factors:
Research and Development
Core Philosophy of Management
Investment and re investment
Quality throughout the value chain
Customer engagement
Talent Pool

Does Branding Work in Pharma

Industry?
Brands as the totality of perceptions
and feeling that consumers have
about any item identified a brand
name including its identity(e.g. its
packaging and logos), Quality and
performance, familiarity, trust,
perceptions about the emotions and
values that Brand symbolizes and
user imagery

Global and regional brands

How to stand out in crowded place?

Personal Branding plays significant

role in Pharma Branding
Especially in Rx category
Role of KOL
Personality
Ability to speak well and influence
Technology
PR

Higher management is close to

prescribers

Branding in Pharma
Limitations compared to consumer product
Patents Expiration
FDA /Regulatory requirements
Duality Doctors versus Patients

Deductive versus Inductive

Deductive Asking the target audience to
choose from predefined concepts
Inductive Asking the target audience what do
they think about the treatment, how they see
a brand and then creating concepts

Branding In Pharma
Rx versus OTC
Rx brand survives short period of time,
approx 7 to 10 years.
OTC brand can continue for ever like
Coke hence marketer can invest in
brand building
Rx brand lacks organoleptics appeal to
senses such as touch, taste, smell
Sensory appeals are essential in brand
building
All Rx brand looks more or less same

Question
How many of you think it is not
possible to build an Rx Brand?

How to build an Rx Brand

Create with patients

Create tools for patient complinace
Direct marketing
Discuss the disease or conditions to be
treated and alternatives patient should
know about
Blend of doctor and patient communication
Committing resources to making it a
character.

Difference between Branding and

Positioning
Not inter changeable words
Positioning is all about perception how you want
doctors or patients to think about your product
Its an unemotional exercise
Branding: Its all about relationship with target
doctors and patients.
Difficult to describe but it is a bond between
product and doctors
Corporate branding supplements product
branding

Assignment
Google search Claritin and Tylenol
Include message
Include images

Describe in your words difference

between branding and positioning
using two examples
Evaluate Indian brands and
understand if any successful brands
that appeals to you

Marketing Cases
New pain killer belonging to new
therapeutic category having patent expiry
of three years is being launched
Product is unique, once daily dosage
compared to older drugs
Product has some side effects but
manageable as long as patient follows the
treatment
Suboptimal dose also works for mild to
moderate cases

Objective
Develop communication plan for
doctors
Evolve a strategy post patent
Highlight your recommendations with
reasons
Make as many assumptions as you
think appropriate
Think out of the box
Give a name to the product

Product Life Cycle and Portfolio

Management

Diffusion of innovation
Competitive strucuture
Internal product portfolio
Research and Development
Patents and IP
Technological advances
Sustained Profitability

Standard Graph

Pharma PLC versus

Consumer

Extensive Pre Launch Phase

Dependent on Patent Expiry
Reimbursement Limitations
Limited bandwidth to play around
Regulatory hurdles

What happens to business when

you ride the wave
Introduc
tion
Revenue
Sales
Growth
Cost
Profit
Physician
s Profile
Competit
ors

Growth

Turbulen
ce

Maturity

Decline

Premarketing

At least two years prior to launch

Develop advisory board, diverse members
Clear Mechanism of Action
Create a dedicated task force internally
Initiate selective exposure to KOL
Develop Speakers Bureau
Internal planning, Mfg, Packaging, PI, PM
Evolve positioning

Introduction
Launch Planning WOW Effect
Regional Launch
Country Launch
Sampling
KOL seminars
PR
Promo material
Charged up sales force Motivation,
Incentives

Spend Spend Spend Spend

Growth Phase
Territories are further divided to
increase the frequency and targets
Sales force expansion
Continued support to KOL
Focus increased in heavy prescribers
Expansion of target doctors to
increase the share of prescription
Overall investment is high

Maturity

First impact is freeze on sales force

Cut down on lavish expenses, foreign trips etc
Cutting down on some target doctors.
More scrutiny on expenses
Stiff targets/growth expectations without
must investment
Most difficult period from sales force point of
view
No excitement !

Decline
Time to move on to new company!
Tail end products are interesting acquisition
targets for start ups!
Allow slow decline by selective presence in
the market
Product moves from elite sales force to
contract sales force
Strictly no new initiative
Difficult period for sales force to understand
Confused state!

Product Portfolio and PLC

In Line Products, its different dosage forms,
strengths and packaging
Pipeline Products (In Phase III and under)
PM and PLC are very critical from strategic
planning
Investors and Analyst focus most on this two
issues
Only way to judge the future cash flows,
profits and sustainability of organization Examples

Assessment techniques in
PharmaPM
Assessment Targets
SWOT

Concept of Net Present

Value, NAV
Demonstrate it using an excel
formula

Different Matrices for evaluation of

Portfolio opportunity
Probability of Tech success versus
NPV
Opportunity Cost versus
Development Cost
BCG Model Market Growth Rate
versus Relative Market Share (Starts,
Question Marks, Dogs and Cash
Flows)
Market Attractivenss Industry
Attractiveness versus Business

Competitive Strategy
Strategic Issues:
Research inhouse or outsource
Market yourself or outsource
International expansion or stay at home!
Acquisition of product portfolio
Brand versus Generic
How much backward integration one
should do?

Discuss Classic Kotler

example

Lets talk India, Lets focus on

Generics
Technology
Price
Regulatory/
Patent
Bioavailability
Bioequivalence

Pricing
Brand

Forecasting
1940/40

Forecasting

Forecasting

Prevalence
Incidence
Compliance
Access
Availability
Dosage Form MS
Diagnostic Tools
Advertising and Promotion
Historical sales

Forecasting a pharma
product
Disease Patient
Converting healthy patients to
disease patient
Life Style diseases and drugs
OTC component
Off label indications Neurontin
Innovative dosage forms Nicotine

Sales Force Management

Cornerstone of successful marketing

Territorial planning
Developing Call Plan
Identification of sales force size (RTF Model)
Hiring and recruitment
Training
Supervision
Motivation and incentives
Monitoring and Mentoring