Advice You - Business

There’s more to what he does than meets the eye...

With so many different programs, and reruns and re-packaging of older programs, we can assume there are few people on the planet who do not know about Bob V

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

ila. Starting with the original "This Ol’ House" programs on PBS in 1979, Bob Vila and his empire, have grown into a major force in the Home Improvement Television genre.

The professional salesperson can lea

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

Examples of combination products may in

n a whole lot more from Bob Vila than how to screet concrete or put mud on the drywall.

Bob Vila is a study in brand awareness. Bob is the brand. The challenge was getting people to recognize, and ultimatel

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

respect Bob Vila, as THE home improvement expert. Whatever he did before that first TV program is inconsequential as is whether or not he can saw a board of drive a nail (something he does verl little of on

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

his show).

Bob Vila became a household name. Brand awareness to the highest degree. So high in fact that Sears asked him to be a spokesperson and that killed his deal with PBS (his first network gig). Now Bo

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

Combination pro

has "Home Again with Bob Vila", "Bob Vila’s Guide to Historic Homes" and others plus specials, books and tapes and even "Bob Vila’s Home Design" series on two CD’s (handsomely packaged, of course). They a

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 recycling the first PBS shows and calling them "This Ol’ House Classics". Bob is a TV pitchman, too. He sells credit card debt reduction and every product Sears can come up with, plus a closet full of boo

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

s and videos.

This didn’t happen by accident, but by clever design. The design element continues today, every time you see him on the tube. How did he do it? Simple, all he did was tell all the people on TV

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

to call him by name, over and over. A lot like subliminal advertising. You don’t realize you are getting the message. A typical segment of any of his programs, past or present, might go like this:

Bob: Today

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

on our show, Fred Murtz is going to show us how to cut a board with a handsaw. Welcome to our show Fred.

Fred: Thanks, Bob, glad to be here.

Bob: You’ve been cutting boards for a long time

Fred: I sure have

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

Bob. I got my first hand saw at age seven, from my grandpa. I brought several saws to show you, Bob.

Bob: Show us how to use that saw (pointing)

Fred: That is a crosscut saw, Bob. It is the mainstay in most

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

Following aspects would a

basic construction. Bob, this is the easiest of all saws to use. You hold it like this, Bob. And when you begin the movement up and down, you put your index finger along the side here, can you see that, Bob?

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

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

That’s how you cut straighter Bob, with that little finger pointing the way.

(and so on.) catching on? Everyone Bob talks with uses his name repeatedly. If you look at it apart from the program, you can see

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

that people don’t really talk that way. Could all his guests be instructed to use his name in every sentence possible? Bob never uses their name after the introduction until the end bit when he thanks the g

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

est, by name.

So who’s name do we hear, hundreds of times in a program? Bob Vila! It didn’t take long for him to be recognized as consummate hammer and nails guru. Better yet, he doesn’t do any of the work o

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

his shows, he just gets people to use his name while they do it all.

How does this relate to sales you ask? Easy, you can use the Bob Vila approach on your customers. Use their name at every opportunity. P

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

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

actice until you can use it in every third sentence. It will create an instant rapport. The more you can use the customer’s name, the more you can build trust and confidence with that person.

Think about th

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

many times you have watched Bob on TV and not noticed how the guests use his name over and over. The majority of people don’t see it until someone (like me in this article) points it out. Most folks never

.

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

ee the hidden meaning there, or recognize the unusual sentence structure. You can use name-infected sentences in any conversation, to your advantage, every time. They work, beautifully. And they never offend

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

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

("Hey, Fred, would you mind not using my name so much, I’m sorta sensitive!").

The next time you talk with a customer, remember what Bob Vila did and you, too, can be the most respected person in your field

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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All larger companies and all those who have been in the market for several business cycles are prone to an (identity) crisis. Corporate identity and the product of the company are related. This is quite important when dealing with change.

Brand Loyalty is a powerful source of sustained profitability. But many senior executives have no idea how to create Brand Loyalty. This article discusses why creating brand Loyalty is so difficult and what you can do to promote it.

The truck washing industry must go robotic to deal with the labor shortages in the industry and the OSHA rules considering hydrofluoric acid and other chemicals. Additionally with water tight in many regions, measured and calculated water usage is important as well.

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