The Rx factor

The FactorStrategic Creativity in

Pharmaceutical Marketing

PAVAN CHOUDARY

W V P DWisdom Village (Publication Division)Knowledge is information. Wisdom is transformation.

A WVPD PRESENTATION

Books from Wisdom Village (Publications Division) envision to enhance and

enrich their readers with life changing experiences from the business, mind, body

and soul genres. They strive towards holistic development.

Editorial & Production Charushilla Narula

Copyright © Pavan Choudary, 2009

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form

or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by

any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the

publisher.

ISBN 978-81-906555-8-3

This 2nd Edition of The Factor is Published by:

WVPD is a part of Wisdom Village

164, Aravali Apartments, Alaknanda, New Delhi – 110019

To Book Your Orders:

Email: [email protected], [email protected]

Or Call: +91 98115 14287, 9810800469

First Published in 1997 by

Response Books (A division of Sage Publications India Pvt Ltd)

M-32, Greater Kailash Market-1, New Delhi 110 048.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Choudary, Pavan 1965-

The factor: Strategic Creativity in Pharmaceutical Marketing/ Pavan Choudary.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. Pharmaceutical industry—India.

2. Drugs—India—marketing.

3. Pharmaceutical policy—India. I. Title.

HD9672.I52C48 615.1' 068'8—DC21 1997 97-18645

ISBN: 0-8039-9378-1 (US-HB) 81-7036-626-7 (India-HB)

0-8039-9379-X (US-PB) 81-7036-627-5 (India-PB)

W V P DWisdom Village (Publication Division)Knowledge is information. Wisdom is transformation.

Pavan Choudary

Brief Introduction

Pavan Choudary is the author of path breaking books like Broom & Groom (co-

author Kiran Bedi), A Trilogy of Wisdom, Machiavelli for Moral People and The Rx

Factor. Pavan is also the Managing Director of Vygon, a leading French

Multinational, hosts the TV program Hum Aise Kyun Hain on Doordarshan,

and has written columns for The Times of India and Financial Chronicle. Today,

Pavan is considered one of the most original Indian socio-political thinkers and

management strategists. To know more visit www.pavanchoudary.in

You may reach the author at [email protected]

http://www.pavanchoudary.in/

mailto:[email protected]

Other Books by Pavan Choudary

1. How a Good Person can Really Win 2. A Trilogy of Wisdom

a. Chanakya’s Political Wisdom b. Confucius’ Social Wisdom c. Kabir’s Spiritual Wisdom

3. When you are Sinking Become a Submarine 4. Machiavelli for Moral People 5. Broom & Groom (on Hygiene and Manners) co-authored

with Kiran Bedi 6. Uprising 2011- Indians Against Corruption co-authored

with Kiran Bedi

Comments on

“I strongly recommend this book for all pharmacy students and

marketing professionals…it gives a creative landscape for

Pharmaceutical marketing filled with innovative and practical marketing

strategies…a useful tool for the sales force in the pharmaceutical industry.”

Dr. B. Suresh, President, Pharmacy Council of India

“Written in a racy, 'un-put-downable' style (which one rarely comes across

in a book emanating from India), one reaches the end only 'asking for more'

and wishing that the author had included some more marketing examples

and cases to reinforce many of his imaginative ideas. A book not to be

missed.”

Express Pharma Pulse (Indian Express Group)

“Such examples abound and that is what makes the book refreshing and

interesting.”

The Business Standard

“He offers marketing wisdom distilled from studying communication

strategies behind brand successes and flops. The case study format makes it

lively.”

Advertising & Marketing (A & M)

"Brilliant, bright, blasphemous ....Blows much of what we have held to be

sacrosanct—USP, marketing warfare, positioning—to smithreens…The

author has captured the essence of successful marketing in this readable

text, focusing on the pharmaceutical industry.”

