Advice You - Business

This is the first in a series on Direct Mail and Mail Order.

In mail order, the potential customer is first contacted by classified or print ads to

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

gain an inquiry. The prospective customer is then mailed a direct mail package to obtain the order.

In direct mail, the potential customer is mail

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

Examples of combination products may in

d the direct mail package cold soliciting his or her order.

Classified Ads

Mail Order seems simple. You buy a cheap ad in a national public

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

tion and wait for the enquiries and orders to come in.

Some years ago a national magazine solicited me and convinced me that an ad in their new cla

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

sified section would surely bring me orders.

I thought, What the heck. It looks like a good deal. If I get one order out of 100,000 readers I’ll

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

Combination pro

more than break even.

I didn’t get one order out of a million readers!

Forget statistics in mail order.

On placing my ad in that publication

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

I broke the major rule of Mail Order and Direct Mail: Always Target Your Market.

I also broke a secondary rule: Never Buy An Ad In A New

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

ublication Or New Classified Section.

I also broke another rule: Never Purchase An Ad Until You Have Evaluated The Publication .

The se

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

ret is to find publications that have readers that would have an interest in your offer.

Don’t place an ad for decorative lawn furniture from India

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

in Field and Stream. Find a home and garden publication that is currently running such ads.

Watch each magazine for several months before y

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

u buy ads to make sure the ads like yours are repeated which indicates that the ads are working.

Small magazines that specialize are good prospects

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

Following aspects would a

for your ads.

So that is the secret: Make Sure You Are Hitting Your Market.

Get sample issues of the magazines you are interested in by requesting

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

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

them from the magazine. Ask for a rate card. A classified ad that draws inquiries can be followed by a print ad that asks for an order. Learn as you

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

go. Maybe you will eventually buy a half- or full-page ad.

Make sure you bargain with the magazine. Ask for a cost break. Also ask them to run a s

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

all side-bar or other article or press release to increase your sales from your print ads.

Mailing Lists

Your mailing list can come from yo

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

r classified or print ads. Your best list is your customer list. Repeat sales are the grit of mail order, The Mother Load. So keep your list

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

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

p to date and keep mailing follow-up offers.

If you purchase the use of a mailing list, then make sure it targets your potential customers.

Some l

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

ists are full of non-buyers. These curious people answer every ad in site and get on many different lists. They never buy a darned thing.

Purchase

.

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

he use of a list that has people who are definitely interested in your products. Make sure the list is of buyers and not window shoppers.<

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

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

i>

Most direct mail operators recommend that you find a list broker in your area that has experience and broad list resources. Try the Yellow Pages

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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Advice You - Direct Mail and Mail Order Techniques 01: Classified Ads and Mailing List

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