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| August 2007 | ||||||||
 Behind the Mirror: A User Guide to Obtaining Full Value From Your Qualitative Marketing Research
In the conduct of primary pharmaceutical
marketing research, we most frequently use
qualitative research, including focus groups
and individual depth interviews. As we have written in
other documents and taught in numerous seminars,
these techniques
are not
interchangeable in terms of purpose.
Whichever methodology is used, however, it is
important to remember that the costs of
qualitative research are relatively high in
comparison to other (e.g., online
quantitative) methodologies, given the
honoraria which must be paid, costs for
facility rental, etc. Thus, it is incumbent
on us to get full value from each study we
do, especially because qualitative research
often serves as the developmental stage for
questionnaires that may later be used in
follow-up quantitative research that can be
worldwide in nature and cost several million
dollars.
Given all of this, there is a large degree of
variability, and often inadequacy, in the way
pharmaceutical marketing researchers deal
with obtaining full value from the findings
of their qualitative research.
In this month's published document for The
Orange Pages, we provide a practical user
guide that outlines the essential elements
critical to obtaining full value from your
qualitative research. We explore topics
related to the conduct of research,
including: observers, productivity/workload,
corporate culture,
videoconferencing/streaming platforms and
regulatory issues. The last, and perhaps
most important, point we make is that for
participation in the qualitative marketing
research process to be worthwhile, the entire
team occupying the "back room," physical or
virtual, should be trained in the body of
knowledge and skills required for "creative
listening." The key elements of creative
listening and special considerations for both
individual depth interviews and focus groups
are explored in this engaging and practical read.
 Navigating Medicare Part D: Expectations Versus Reality & Implications for Pharmaceutical Marketers
Just when pharmaceutical marketers thought
they had mastered the managed care
environment, along comes the Medicare
Modernization Act to shake things up. The
Medicare prescription drug benefit - Medicare
Part D - has been in effect for more than a
year and the second enrollment period is now
behind us. What progress has been made,
which assumptions have proven true (or false)
and what challenges still lie ahead? To plan
for and achieve long-term success in the Part
D environment, pharmaceutical manufacturers
must understand how Part D affects key health
care constituents, including patients,
physicians, pharmacists and managed care
organizations.
In an article authored for Product
Management Today, Sue Ramspacher, Senior
Vice President of GfK Market Measures, takes
a retrospective view of what we have learned
so far and anticipates what is to come. The
article provides actionable insights for
pharmaceutical marketers to develop and
further refine the critical brand and managed
care strategies required to effectively
compete in this new Medicare prescription
drug market created under Part D.
In brief, as we proceed through the remainder
of 2007 and look forward to the next Part D
enrollment period and to 2008 and beyond,
pharmaceutical marketers should consider a
number of factors when developing Part D
strategies and tactics.
The Power of Integrated Physician/Patient Research: Convergent and Divergent Perspectives
Free Educational Teleconference: September
12, 2:00-3:00 p.m. EST
Save the Date! Do you have the complete picture of the
converging - and diverging - perspectives of
physicians and patients that influence
point-of-care therapy choices in your
product's disease area?
The point of care is the crossroads of a
physician and patient's individual
experiences, perceptions and beliefs. The
extent to which physician and patient have a
shared understanding and agreement regarding
therapy choice is the key to a pharmaceutical
marketer's success in acquiring and retaining
a patient.
GfK Market Measures will shed light on the
issues and opportunities surrounding
integrated physician/patient research as a
means to more fully understand the complex
interrelationship between physician and
patient. Most importantly, we will explore
the value of applying these insights to your
marketing efforts.
Using insights and data gleaned from the
company's suite of integrated physician and
patient primary market research studies
across eight therapeutic categories, GfK
Market Measures representatives will explore
what physicians and patients report on three
commonly shared dimensions of information and
perspectives, which individually and
collectively influence therapy choice.
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 Looking at People Looking for Medical Information As I have discussed in numerous articles and presentations in recent years, it is increasingly necessary for the pharmaceutical industry to bring genuine value to physicians and other prescribers in order to gain what Seth Godin would refer to as their permission to market to them. Since state and federal government regulations, public relations and other forces make it more difficult to deliver value to practitioners in the form of goodies, i.e., elaborate dinners, trips, etc., we are increasingly, and rightfully, being returned to providing information as our sole means of being able to provide value. But what is information? For far too many pharmaceutical marketers, information is "stuff you can say." Little thought is given to the fact that there are actually various kinds of information, and that they are used differently by different doctors in different situations. Certain key general principles apply, however. Among them: Prescribers need information couched in terms of treatment situations and patient types, while pharmaceutical marketers want to talk in terms of products; and prescribers need their information presented in an easy-to-use format, so they can pull the information they need, when they need it, without expending large amounts of time or energy. But how do those of us in the pharmaceutical industry learn to understand and deal with physician information needs? In an industry so fixated on physician prescribing behavior and market share, watching such Rx data sources at the individual prescriber level on virtually a daily basis, it is astounding and unfortunate that we pay so little attention to other readily available behavioral data sources...  Richard B. Vanderveer, Ph.D. Group Chief Executive Officer GfK U.S. Healthcare Companies   Did You Miss the July Issue of Topline?  Click
here to read the
issue, which includes:
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