It takes a mighty marketing plan to bring a product to the commercialization stage, as head-spinning industry evolution requires more input, demand, and collaboration among all stakeholders involved—right from the start. Vince Budd, author of The 10-Step Marketing Plan: A Blueprint for Success, breaks the planning approach down to three key areas that must be closely watched and effectively managed: the Market, the Product, and the Organization. Within these areas, Budd provides 10 steps you can put to good use to plan a successful launch.
Once a product is launched, however, it’s hardly the end of the game. National campaigns no longer engage consumers—the market is too diverse and no single message can reach all those you want to engage. That affects your brand. In Drive Brand Growth Through Regional Marketing, author Scott Weintraub, advises marketers to take a deeper data dive—down to the regional and local level. It’s imperative, he notes, to “acknowledge and understand vast, nationwide [market] variations so a company can do its best wherever it goes and wants to grow.”
After you take that dive, your job then means getting to know your patients, their communities and culture, day-to-day language, communication channels—or your message will be lost in translation. According to our author, Kim Carpenter, local messaging effectively turns the traditional nationwide marketing practice on its head. Now, she stresses, “Localization is what differentiates a good campaign from a blockbuster.”
Our annual Digital Compendium supplement proves this, too, through 10 actionable articles—one focused on newer “Reality” channels, another highlighting five startups poised to disrupt the industry—while our Digital Directory lists the companies leading digital innovation.
Speaking of innovation, save the date for our PM360 ELITE awards reception and cocktail party (see the May issue for winners) at Manhattan’s Top of The Standard to meet and network with pharma’s greatest influencers, innovators—and numerous industry folk—on July 12th at 7:00 PM. We’ll meet you there!
