Advice You - Business

Your public relations people are busy. The buzz is all about hits on a radio show or mentions in a newspaper column. Or, which to do first, the trade show exhibit or the video clip. All useful tactics, but hardly the detailed planning needed to REALLY do something about the behaviors of thos

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

e outside audiences that impact you the most.

Without that planning, those changes in target audience behaviors you'll almost certainly need to achieve your objectives is unlikely to come about. And that just shouldn't happen.

Here's a simple plan that can get everyone working towards the

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

Examples of combination products may in

ame external audience behaviors, and put the public relations effort back on track. People act on their own perception of the facts before them, which leads to predictable behaviors about which something can be done. When we create, change or reinforce that opinion by reaching, persuading an

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

moving-to-desired- action the very people whose behaviors affect the organization the most, the public relations mission is accomplished.

Which makes this worth mentioning one more time: whether you are a business, non-profit or association manager, you need what that fundamental premise pr

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

mises

- the kind of key stakeholder behavior change that leads directly to achieving your objectives.

I'm talking about behavior changes like community leaders beginning to seek you out; new members signing up: customers starting to make repeat purchases; organizations proposing strategic al

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

Combination pro

liances and joint ventures; prospects starting to do business with you; politicians and legislators unexpectedlyviewing you as a key member of the business, non-profit or association communities; and even capital givers or specifying sources beginning to look your way.

It all starts when you

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

it down and actually list those outside audiences of yours who behave in ways that help or hinder you in achieving your objectives. Then prioritize them by impact severity. Now, let's work on the target audience in first place on that list.

I'll wager you don't have access to data that tells

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

ou just how most members of that key outside audience perceive your organization.

Assuming you don't have the budget to accommodate professional survey work, you and your colleagues must monitor those perceptions yourself. Interact with members of that outside audience by asking questions l

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

ke "Have you ever had contact with anyone from our organization? Was it a satisfactory experience? Are you familiar with our services or products?" Stay alert to negative statements, especially evasive or hesitant replies. Watch carefully for false assumptions, untruths, misconceptions, inac

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

curacies and potentially damaging rumors. Any of which will need to be corrected, because experience shows they usually lead to negative behaviors.

So, because the obvious objective here is to correct those same untruths, inaccuracies, misconceptions and false assumptions, you now select th

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

specific perception to be altered, and that becomes your public relations goal.

But a PR goal without a strategy to show you how to get there, is like a Mint Julep without the mint. That's why you must select one of three strategies especially designed to create perception or opinion where t

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

Following aspects would a

ere may be none, or change existing perception, or reinforce it. The challenge here (a small one) is to insure that the goal and its strategy match each other. You wouldn't want to select "change existing perception" when current perception is just right suggesting a "reinforce" strategy.

N

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

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

w you must morph into a writer, if you are not already endowed with that talent, and prepare a compelling message carefully designed to alter your key target audience's perception, as called for by your public relations goal.

You may find that combining your corrective message with another ne

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

wsworthy announcement of a new product, service or employee will lend credibility by not overempha- sizing the correction.

Your corrective message should contain several values, clarity for example. It must be clear about what perception needs clarification or correction, and why. And your fac

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

s must be truthful, of course. In addition, your position must be logically explained and believable if it is to hold the attention of members of that target audience, and actually move perception in your direction.

At last, the easy part - selecting the "beasts of burden" - the communicatio

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

s tactics you will harness to carry your persuasive new thoughts to the attention of that external audience.

The tactics list is a long one. It includes letters-to-the-editor, brochures, press releases and speeches. Or, you might select others such as radio and newspaper interviews, personal

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

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

contacts, facility tours or customer briefings. There are dozens awaiting your pleasure.

Sooner rather than later, your colleagues will ask you if any progress is being made. By which time you will already be striving to answer that question by again monitoring perceptions among your target

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

audience members. Using questions similar to those used during your earlier monitoring session, you will now look sharply for indications that audience perceptions are beginning to move in your direction.

Fortunately, you can always put the pedal to the metal by employing additional communica

.

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

ions tactics, AND by increasing their frequencies.

But, as this article suggests, concentrating on tactics is important, but only at the right moment. What must come first is an aggressive public relations plan that (as, by now, you have no doubt surmised) targets the kind of key stakehold

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

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

r behavior change that leads directly to achieving your objectives.

Please feel free to publish this article and resource box in your ezine, newsletter, offline publication or website. A copy would be appreciated at bobkelly@TNI.net.

Robert A. Kelly © 2003

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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