Elsa Davies (Fellow, Institute of Management, UK)

The Factor

Praise for the Author and his Books

The Rx Factor

Kip Piper, Senior health Advisor to the White House Office, USA, has included The Rx

Factor in his list of Top 10 books on Pharmaceutical Marketing. To view the list you may

visit amazon.com at http://www.amazon.com/Pharmaceutical-Marketing-Bookshelf-

Recommended-Piper/lm/2RUHJCQM7ERX0

How a Good Person can Really Win

This book is for real people in the real world with insights, practical wisdom and a fresh

perspective for everyone…the alternative of course, is to read up hundreds of books over tens

of years!

- Carolyn Marcille (Barnes & Noble, NewYork, USA)

Pavan Choudary's passion for dwelling deep into the questions one feels remain unanswered,

has ensured him a place amongst the foremost thinkers of the world.

- The Times of India

An invaluable, timeless treasure. Pavan is a megamind taking Indian thinking to refreshing

new heights in the global arena. His works should be made compulsory reading for leaders,

teachers and parents.

- Dr. Kiran Bedi

A Trilogy of Wisdom (on Chanakya, Confucius and Kabir)

Each book in this collection of mini books has great depth…there is great insight on political

sharpness, social gain and spiritual intelligence - to aid the ambitious soul.

- Hindustan Times

This book has been able to capture the spirit of Confucianism. It is most appropriate that it

dwells on the social aspect of Confucianism. It talks of Social Harmony, which is key to

Confucius.

- Mr. Xei Fei (Cultural Head, Chinese Embassy)

Broom & Groom co-author Kiran Bedi

Broom & Groom by proud Indians Kiran Bedi and Pavan Choudary is a collector’s item. A

must on every book shelf.

- Deccan Chronicle

Indians and civic sense don’t often go together. That may change if our worthy countrymen

take broom & groom to heart.

-The Telegraph

It addresses separate categories- students, government officials, and so on and the

illustrations help make it a useful handbook for people who badly need it.

-The Times of India

Machiavelli for Moral People

Want to read a politician like a book…read Machiavelli for Moral People.

– The Tribune

PHARMACY COUNCIL OF INDIA(Constituted under the Pharmacy Act. 1948)

Prof. B. Suresh, M.Pharm., Ph.D., D.Sc.,

President

Combined Councils’ Building

Kotla Road, Aiwan-E-Ghalib Marg

P.B. No. 7020, New Delhi-110 002

Gram : FARMCOUNCIL

Tel. : 011 23239184, 23231348 Fax : 011 23239184

Vice-Chancellor, JSS University

JSS Medical Institutions Campus

S.S Nagar, Mysore, 570 015

Tel. : 0821 2548391

Fax : 0821 2548394

[email protected]

[email protected]

www.jssuni.edu.in

October 10, 2009

FOREWORD

Indian Pharmaceutical Industry with more than 26,000 companies and more than a lakh formulation need innovative and creative marketing strategies to sell them. Marketing, sales and distribution of Pharmaceutical Products are different from that of other overseas countries and most of the books available on pharmaceutical marketing are theory based.

Pavan Choudary in this book, The Rx Factor gives a creative landscape of Pharmaceutical Marketing filled with innovative and practical marketing strategies. Many national and international journals have applauded his creative ideas in The Rx factor. Rating the book as one of the top three titles among 665 books on marketing explains its strength and popularity internationally.

The book is systematically divided into easily readable sections to understand the concepts of pharmaceutical marketing tinged with Hindu mythology. The way Mr. Pavan puts the concepts of marketing bubbled with lots of creative ideas, easily grabs the attention of the reader and creates an interest to complete the book. I strongly recommend this Rx Factor book for Pharmacy students. I am sure the pharmacy students will easily understand the concepts listed in the book and definitely make use of the creative ideas during their career in pharmaceutical marketing. I also recommend this book as a useful tool for sales force in the Pharmaceutical Industry.

I congratulate Mr. Pavan Choudary for his successful efforts in putting the concepts in a systematic and creative fashion. The book is written in a breezy style which makes it easy to read and understand.

