Marketing of Pharmaceutical Products in India (30 Important Suggestions)

After the thorough understanding of pharmaceutical marketing the suggestions and recom­mendations made by the researcher are compiled as;

1. Researcher suggest that to improve ethical sale of pharmaceutical products that is con­tributed through the prescriptions of consulting physician (doctors) is achieved through identified three major thrust areas as sales force (including medical representatives, field managers), medical practitioners (consulting physicians, dispensing doctors, para­medical staff) and stockists (including distributors or dealers and chemists) to promote its product range.

2. It is suggested that decentralization is more preferred as it has a due importance to minimize the communication gap between top authority and field executives.Arfterthe thorough analysis of organizational hierarchy, it has been suggested that they have a capabilities to handle whole marketing functions for successful product promotion.

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The marketing department supported by Product Management Team and Marketing manager with highly innovative and motivated field staff having excellent qualities in terms of product knowledge, self-discipline, supervision, and work experience.

3. Researched also suggest that maximization of resource utilization and effective man­agement of field staff can be achieved through maintaining high PCPM (Per Capita Per Person) though recruitment of fresh young, enthusiastic and high-motivated persons that can be mould their ideas as per industry specifications.

4. Furthermore it is suggested that to attract high talent field force, pharmaceutical com­pany should provide attractive salary package beside lucrative incentive scheme for achieving sales target of his territory.

5. It can be recommend that retirement’s policy and retirement benefits, accident insur­ance, festival bonus, paid leave, accidental insurance has considerable importance for the marketer to make successful human resource policy that helps to reduce a fear of job insecurity in the minds of medical representatives.

6. At chemist level, researcher suggest high retail margin is at priority high level followed by the cordial relations of medical representative as well as stockists to and taking care of their prime retailers by providing quality service through regular mails related to price revision, bonus offer, schemes etc and occasional gifts for them.

7. At stockist’s level, researcher suggests that regular follow-up of inventory level, prompt delivery, quick settlement of credit notes and avoiding stock dumping helps to main­tain the positive relations with stockists.

8. Researcher recommend that pharmaceutical companies improve their social image through rendering various charitable activities for society in the form of opening chari­table hospital, providing aid to cancer, anti-HIV patients, financial assistance to natu­ral calamity areas etc.

9. At doctor’s level, researcher suggests that aggressive and updated promotional poli­cies through strategic planning with full inputs and activities can face challenges in pharmaceutical marketing. Such as heavy sampling (bulk sampling), literatures, direct mails, gifts, individual sponsorships, group meetings, and academic oriented programs like CME, OPD camps and patient educational camps.

10. Researcher suggest that to survive in Indian pharmaceutical market which is highly price sensitive market and company with comparative high prices for their products should appeals for the quality products and prompt service at doctors level that results into increase in brand loyalty and targeting less competitive price sensitive market.

11. Researcher suggest that Seasonal variation index is a tool for decision maker to reduce the risk of short supply, failure of new products and blocked inventory that further reduces stock return and expiry of the products then by improves the efficiency and return on investment that is achieved through regular check of inventory level and prompt service for further liquidation of stock.

12. It is also suggested that push strategy is a brand strategy instead of pull strategy that leverages through chemist’s substitution and has long-term effects through activities like mailing scheme update, window advertising, target banner advertisements, etc. for selective product categories.

13. Researcher suggests a strategic inventory control method covers four major param­eters as profitability, efficiency, liquidity, and solvency. For the company the average inventory maintained to achieve above four objectives is of 42 days, for Chemists keep inventory of about 21 to 30 days and dealers of about 21 days. Thus inventory control method increases the profitability, efficiency, liquidity and solvency.

14. It has been recommended that the strategic tool for Customer relationship manage­ment involves complete honor of prescription, availability position and customer satis­faction for brand management.

15. Researcher suggests Economic order quantity at dealer’s level lies in minimum inven­tory with high sales turnover. Further the minimum level of inventory to avoid the risk of shortages is sales for the company is multiply sales by 1.5 less closing that in turn reduces unnecessary stock dumping and reduce expiry at dealer’s shelf.

