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One of my clients recently asked me the following question...

"So I have the new prospects and I send them 'Good to meet you' cards. In three months I send them another card ... then what? How do I

According to USFDA, a combination product is one composed of any combination of a drug and device; biological product and device; drug and biological product

develop and build relationships with busy interior designers so they'll think of me for decorative painting?

Building Relationships Takes Dedication and Frequency

In marketing, it's all about fre

; or drug, device, and biological product and fixed dose combination would include two or more combinations of drug.

Examples of combination products may in

quency. Sending out a "good to meet you card" is great, but waiting three months is way too long. By that time, your prospect has probably already forgotten about you.

The 3-10x Rule

Did you know

lude drug-coated devices, drugs packaged with delivery devices in medical kits, and drugs and devices packaged separately but intended to be used together.

that you need to hit your prospects at least 3 to 10 times in order to get their attention and move them to action? Maybe even more. So, it's crucial that you set up a marketing system that allows

here is enormous increase in the number of combination products entering the market in the recent years. Combination products have proven advantages but fixe

you to repeatedly follow-up with your prospects at least this many times.

There's a reason when someone subscribes to my email list that they receive three email messages within the first 7 days. A

d dose combinations are still in the process of convincing regulatory authority on their advantages over the single ingredient formulations.

Combination pro

nd, there's a reason I take the time to write and distribute this Ezine every single week.

It's because I know that even if my subscribers don't read every issue, I am reminding them every single w

ucts have become life saving products for the pharmaceutical companies who doesn’t have many innovative molecules in their product pipeline and have been inc

eek that I am here, sharing valuable information and letting them know I am available to help them with their marketing, if they are ready for some help.

You Must Provide Value

In my experience, t

easingly used in the product life cycle management. Even the companies having product patents are trying to extend their product life cycle through the combi

e best way to build relationships is by providing value. While sending the occasional postcard or promotional letter may serve to remind your prospects about your product or service, it won't do muc

nation products and maximize the revenues. But the companies involved in this practice are overlooking that they are burdening the patients both economically

h to build a relationship with them.

You must provide them with valuable information. Maybe my subscriber who wrote in with the question about following up could send out weekly, biweekly or monthl

and physically. They need to rightly judge the benefits of the combination products and they have to even look at the risks involved when combining the produ

y tips on decorating. Maybe it's a quick painting or color tip or trend. Or, maybe it's educational information about decorative painting.

Your Prospects Buy When They're Ready, Not When You Are

I

ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi

t is important to remember that just because you are ready to sell your product or service, does not mean your prospect is ready to buy it. They'll buy when THEY are ready or have an imminent need f

ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a

or what you are offering. Until that time, your job is to provide value, educate them and remind them you are there and available whenever they are ready.

Don't Worry About Being A Pest

If you are

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod

providing value, you really don't have to worry about following up too often. If however, you are only following up to ask for the sale, you'll become a pest relatively quickly.

And regardless, yo

cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin

u will lose some prospects along the way. People will no longer be interested in what you offer or they may not want to hear from you. But consider this ... if they don't want to hear from you, odds

tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen

are they weren't going to buy from you either. If they ask to be removed from your list, they're just helping you out by improving the quality of your list.

So don't take it personally. Remember it

t?

As combination products don't fit into the traditional categories of drugs, medical devices, or biological products, the USFDA is in the process of devel

's just business.

It Takes Time ... Sometimes a LONG Time

I have had people on my list for over a year before they decide to purchase anything. And, I know that some people on my list may never ma

ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

ke a purchase. That's why having an automated way to follow up (like a weekly Ezine) is so important. Because it doesn't take any more effort on my part to follow up with 10 people or 10,000 people.

y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products

Your Marketing Step

Take a look at your follow-up system this week. How often are you following up with your prospects? Do you have a system that ensures they hear from you repeatedly? Is that sy

.

As there is an increasing trend of the combination products companies manufacturing such products should be able to tackle the problems involved in the de

stem automated? Are you providing value?

Make sure you are not stopping after one, two or even three contacts. Create a long-term follow-up system that provides lots of value to your prospects and

elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

start building relationships for the long haul.

It may take some time to "prime the pump" as they say, but before long this process will start delivering paying clients to you on a consistent basis

tion in industry events and feedback to regulatory authorities would be able to face the challenges and will be successful in developing combination products

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Millions of business phone calls are made every hour and day. Business people that interact solely over the phone yet never meet still form strong opinions of one another. Practising good business phone etiquette helps encourage clear lines of communication, build rapport and avoid misunderstandings.

There are several ways to go about writing a small note of appreciation to an interviewer. Try getting a business card from your interviewer. (Nowadays, it seems like everyone has a business card - including my hairdresser!) If you cannot, be sure to remember to write down the name of your interviewer before you go to the interview. Alternatively, attempt to remember his or her name as you introduce yourself at the beginning of the interview. Also, get the address of the establishment you visited. (If it is a branch office of a larger company, strive to use the branch address, NOT the corporate headquarters!)

Time is a precious commodity, and it should be treated with great respect irrespective whether it is our time or other people's time.

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