Dr. B. SureshPresident

he pharmaceutical industry in India has a lot to teach a student of marketing. The competition, which has become Tfiercer in recent years, has sharpened the marketing styles of

many companies. At the same time, the dissociation of the industry from advertising agencies, market researchers and other market-support organizations has left many noticeable chinks in pharma-ceutical marketing. Owing to my background in both advertising and marketing, perhaps, I have been able to discern these gaps more clearly. This book is an attempt to fill some of them.

The foremost thing which a marketing professional needs to understand is his consumer, very much in the same way as a good doctor must understand his patient. The doctor can dispense the right prescription (or, in pharmaceutical parlance, the ) only when he has correctly understood the nature of the problem afflicting the patient. A successful is one that meets the intended purpose, namely, treat the patient by tackling the problem at hand. Similarly, the corner-stone of a successful marketing endeavour is an astute understand-ing of the market, which leads to a solution to the problems or exploitation of the opportunities the market throws up.

A successful marketer must know the pulse of the market. He must be totally cognizant with the social and psychological profile of the customer. This knowledge and understanding of the market and the customer will determine what he needs to do to get his product

9

Introduction

10

accepted in the marketplace. It will govern his choice of prescrip-tion. This knowledge is the key to a successful marketing strategy, the correct prescription. A successful strategy is one that emanates from market realities and one that enables the marketer get his product prescribed or accepted. What distinguishes a successful marketing strategy from one that fails is precisely what I have chosen to call the factor.

For a marketing strategy to succeed in today's highly competitive marketplace, it is imperative that you adopt a strategy that is unique, innovative and creative, which will enable your product to stand apart. Without creative strategies you do not stand a chance of meeting the unprecedented levels of competition. But 'differentness' alone will not give results. 'Different-ness' with a purpose will certainly yield great dividends. What is therefore important is to be strategically creative with a predetermined purpose, not merely different. Thus, the factor is a purposive creative endeavour that emanates from a deep understanding of the realities of the market-place.

For convenience, I have divided the book into two parts. The first part, I hope, will provide you with an appreciation of the factor. The first three chapters in this part provide some of the vital charac-teristics of the factor as I understand it. Here I have given examples of both successful marketing strategies and those that have failed, and have shown how the distinguishing feature in all cases has been the factor - its presence or absence as the case may be. Here I have stressed on the need for adopting the right communication strategy and the importance of being truly creative in a strategic and purpos-ive way, rather than being wayward or eccentric merely for the sake of wanting to be different. In the next two chapters I have discussed some techniques for generating strategically creative ideas and the importance of the marketplace as a reservoir for your creativity.

The second part focuses on the creative execution of the factor. While Chapters 6 and 7 explore options to the commonly accepted concepts of unique selling proposition (USP) and marketing

Introduction

11

warfare, Chapters 8 and 9 discuss two issues that appear to be extremely significant when introducing any new product in the market. The first focuses on the importance of giving the right brand name. The second deals with correctly pricing the product based on a proper understanding of the market and the consumer. The next chapter discusses the importance of credibility in advertising.

Chapters 11 and 12 give ways to generate more productive flipcharts and promotools and ways to select the most potential doctors.

In this book, it has been my endeavour to suggest new, practical and creative directions in pharmaceutical marketing. My idea is to open the minds (and hearts) of the readers to creative thinking by chang-ing the mindset. The issues I have discussed by no means cover all the areas in pharmaceutical marketing. But I do hope that I have been able to place a finger on the pulse of marketing thought.

Though the book has pharmaceutical marketing as its basic content, 1 have drawn freely from consumer marketing and advertising to infuse fresh ideas or to elaborate some points. As such, I hope that both pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical marketing profession-als, as well as people in the advertising profession will find some-thing in this book that would be of use to them.