16 Researcher suggest that pharmaceutical company with strong R and D network is an indicative trait of dedication towards the health care providers and can face the future challenges after the implementation of Product Patent Act in India.

17. Researcher suggests that performance based incentive schemes for dealers in the form of trade discount can become a strategic tool to motivate and improve the efficacy for better cooperation from dealer’s side.

18. In competitive edge of pharmaceutical marketing the researcher proposes that to create a unique image requires preserving ethical standards in the form of lowering excess sales pressure on employees to reduce sales force turnover for better marketing stabil­ity that in turn increases and preserve morale of field force and provides positive work environment.

19. Furthermore researcher suggests that trade unionism has its own role for maintain cordial relations between employer and employees through grievance handling com­mittee. Therefore company should set a common forum to understand the rights of medical representative to improve working conditions so as to achieve business objec­tive through teamwork.

20. Pharmaceutical companies should insists their medical representative to focus on main­tain personal relations with the doctor’s for continuous prescription support and face the emerging challenging in the market. Pharmaceutical Companies, has initiated e Marketing and proven its efficacy. So companies should insists on e marketing.

21. Survey found that majority of prescriber’s are followers (32%) as compare to trendsetters (12%) that are taped by other player like Sun Pharma, Ranbaxy, etc. Therefore, study suggests that pharmaceutical companies should focus on followers as well as trendsetters to achieve high success rate for new product launch through competitive product strat­egy like CME’s, Group Meetings and Medical conferences.

22. Survey confirms that over the last few years use of internet has increased significantly and in future this will be a main source of medical information due to its timeliness, comprehensiveness and having the latest information on drugs and therapy.

Therefore researcher suggest that new sampling strategy should be built on the key fact that physicians e sampling to excel market share growth of new products by efficiently reaching more physicians that provides better opportunities in future.

23. An Indian pharmaceutical market that few companies are having a capacity to provide health insurance. Thus researcher suggest that this can be treated as an opportunity for pharmaceutical firms to serve the society well through health insurance schemes and exclusive clinical facilities that provide quality and economy for services.

24. Pharmaceutical firm should spend at least 20 percentage or more of their sales turnover on Innovation-oriented prescription based marketing. This places pharmaceuticals among the most heavily promoted products. Hence researcher had suggested several specific policy options like focus on major segments viz. Cardiovascular, Anti-Diabetic, Anti- HIV etc. aimed at reducing specific undesirable effects of diversified marketing activi­ties.

25. Researcher suggest that to survive in the era of post Product Patent Act (GATT), pharmaceutical companies should opt for product innovation, cost reduction, merger with larger firms and entry in world generic market. Further it has suggested that larger firms should increase their R&D expenditure as a percentage of sales and they move in the direction of new molecule discovery.

26. For Recruitment, selection and training of medical representative, researcher suggest that company should adopt newer way to attract employees like campus interview, job web sites and journal advertising by focusing on favorable work culture and attractive salary package. Training of field force should be emphasized on managerial aspects like call planning, situational detailing, objection handling etc that result into im­proved sales performance.

27. It is proposed that pharmaceutical sector is to be treated as a high priority industry for the purpose of rapid development and permitting free flow of foreign investments. It has been also suggested that to offer foreign equity up to 51 percent at par with wholly Indian company.

It is also important to quote here that at present companies with for­eign equity up to 40 percent are already enjoying this facility. Similarly it has been felt that automatic approval for foreign technology agreements can be permitted for all items in the Drug and pharmaceutical sector to encourage the introduction of newer and efficient technologies.

28. In Indian pharmaceutical market that few companies are having a capacity to provide health insurance. Thus researchers suggest that this can be treated as an opportunity for pharmaceutical firms to serve the society well through health insurance schemes and exclusive clinical facilities.

29. Obviously there are certain risk factors such as introduction of New VAT (Value Added Tax) system and frequent amendments in excise duty may affect heavily on sales ver­sus profitability ratio. So it has suggested that company should be proactive by making necessary changes in pricing policies to avoid future consequences.

30. The coming years are going to be tough for pharmaceutical industries so it has been well studied and suggested that to sustain in the competitive industry small firms may go for joint ventures with major one and invest their part in new product development to cope up with Product Patent Act.