Advice You - Business

You couldn’t contain your excitement and eagerly reserved exhibit space at the upcoming regional trade show. I know what you were thinking…”The traffic at this show will be

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

fantastic and I’ll get more leads than I ever imagined.”

And when the show was over, you got nothing for all your hard work.

So what happened? Why didn’t your $600 booth s

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

Examples of combination products may in

pace, $400 for collateral materials, and two days on the show floor produce any meaningful results?

You got nothing because you had no valid method to address the two most

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

critical trade show issues. First, is the show a reasonable marketing vehicle for you, and second, if so, how can you best use it to attract prospects. Without any thought,

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

ost business owners assume that a trade show in their industry is a smart decision and they plunk down big dollars with little consideration to other important details. Ther

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

Combination pro

e are many factors to consider though.

Trade shows can be one of the most productive and profitable means for promoting your company and your products. But you must know th

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

e secrets and follow a process or it’s a waste of your time and money.

1. Request information from Show Management

Don’t commit to any trade show without first requesting

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

nformation from show management. What are the profiles of the attendees? How many attended last year? How are they marketing the show? These are important issues you must co

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

nsider before making a commitment.

2. Create a plan – don’t just show up with a booth

Consider your goal of the show and then establish a plan. You have much more at your

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

disposal than a table and booth: show theme, d?cor, signage, giveaways, literature, staffing, lead retrieval, and more. Each of these can be critical to your success.

3. Co

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

sider pre-marketing

Data is available that clearly indicates that pre-show marketing significantly increases booth attendance. A mailer or two in advance might be an approp

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

Following aspects would a

riate component.

4. Give attendees a compelling reason to visit your booth

I have walked many trade show floors and time after time have seen booth personnel standing out

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

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

front like rigid toy soldiers, with the standard stack of company brochures and business cards lined up on the table. Is there any wonder no one was interested in any of the

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

m? You don’t have to hire a clown, but do something to attract attention and let the attendees know the value you offer them.

5. Educate and train booth personnel

Your peo

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

le are your greatest asset. Professionalism, knowledge, attentiveness and a big smile are always appreciated.

6. Use a system to record individual lead information

If a ca

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

rd-scanning lead retrieval system is not available, then create lead sheets for collecting information, or if nothing else, write on the backs of business cards. Nothing is

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

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

more frustrating than to create a lot of show leads and not know what your prospects’ needs are when you follow-up with them.

7. Follow-up promptly with prospects

You’ve i

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

vested your time and money, why not maximize your results? Leads left unattended will quickly grow cold. Set a specific date and be certain all leads are contacted before th

.

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

en.

8. Evaluate your show ROI

Track your leads and sales for each show so you know whether or not to consider that individual one again in future years.

Profitable trade

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

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

shows require much more than managing a booth space. Create an organized and systematic marketing plan and you’ll have the tools and processes you need to achieve your goals

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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Barcode Printers come in various types, including general-purpose laser and inkjet printers. Then there are printers that support multiple symbologies. They are called Thermal bar code label printers. General-purpose laser and inkjet printers cannot directly print barcodes. That is because these basic printers do not support bar code symbologies and are therefore upgraded to do so. They need to be programmed to support bar coding, which may entail addition of more features and fonts.

Running a business may mean production and distribution only, but running a successful business equals a sustained effort to permanently develop ways to present yourself in the best possible light. Exhibitions represent a link between merchandise and consumer - this is where the offer and the demand actually meet!

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