Introduction

PART A

Understanding the

Factor

The Creative Legacy

ndian marketing came of age, ages ago. If you delve into the

history of religion in India, you will be amazed at the marketing Iacumen of the propagators of Hinduism. Many of the concepts

of marketing as laid down in the West in this century, possibly first

found their application in Rigvedic times.

Though the term 'unique selling proposition' (USP) was coined in

America in the 1960s, its first application can perhaps be traced to

Hindu mythology. The Hindu pantheon consisted of innumerable

gods and goddesses. Many had a specific function and were

supposed to satisfy a distinct need that they were called upon to

fulfil. For example, Laxmi for wealth, Indra for rains, Saraswati for

knowledge, and so on.

Moreover, the process of product augmentation (a buzzword today

in marketing circles) is exemplified beautifully when one sees that

some Hindu gods have moods or profiles that can adjust to the needs

of the supplicant or enhance the versatility of the deity. So, we have

Durga to bestow grace, Kali to destroy evil.

Hinduism thus offered a composite package of innumerable gods-

one or more of whom could be chosen by the devotee. Now came the

threat of 'cannibalization'. (Cannibalization, as we know, is a

phenomenon where the sales of one product eats into the sales of

another product of the same company.)

CHAPTER 1

15

16

Understanding the Factor

Hindu religion had to now ensure that the appeal of one god did not

interfere with the popularity or acceptability of another. This

delicate problem was beautifully resolved by the marketers of yore

by bringing in the concept of 'Avataars'. That is, the supreme deity is

born a number of times and the number of births matches the number

of gods in the religion (even if this number runs into thousands!).

This concept of Avataars ensured that in the same household two or

more gods could be worshipped by different members of the

household without religious differences cropping up. Thus, family

members worshipping different gods could live in harmony. (See

Figures 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3.) The concept of Avataars helped

consolidate the corporate monopoly of Hinduism.

Creatively speaking, 'the imagination of our forefathers knew no

bounds. Take Lord Shiva, for instance. What a versatile collection of

features! He has three eyes, one of which opens only to destroy evil.

He also has a serpent coiled around his neck, while a river springs

from his head. Perhaps, he is the only god in the world who dances.

The legacy is rich with a future that holds promise. During a recent

visit to the Kashivishwanath temple in Varanasi, as I walked up the

stairs, an eleven-year-old boy approached me. He was selling lottery

tickets. His spiel went something like this-. 'Sahib, lottery ticket le

lo. Bhagvan muradein puree karega, kismat chamkayega' (Sir, buy a

lottery ticket. God will grant your wishes. It will make Fortune smile

on you.) Many bought lottery tickets from him. I was no exception.

The pitch was compelling. This little boy knew that the average

Hindu has a contractual relationship with God. You give something,

feed the brahmins, offer a cbaddar, and you can ask God for things

in return. The boy knew that most visitors ask God for things. The

hopes of a Hindu are high when entering a temple. Our young

marketing man had chosen this strategic place to hawk his wares.

Instead of harping on what attractive prizes could be won, the boy

used a strategy that was different - he beckoned God. He

instinctively knew his customer. Unknown to him, the factor was

The concept of Avataars helped

consolidate the corporate

monopoly of Hinduism

FIGURE 1.1

FIGURE 1.3

FIGURE 1.2

18


at work. No wonder, then, that he turned out to be one of the largest

sellers of lottery tickets.

Creative marketing genius is native to India. Marketing runs in our

blood. But are we utilizing this inherent instinct in us to its fullest

potential? Is the present-day marketer as brilliant as his forefathers?

Can we do better? This book tries to find an answer to some of these

questions. The context is pharmaceutical marketing. The content

draws also from marketing of over the counter (OTC) and consumer

products.

Market-based Communication

ow many pharmaceutical companies do you think there are in India? 10 ... 100 ... 10,000 ...? There are more than H26,000 pharmaceutical companies operating in the country

today. And how about the number of brands?

5,000 ... 15,000 ... 50,000?

