How do you reinvent a medicine in the busy, highly regulated over-the-counter market?
With high levels of competition there is a need for pharmaceutical companies to offer a unique selling point to retain and expand market share. In this online exclusive, Leigh Thomas, director of Lateral Flow Services, BBI Solutions, looks at how technology could help with medicine reinvention.
In a challenging and crowded marketplace, pharmaceutical companies need to be constantly evolving and exploring new ways of attracting consumers to retain and expand their market share.
Over the counter (OTC) healthcare is a particularly busy and congested retail space, with many big brands jostling for position in a highly-regulated environment.
The seismic shifts the global consumer health industry is undergoing are mirrored in the OTC industry. This is playing out on the pharmacy floor, with a growing number of apps, wearables and health products that embrace technology creating an appealing alternative to the traditional molecule-led solutions.
According to Nielsen’s 2015 research study ‘Looking to achieve new product success?’ novelty is the primary purchase driver for new products in the USA.
This OTC retail landscape, which has historically been dominated by a selection of super brands, is now being disrupted by a plethora of new digitally-led products and services – which are driving change.
These changes herald real opportunities for companies looking to tap into new markets and widen their share of this lucrative space. Many pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are responding to this change by reshaping their business strategies.
Novel partnerships will have a valuable role to play in this transition — with many pharmaceutical and biotech companies partnering with tech businesses to add value and relevance to their products. This trend is transforming pharmacy counters with numerous new ‘hybrid’ products coming to market extending categories with new technology add ons.
How much value you can add is a key part of the consumer attraction equation, particularly when you’re operating in a highly-competitive marketplace. As pharmacies and pharmaceutical companies explore technologies and innovations that better connect them to their patients and produce a better patient outcome — going to the source of the condition, the diagnosis, ‘the what and why’ will represent another step-change in how we approach healthcare.
A proven approach to diagnosis will add significant value to the customer experience, ensure early intervention when needed, reassure consumers and create a more targeted, accurate choice of healthcare pathway.
Point of care lateral flow diagnostic technology is a stable, affordable and proven method of obtaining diagnostic signpost to conditions.
We are entering a future landscape where patients would be able to pick up a diagnostic test in a drug store or pharmacy. This would identify the underlying cause and be linked to brand therapies recommended for OTC.
This is one of the possible transitional technologies that have huge potential to transform the OTC market — helping companies to lengthen the lifespan of their product, boost brand marketing, and provide added value to existing customers while appealing to new.
These technologies will provide a significant boost to pharmaceutical and biotech companies looking for a key point of difference to update and give new life to their existing product — or a unique element to boost sales of a new entrant.
To remain competitive in this new, more volatile space — pharmaceutical and biotech businesses need to adopt new solutions to avoid being left behind. Challenger brands with the ambition and vision to embrace change and explore how technological innovation could give their product a boost should see a key opening in the market – with vast potential available to explore.
In a marketplace, where customers often rely on a specific brand or product, reinvention is key to keeping consumer interest, and there’s rarely been such a promising time for businesses looking to adapt their approach by embracing technology.
In today’s OTC retail landscape, self-care is moving from concept to reality — companies that want to stay in the game will need to evolve to thrive.