On the Other Hand…

In last month’s Vanderveer’s Views, I noted the closing of TVG and the announcement by the CEO of its parent company that there was not enough pharmaceutical marketing research work available to support that business entity. I then questioned whether, if marketplace trends continue and available work decreases, budgets swing wildly from quarter to quarter and “procurement” departments keep pressing for lower prices, it was possible to maintain a viable, forward looking health care marketing research agency in the future.

Never, I argued, have health care companies needed information more. Marketing research agencies will, indeed, need to change the nature of the information they provide to be more responsive to client needs, and clients will need to be ready to pay for quality work.

Feedback from a few readers suggested that I had painted a grim picture of the future of our profession. Rather, what I intended to do was suggest that if health care marketing research continued on its present course toward “commoditization” much was to be lost on both sides of the table.

Given that backdrop, in this issue I would like to focus specifically, albeit briefly, on new directions that health care marketing research can pursue to enjoy new opportunities. As a self/organization-serving plug, let me note in passing that I will elaborate on these thoughts in my presentation at PMRG’s Fall Conference in Boston in late October. 

First, at a very practical level, our clients have increasingly come to our company to conduct marketing research to evaluate, and help to minimize, the “risk” of the FDA challenging their promotional campaigns. Demonstrating, a priori, that their promotional programs are within guidelines and are well-understood by all stakeholders can help them to avoid significant trouble and lost sales at a later date...