The landscape is, in fact, dotted with more than 100,000 brands which are being marketed in India. This does give an indication of how fiercely competitive the industry is.

Why must a doctor prescribe your brand and not the hundred others containing the same salt? How can you ensure that your approach is strategic and yet different from what the others have tried? Especially, when it is likely that the communication strategy that you decide to choose could be akin to what quite a few other companies have been using. And to compound it all, the doctors you go to are the same. The race begins now.

But let us not get off the starting block just yet. Before that let us examine what we really mean by a communication strategy, and why it is important to adopt the right one.

The Right Communication Strategy

Let us look at the communication strategy of one of the most well- marketed antibiotic, ciprofloxaxin. Cost per tablet - Rs.8.50 for

19

CHAPTER 2

20


500mg. Exorbitant!? Some marketers predict doom. However, companies such as Cadila, Cipla and Ranbaxy go ahead and launch the product aggressively all over India. Who wins? Ranbaxy. This company forged ahead and became the undisputed leader, cornering a market share of 27.3 per cent for its brand, Cifran. Cipla became runner-up with 18.8 per cent market share (see Table 2.1). If you compare the two companies in terms of the number and calibre of their representatives, their stockist network, promotools deployed, etc., there would be little to choose between them. Then what made one perform better than the other?

TABLE 2.1

Comparative performance of the three leading ciprofloxacin brands

Product MAT (Crs) MS (%) CHG (%)

Group total cipro. oral solids 275.5 100.0 -6.2Cifran (Oct. 1989)* Ranbaxy 75.3 27.3 6.1Ciplox (May 1992)* Cipla 51.8 18.8 16.4Ciprobid (August 1989)* Zydus 30.4 11.0 1.8

MAT—Moving Annual Total MS —Market Share CHG—Change Launch datesSource: ORG IMS, 2009.

Perhaps, it was the communication strategy that did it. Cadila and Cipla, both of which have histories of success, slipped up on this occasion. Ranbaxy established superior efficacy and justified the price (Figure 2.1). They positioned Cifran (a quinolone) against cephalosporins, a class of expensive antibiotics.

Rajiv Gulati, the man behind Cifran's success, feels that this juxtaposition was so strong that some doctors started thinking of ciprofloxacin as a fourth-generation cephalosporin. It was factually incorrect, but appeared right perceptually.

Their base line, ' Cifran—a reflection of your concern' was meant to handle objections to the high price. In fact, they used the high price to provide the doctor with a means to show his concern for his

21

patient. In turn, the doctor too, in his own mind, needed to justify the choice of such an expensive product. The base line was bang on target. The factor had worked.

Cifran was adjudged the best marketed product by the Product Management Group. Marketing pundits still scratch their heads in disbelief as the sales of this product reflects Rs 75.3 Crs annually (ORG 2009).

Let us take another example. Revital, the Ginseng from Ranbaxy was launched when the total market for Ginseng was about Rs 10 million. A couple of companies which had entered this market in haste were repentant. Owing to poor positioning and because their products did not have extensive clinical trials to back them, they could not penetrate the market.

Ranbaxy spotted a hole in the market. Conventional tonics had been catering only to the body and not mind. Revital was positioned as a tonic for both the mind and the body. The positioning paid off.

To tackle the lack of clinical data, Ranbaxy's first communication was: 'Revital—better experienced than explained.' The doctors were asked to try the product themselves. Doctors have for long recognized the placebo effect. (The placebo effect demonstrates that certain symptoms respond as much to the ritual of taking medicine as to the physical substance itself. In other words, it is the mind's influence over bodily processes that is at play here.)

Several doctors tried the product. The presentation by the representative was strong, backed by premium pricing and good packaging (Figure 2.2.). The product seemed to work. Or was it just the placebo effect enhanced by the representative's aggressive spiel?

