Blog

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…

05Nov 2021 by cesare ferrari

Key Factors To Consider In Business Development For MedTech Companies

Other, Sales

Business development for Medtech companies as for other businesses is the creation of long-term value for an organization from customers, markets, and relationships. In defining it, two key points are of utmost importance, which are long-term and value. Furthermore, business development for Medtech is a long-term activity, which means that a new business does not necessarily have to produce value in the short term but of necessity, it should produce value in the long term. In case you're wondering, "What does long term mean in this context?” Well, that is another story(which I'll still address), but it is not the focal point of this discussion. That said, it's worth noting that to leverage business development, your company must give adequate attention to creating value for all the stakeholders (i.e. company,…

23Oct 2021 by cesare ferrari

Who Is The “Customer” In Medical Device Marketing?

Downstream marketing, Sales, Upstream marketing

Keep in mind that the short answer to this is that...it depends. Luckily, as you read on you'll understand the reason for this conclusion on the role of the customer in medical device marketing. To begin with, the medical devices category is very diversified and assorted, but that's not only from the regulatory point of view.   Part of the category of medical devices include: basic medical supplies like sutures, tongue depressors, syringes, surgical instruments, and more complex devices like implants, pacemakers. It also includes big capital equipment such as CT and robots.  For the different categories of medical devices, the number of individuals and organizations that could influence the purchase decision might possibly be significant and different. In this article, I consider the “customer” of medical device marketing, all the stakeholders. And not only the…

15Oct 2021 by cesare ferrari

How To Deal With Customer Suggestions About New Products

Upstream marketing

As a marketer, there are several opportunities in your day-to-day activities where you can collect feedback or customer's suggestions about a product or service of the company. Customer feedback is a vital and valuable input and should be treated with the utmost attention. It can really bring a lot of value to the organization, and that’s the reason for having several tools like surveys, feedback forms, etc… to gather it. Today I will focus on only a specific sort of input, which is the customer's suggestions regarding a new product or service. And the risks that are associated with it. Customer Suggestions On New Products When collecting the VOC (voice of the customer) as detailed in this previous post and more specifically when interviewing customers as described in these two…

08Oct 2021 by cesare ferrari

How Marketing Can Bring Value And Better Long-term Perspective To Medical Device Companies

Downstream marketing, Upstream marketing

If you have been working in the medical device marketing for a few years; Then you've probably noticed that it is far more complicated to achieve growth in the current environment.  The good old times are gone. Incremental innovation at a premium price, product launches that almost always deliver the expectations. And rapid development projects with easy registration are becoming rare.  In the past, medical device companies could rely on incremental innovations, easy market access, fewer price constraints, and sales force relationships with the clinicians to deliver good results.  Today, the market is far more complex and competitive. To remain profitable, companies will need to leverage better, stronger, and effective medical device marketing. What Is Marketing And Why Is It Important In Medical Device According to Prof. Philip Kotler, the father of modern…