Blog

19Mar 2022 by cesare ferrari

5 Pitfalls To Avoid In The Relationship Between Medical Device Manufacturer And Distributor

Sales

Thankfully, in this post, I already addressed the key elements for a successful manufacturer/distributor relationship (If you haven't seen it, you will find it very useful when you refer to it). Unfortunately, missing one or more key ingredients will produce some trouble and even the evolution of the relationship toward a Lose-Lose. Moreover, I have seen 5 pitfalls in the manufacturer/distributor relationship that could endanger the partnership. Although every case is different, and there are many variables to consider; identifying these areas of concern early could save the partnership. Understanding The Counterpart Business The biggest mistake that the parties, i.e manufacturers/distributors can make is to not understand the business of the partner. Hence, the manufacturer should understand the distributor's business model. In this business model, the margin plays a key…

05Mar 2022 by cesare ferrari

Customer Centricity: The Holy Grail Towards Unlocking The True Potential Of Customer Value

Downstream marketing, Upstream marketing

In the Medtech business as in many other businesses, there is a trend to move from a product-centric to a customer-centric way of doing business. Many companies are realizing that customer-centricity provides a competitive advantage, which is difficult to achieve and hard to copy. I’ve already touched on the topic of customer centricity here and here; In this short post, I will explore the following: The origin of the customer centric paradigmWhat it means to be a customer centric companyWhy it is important in the medical device sector Origin Of Customer Centricity The concept of customer centricity and its benefits have been discussed for more than 60 years in the academia and business community. Already in 1960, in the famous article “Marketing Myopia” published in Harvard Business Review, Theodore Levitt…

19Feb 2022 by cesare ferrari

KOL Management: A KEY Ingredient Of Your Marketing Strategy Recipe

Downstream marketing

I have already touched on the topic of KOL, particularly regarding new product development in this post. I encourage you to go over it as soon as possible. Today I will go through the role of KOL in downstream marketing. Trust me, you'll find this interesting and enlightening! KOL: A Definition As already discussed, a key opinion leader (KOL), in the healthcare field, is a physician, nurse, researcher, hospital executive, etc, with proven experience and expertise in a specific discipline who is trusted and respected by his/her colleagues. Why Are KOLs Important In Medical Device Marketing? Since the category “medical device” is so diverse, the relevance of KOLs is variable. For example, the importance of KOLs is lower for consolidated products like medical supply than for highly innovative devices that…

29Jan 2022 by cesare ferrari

6 Essential Constituents Of A Successful Medical Device Manufacturer And Distributor Business Partnership

Sales

If you are working in the commercial organization of a medical device producer, one of your objectives is to establish and maintain a successful partnership manufacturer-distributor. An example of a good practice is when the manufacturer and distributor regularly examine their business relationships to determine if they are providing each other with the appropriate results, incentives, and support in order to strengthen their working relationships. What Is A Successful Manufacturer-Distributor Partnership? A successful partnership is a win-win-win situation. The manufacturer wins, the distributor wins and the customer wins. In the book “Strategic selling” Miller and Heinman, describe the four outcomes of every buy-sell situation: WIN-WIN: Both seller and the Buyer “win.” Everybody achieves what is needed, but not at the expense of the other. WIN-LOSE: The seller “wins” at the…

15Jan 2022 by cesare ferrari

Sales Leads: 2 Common Scenarios And How To Avoid Them

Sales

When talking about sales leads follow-up between the marketing and sales organization, two issues always come up. The first is sales reps not following up on “pre-qualified” leads, and the second is the frustration of the sales reps while trying but failing to close the sale. The two issues are connected. And based on the quality and the natural evolution (ripening) of the lead. Why Don't Sales Reps Follow Up Sales Leads? Having worked in sales for a relevant part of my career, I think I know the main reasons why follow-up is far from being optimal. Variability Of Lead Quality One of the reasons why sales reps do not follow up is that: in many companies, the quality of lead is extremely variable because frequently, there is no standardized…

07Jan 2022 by cesare ferrari

The Voice Of The Customer (VOC) Is Different From The Voice Of KOLs Or Key Accounts

Upstream marketing

Every medical device marketer is familiar with Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs), Key accounts, and their spokesperson- the Key Account Manager. In this post, I will discuss two common traps in New Product Development: the conflict between following your KOLs, or the biggest and most essential account versus addressing the needs of a large market listening to the VOC. Let’s start with KOLs. Key Opinion Leaders: A Definition . A key opinion leader (KOL) in the healthcare field is a physician, nurse, researcher, hospital executive, etc that has proven experience and expertise in a specific discipline, who is trusted and respected by his/her colleagues. Medical device companies can use their KOL network to gather valuable insights in various phases of new product development. Moreover, KOLs are influential, so companies leverage the relationship to access…

18Dec 2021 by cesare ferrari

4 Fundamental Topics For Your Christmas Holidays

Upstream marketing

Christmas holidays are the favorite period of the year for most children and adults alike. It's a time to exchange gifts with friends and loved ones, decorate Christmas trees, merry and have fun all together. Looking back, Christmas 2020 was different due to the Covid-19 pandemic and many people, including me, were unable to spend time with family and friends in-person. This year; hopefully, the situation will be different, and we will have the opportunity to spend quality time with family and take a step back to reflect on what and who matters most in our lives. Keep in mind that if during the Christmas holidays you would like to go through some fundamentals on Medical Device Sales and Marketing, the following suggestions I've put together would give you a…

02Dec 2021 by cesare ferrari

Some Ideas Helping Medical Device Marketers To Better Understand The Value Of A Medical Technology

Downstream marketing

Every medical device company in some ways wants to move from a product-centric model to a customer & value-centric model. Customers are looking for partners, namely companies that can bring value with their products and beyond. However, value is a central concept in medical devices marketing, and sometimes it can be difficult to be defined. Today I will share some useful elements to help you understand value in medical device marketing. What Is Value In Medical Device Marketing? When I do salesforce training, I love asking questions that require "it depends" as an answer. One of these questions is; what is value in the medical device industry? There are a couple of definitions of value that are worth considering. According to Cutler and McClellan, this is the definition of value…

20Nov 2021 by cesare ferrari

“Easy To Use” Or “User-friendly” Is Not A User Requirement!!!!

Upstream marketing

From time to time, I come across situations where I need to clarify and point out some essential facts I’ve already discussed in this post about user requirements definition and in this one about writing user requirements. A few weeks ago, a colleague suggested to me to include (in the user requirements of a new product) the fact that the product must be “user-friendly.” And then more recently a start-up founder showed me a user requirement of a new medical device- still in development that was formulated with the expression “easy to use”. Although both wanted to have the user requirement “easy to use” for good reasons. And both are laudable for taking into consideration the user in the development; unfortunately, they are both wrong. Why is “easy to use”…

11Nov 2021 by cesare ferrari

7 Practical Advice To Align Marketing And Sales

Sales

In my first post, I already said that I’ve spent an important part of my career in sales, both in Pharma and Medical Device. Hence, I strongly believe that sales experience is critical, and it is a kind of “boot camp” for a marketing professional. In my years of experience, I found out that Marketing and Sales conflicts, especially in large medtech organizations, are more the norms than the exception. Although the tension between the 2 departments is normal, poor alignment between Marketing and Sales will always produce low performances and wasted resources. What Are The Symptoms Of A Conflict Between Marketing And Sales? Some notable symptoms of Marketing and Sales conflicts I saw more than once are: The way the 2 teams describe the other is negative.The members of…