In any case, the demands for clinical trials did not wane. Ranbaxy then commissioned a small clinical trial and went to town with it saying: 'We don't meet standards, we set them.' A few sceptic medicine men laughed. But the rest of the world bought Revital. It was the story of one great piece of down-to-earth communication


FIG

UR

E 2

.1

Ra

nb

axy

just

ifie

d

Cifr

an

's p

rice

by

com

pa

rin

g it

with

cep

ha

losp

orin

s

23


and one great marketing success.

According to Christopher Adams, the head of marketing at Glaxo, UK, a drug is only one-third hardware (by which he means the chemicals encapsulated in a pill and swallowed by a sick person). The rest, according to him, is software or 'communications' made up of the knowledge about the drug, which persuades the doctor to prescribe it, and the monitoring and pushing of the drug, which persuades the patient to keep taking it.

TABLE 2.2Comparative performance of leading ginseng brands

Product MAT (Crs) MS (%) CHG (%)

Ginseng products (Evans) 121.6 100.0 22.7Revital (Jan. 89), Ranbaxy 106.8 87.9 26.8Riconia-G (May. 05), Ranbaxy 4.2 3.4 -2.3Trinergic (July, 96), Unichem 3.9 3.2 -5.3

MAT — Moving Annual TotalMS — Market Share CHG — ChangeSource: - ORG IMS, 2009.

The medical community, when convinced, lends overwhelming support. The sky, then, is the limit for a brand. The doctors blessed Revital, and it was off to a flying start. Today, Revital whose equity allowed the company to make it an OTC (over the countr) brand reflects Rs 106.8 Crores.

This may appear like wishful thinking, a pie in the sky. But markets such as this do exist. The trouble lies with us—we are content with scratching the surface. Revital's success was based on a perceptive understanding of the market. When a marketer does not respect the reality of the marketplace, the market shows no mercy. What follows is an illustration of a mission that failed owing to this very lack of understanding of the marketplace.

The Pucca Structure — An Open and Shut Case

One multinational aid agency identified open defecation as the main

FIGURE 2.2Market-sensitive communication, strong presentation, premium pricing and good packaging helped Revital take off.

Better experienced than explained

25


reason for the poor rural health scenario in one of the states of India. So, it decided to sponsor a free pucca lavatory in each rural household of some villages.

A noble mission to curb defecation in the open. The lavatories were built but nobody used them. For reasons that would appear strange to someone who did not understand the realities of the land:

• In most houses this was the only pucca structure so it was used to store grains which the normal structures with thatched roofs could not protect from rain.

• In some houses this free lavatory was covered up and converted into an additional room.

• Most importantly, because all houses were given near identical structures, the upper castes did not use them as this would reduce the gap in status between them and the other castes. They felt that their exclusive status would be jeopardized if they were to use the toilets. At the same time, the lower castes too did not use these because their reference group, the upper castes, were not using them.

Such noble intentions, backed by big money! The scheme, of course, got 'shuttered'. And defecation still takes place in the open.

Ranjana Subberwal, an eminent sociologist, observed a similar phenomenon in Rajasthan when a high-yielding variety of seed was being marketed to an audience of landless labourers! Out of sync with market reality, such schemes are bound to fail.

Market-sensitive Communication

A brilliant piece of market-sensitive communication is that of Calmpose. You know what it is for. So does the doctor. So do most patients. And there lies the rub. The brand is familiar; if the doctor prescribes Calmpose to a patient, he loses to some extent the aura of mystery surrounding his profession. The ad for Calmpose says: ' Calmpose—the best is always familiar' (Figure 2.3)

26


Doctors know of the widespread awareness of the brand name. By saying, 'the best is always familiar' you tell them why Calmpose is familiar. Few doctors would desist from prescribing what is the best.

