Blog

12May 2023 by cesare ferrari

How to tackle MedTech over-engineering

Welcome back! Still, on MedTech over-engineering, I think this sentence from "The Elements of Style" is a great guideline for over-writing and can be transferred to over-engineering: "A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts." After analyzing the major causes of over-engineering in MedTech, now is the time to understand the consequences and the strategies to prevent it. Let's unfold that. Consequences of over-engineering There are many consequences from over-engineering a new product, but ultimately it limits the chance of product success by creating a misalignment between the product and the market. The most significant damage over-engineering can cause is creating a medical product with features and functions…

29Apr 2023 by cesare ferrari

Over-engineering is not only the fault of narcissistic, egocentric, and sociopathic engineers

Upstream marketing

Over-engineering in medical devices is more common than we think, and it can severely impact products and companies. Today's post is directed to all the people involved in the process of new product development, especially engineers, no matter their role—for instance, R&D engineers, founders, CTOs, project managers, and designers. We all know the sentence, "the devil is in the details." Well, over-engineering seems to be the natural solution, and R & D engineers might not even see it and do not see its associated risks. Read this step-by-step guide to understand over-engineering in MedTech, its cause, and its effects. What is over-engineering? According to Wikipedia: "Overengineering (or over-engineering) is the act of designing a product or providing a solution to a problem in an elaborate or complicated manner, where a…

15Apr 2023 by cesare ferrari

Customer Retention, Customer Loyalty, Or Customer Delight, What Is Your Goal?

Downstream marketing

Do you know that customer retention, loyalty, and delight are different? It's okay if you're finding out. All three are linked to customer satisfaction and provide substantial benefits for a medical device company. Remember, the goal of any marketing strategy is to attract, satisfy and retain customers in the target segment. This is because the longer customers stay with a company, the more benefits the customer generates. And often, it's a win-win for both parties. In this article, I'll discuss the differences and similarities between customer retention, loyalty, and delight. So keep reading. What is Customer Retention? According to Wikipedia, customer retention refers to the ability of a company or product to retain its customers over some specified period. The benefit generated by retention is related to a few different…

01Apr 2023 by cesare ferrari

4 Best Factors That Affect Customer Satisfaction In MedTech

Downstream marketing

In this article, I'm going to analyze the factors affecting customer satisfaction. And in the previous posts, I covered customer satisfaction, dissatisfaction, and their impact–you can refer back to them. Several factors determine customer satisfaction, and the importance of a single determinant might vary depending on the sub-segment of the medical device market. For example, the impact of product reliability is less critical for a single-use and low-priced device than for reusable and expensive medical equipment. Moreover, over time the importance of the determinant may evolve as it is influenced by various factors such as market dynamics. And this is one of the reasons for continuously monitoring customer satisfaction and its determinants. Let's see the four key factors affecting customer satisfaction in MedTech, and the actionable steps you can take…

18Mar 2023 by cesare ferrari

Do you consider customer complaints a good proxy of customer satisfaction? You may regret it!

Downstream marketing, Upstream marketing

Medical device companies must seriously treat customers' complaints in compliance with regulatory quality standards. However, compliance with regulations does not necessarily mean you're focused on customer satisfaction. Most MedTech companies are small and medium-sized, and customer satisfaction is sometimes not fully understood and considered for different reasons. Imagine this scene: You are with a colleague discussing a product feature that produces customer's dissatisfaction. And to support the thesis that this is not a real problem, he/she shows you that none of the complaints collected about the product is related to that feature. Despite having anecdotal feedback on the problem, you do not have robust data; therefore, customer satisfaction with this feature is considered good. Let's have a look at the impact of customer satisfaction, dissatisfaction, and customer complaints to see…

05Mar 2023 by cesare ferrari

Back To Basics: Understanding Customer Satisfaction

Downstream marketing

As a marketing and sales leader, I consider customer satisfaction a fundamental aspect and a key to running a long-term successful medical company. Customer satisfaction is not something new. The concept has been central in marketing since the '50s, with increasing interest and importance. Obviously, if customers are satisfied with the product, they will buy again, and they could show loyalty and spread the message. Otherwise, they will move to another supplier or may complain and express dissatisfaction with the company and others. Sam Walton's short story The former CEO and founder of Walmart shared this short, personal story which I think is very stimulating. "I'm the kind of person who goes to a restaurant, sits at the table, and patiently waits whilst the waiter does everything but takes my…

10Feb 2023 by cesare ferrari

7 strategies to avoid the commoditization in the MedTech business

Downstream marketing, Sales, Upstream marketing

In my previous post, I discussed the commoditization of medical products. How it is becoming very common and a visible threat to company profitability. As a result of commoditization, business models that MedTech and pharma companies were able to implement in the past are becoming unsustainable. Today's post is about strategies you'll have to implement to avoid commoditization in MedTech. Strategies countering commoditization of MedTech products To begin, the ideas and the strategies to avoid commoditization presented here are not a panacea. Every company must find its way of countering commoditization's power, exploiting market knowledge and core competencies. The company facing commoditization has 2 options: compete within the trap or escape the trap. It is also possible to work on both strategies simultaneously to increase the chance of success. Compete…

29Jan 2023 by cesare ferrari

Is your medical product becoming a commodity?

Downstream marketing, Sales

Imagine this scenario. Your product has been on the market for several years, and the competitors have copied most of its key features. Customers perceive your product and its competitors as very similar, and the price is becoming the main factor considered for buying decisions. Moreover, your marketing efforts put in place to communicate the value proposition and brand equity seem not to be working as in the past. Does this sound familiar? Then it means there’s an ongoing commoditization of your medical product. What is commoditization? Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a commodity as “a good or service whose wide availability typically leads to smaller profit margins and diminishes the importance of factors (such as brand name) other than price,” i.e., an undifferentiated product. According to the same source, commoditization means…

14Jan 2023 by cesare ferrari

6 customer experience pitfalls to be aware of

Downstream marketing, Sales

In recent times and across many sectors, companies have been forced to rebuild many processes due to the rise in demand for excellent customer experience. Expectations are advancing, and things like getting immediate help from customer service, integration among the touchpoints, and personalization are the new normal in many sectors. In the same way, enhancing customer experience in the medical business is becoming important, and companies are transforming their culture and building plans to sustain the shift. Today I will discuss 6 pitfalls I have identified as most common when improving customer experience in the medical business. 1. Trained sales force I’ve already touched on this topic in a previous post. So, here I will focus particularly on the need for a properly trained sales force. A crucial part of…

17Dec 2022 by cesare ferrari

4 Posts You Should Have Read in 2022

Downstream marketing, Sales

This is my last post before my usual Christmas break from writing and publishing. I will return to my blog, my LinkedIn page and your inbox on January 9th. Looking back at 2022, I wanted to share some reflections on my focus areas and four of the most interesting posts I published. About 2022 In 2022 one of my objectives was to create more pragmatic and useful medical sales and marketing content. Today, looking back at what I published, I’m happy about the posts and the comments. What makes me even more satisfied are the conversations I had with some of you regarding the content. During these exchanges I always received an extremely positive feedback. I’m very excited about continuing to produce meaningful and practical content about Medical Sales and…