Product launch
We have helped drive product launches for the most successful drugs on the market and have expertise in all therapeutic areas. Although launches are often complex, with products entering the market in multiple countries simultaneously, we can keep development on track. To help clients prepare for future launches, we focus on capability building during our studies and have created the Launch Academy training program
Marketing
We support clients in creating high-impact strategies that maximize value, using customized tools. We also have detailed market data for all major geographic regions, including emerging markets
Sales
We help clients reach their full sales potential while maintaining efficiency. Our efforts span the entire organization—we can help train and restructure sales forces, work directly in the field to provide coaching, maximize value from back-office services, develop strategies to accelerate short-term sales, and assist with company-wide commercial transformations. We also have databases with information that can help companies maximize sales force effectiveness, such as the Institutional Segmentation and Targeting Tool (ISATT), which provides data on US hospital accounts Market access
We have a deep knowledge of global market access issues. Many payors are now reluctant to pay for new products, especially if they are more expensive than existing therapies. To overcome this challenge, we work with clients to develop compelling real world evidence in support of their drugs. We also assist clients with payor negotiations, helping them build trust-based relationships while simultaneously obtaining optimal reimbursement terms. In addition, we have supported several clients in the design and implementation of value-added services for patients, such as patient loyalty programs and medication co-pay cards
Featured capabilities
We have developed sophisticated tools and solutions that can help pharmaceutical and medical product companies during the entire product development lifecycle, from discovery through post-launch. In addition, we have created databases for use in benchmarking, customer segmentation, and market analysis. Many of our assets were created specifically to address the unique challenges that pharmaceutical and medical product companies often confront
traditionally, pharma launches have been all about the new drug or medical device in question: its clinical efficacy, its safety, its superiority to alternatives, and its ease of use. In the buildup to launch, the product is front and center and the goal is to address patients’ medical needs and prescribers’ professional needs. Any issues with customer satisfaction and loyalty are identified and tackled after the event. But the recent succession of below-par launches casts doubt on whether this remains an effective strategy in today’s world. In fact, our analyses show that among 184 drugs launched between 2006 and 2011, less than half had achieved their peak-sales estimates five years after launch
A truly customer-focused approach would start by asking individual prescribers what really matters to them. If a particular prescriber doesn’t feel confident about prescribing a new biologic drug, for example, the rep can put them in touch with key opinion leaders and provide compelling case studies to illustrate the drug’s clinical effectiveness for different patient profiles. In creating these case studies, the company seeks input and tests early drafts with real customers, and regularly refines them to ensure they meet target prescriber needs as fully as possible. In engaging the prescriber, the rep links all the touch points to a wider journey that’s planned in advance as a coherent sequence. Questions raised in one interaction are systematically followed up in the next to create a seamless, fulfilling, and memorable experience
A new approach to launch excellence
Drawing on our work supporting more than 50 pharma launches with experience design, we have developed an eight-step approach that blends quantitative and qualitative methods to put patient experience front and center of a successful launch