FIGURE 2.3Calmpose making a strength out of a weakness

TABLE 2.3Comparative performance of leading diazepam brands

Product MAT(Crs.) MS(%) CHG%

Tranquilizers 30.0 100.0 5.7Calmpose (Sep. 1969), Ranbaxy 12.7 42 .3 3.7Valium (Nov. 1979), Piramal 11.1 37.1 7.8

MAT—Moving Annual TotalMS—Market Share CHG — ChangeSource: ORG IMS, 2009.

To reinforce this concept, one flipchart asked; 'Should your patient forego the best just because it is familiar?' This communication thus was able to extend the maturity stage of the product lifecycle of Calmpose (Table 2.3).

These examples demonstrate that good communication strategies spring from and take care of the realities in the marketplace. Most communications from this company were impeccable. Having said this, take a look at the advertisement from Stancare, a Ranbaxy

FIG

UR

E 2

.4N

o c

om

ments

!Y

ou d

eci

de

Prescribe Fasigyn

FIGURE 2.5Pfizer expands the amoebiasis market. Brilliant!

29


group company (Figure 2.4). Objectively speaking, how do you react to its layout, its copy? Do you think such communication can possibly produce results?

Let us move on to something more positive.

We now turn the pages of marketing history to a communication message that worked. 1992. The anti-amoebic segment was in the decline, and Pfizer's Fasigyn, though a late entrant. was the leader here (Table 2.4). Pfizer saw the downturn in 1992 and focused on expanding the market by such communication (Figure 2.5).

TABLE 2.4Comparative performance of leading anti-amoebic brands

Product MAT(Crs.) MS(%)

Amoebicides oral solids 622.9 91.5Fasigyn (Sep. 1988), Pfizer 94.7 13.9Metrogyl (Aug. 1972), Unique 83.5 12.3Tiniba (Feb. 1980), Alidac 29.1 4.3

MAT—Moving Annual TotalMS—Market Share CHG — ChangeSource: ORG IMS, 2009.

Today, the market is robust. Surely, this is partly because of Pfizer's efforts. Zydus Cadila, with its brand Tiniba, has beaten Pfizer in recent times and this is commendable; but Pfizer did grow the market. The company, with just 65 products, grosses Rs. 820 Cr. Remarkable indeed!

To sum up, a successful communication strategy defines what is to be said. It springs from the realities in the marketplace. But while this is a necessary foundation for success, it is not enough. You also need a creative and unique execution of the communication strategy to succeed in the crowded pharmaceutical market. But is it possible to be creative while working within the narrow confines of strategy? Can we be strategically creative? This is what we explore in the next chapter.

CHAPTER 7

Marketing Peace

ut all marketing is warfare, or so they have said so far. In my view, marketing is both war and peace. Marketing is both Bwar and love.

However, only one facet of marketing has been expanded upon - war, attack, aggression. It is win-lose only. This is where we go wrong. The most clearly visible facet of marketing has been taken to cover the entire gamut of marketing.

One equally dominant, equally productive strain has not yet been discovered. The strain of peace - marketing peace. Marketing peace is an alternative marketing outlook.

The concept of marketing peace has been in use since time imme-morial. I first recognized this concept when I delved into the history of religion in India. In the first chapter, we spoke of the concept of Avataars. This concept says that there is one supreme deity who is born again and again. Through this concept the Hindu religion ensured that the appeal of one god did not clash with the appeal of others. Individuals and households worshipping different gods could live together without religious differences cropping up. This concept of Avataars is an example of marketing peace.

Changing the Frame of Reference

To understand the concept of marketing peace, we will look at the Hero Puch advertising campaign. But before that let us trace the

67

68

history of the Honda line of bikes because there is an important lesson here. Remember the Hero Honda commercial, 'Fill It, Shut It and Forget It' ? What a roaring success the bike was! Some years later the line was changed. Earlier, the product was in its growth stage on the product lifecycle and the fuel-efficient message was well communicated. Now, thousands of bikes were there on the roads to endorse the bike's credibility. Thus was born the 'You have got a good thing going' (Aap ka shandar hamsafar) (Figure 7.1). This commercial owes its genesis to a keen insight into buying behaviour and, of course, some commonsense.

The advertiser understood that nobody bought a bike because of an advertisement. The likely purchaser went to the existing owners of bikes in his consideration set and sought their opinion. This behav-iour was recognized and exploited through the advertisement. The advertisement gave the existing owner words to mouth about his bike. Later, the number of bikes sold was put up on hoardings so that the new prospect would feel very positive about the bike - so many people could not be wrong. Figure 7.2 shows the genesis of the Hero Honda advertisement and its progress. Note how the message changes with the changing stage of the product lifecycle.

The next challenge before the company was to sell Hero Puch. With no Hero Puchs on the road, who was going to endorse the bike? The solution was to change the frame of reference.

Thus was born the advertisement, 'Akele hoti hai har nai shuruaat. Agar shakti hai pass tumhare to zammana dega saath.' (Every new beginning is made by an individual. Others will follow if you have the power.)

By making the buyer of a Hero Puch a pioneer, the advertisement tried to change the schema of the existing behaviour pattern (Figure 7.3). You change the landscape rather than crowd the position everybody is rushing into. Thus by changing the frame of reference, you make other sites as attractive.

Can you recall the Zara sa Rin advertisement that was aired some

Creative Working of the Factor

Jingle: Hero Honda... Jingle continues: You’ve got a good thing going...

Jingle continues: You’ve got a good thing going... Hero Honda...

MVO: Fill it. Forget it. (Music under)... Jingle continues: You’ve got a good thing going...

Jingle continues: Hero Honda... MVO: Four-stroke makes all the difference. (Music under)...

FIGURE 7.1 (Contd)

FVO: I like it. (Music under)... Jingle continues: You’ve got a good thing going...

MVO: Gaari ho to aisi... (Music under)Jingle continues: You’ve got a good thing going... Hero Honda...

Jingle continues: You’ve got a good thing going...

Jingle continues: Hero Honda...

MVO: Very very sensible.(Music under)...

MVO: What a bike! (Music under)...

FIGURE 7.1 Market-sensitive communication makes Hero Honda the leader

FIG

URE

7.2

Hero

Hon

da c

hang

ing

mes

sage

s as

the

prod

uct m

atur

es o

n th

e pr

oduc

t life

cycle

72

years back? If you have used the product you will know that the bar melts rapidly. That was a weakness. This advertisement changes the frame of reference by converting this weakness into a strength. According to Rajiv Vij, the Senior Product Manager at Hindustan Lever, the advertisement was a roaring success, because not only did it make the most of a weakness, it also was suggestive of economy and power.

In the same league is a flipchart developed by American Remedies. The company was small in size but big in 'think input'.

It had too small a range of products. This is how it changed the doctor's frame of reference. The following was the line the represen-tative was to say through the flipchart.

‘Sir, efficacy, safety and convenience are the three attributes which you look for in a drug. That is why, though there are hundreds of molecules available, you write just a few.

'Similarly, Sir, efficacy, safety and convenience are the three parameters we look for in a drug that we market. That is why though there are thousands of formulations to market, we sell just a few. This is American Remedies...'

In any product category where product lifecycles are short, product obsolescence common and new product introduction rampant, changing the frame of reference is a very useful though little used technique. You keep your product's appeal current and alive by redefining the prevailing schema. This also helps you avoid a dogfight. Changing the frame of reference is thus one illustration of marketing peace.

Promotional Cartelization

The word 'cartelization' has negative connotations. Cartelization usually refers to price fixing, stock cutting, debarring other entrants, and so on.

But it offers potent avenues for the use of marketing peace. If you


VO: Hero naye yug ka - Aamir Khan(The new generation hero - Aamir Khan)

MVO: (A. Khan): Akele hoti hai har nayi shuruaat agar shakti hai paas tumhare to zammana dega saath (Every new beginning is made alone. If you have the power, the world will be with you)

Music: To zammana dega saath... (The world will be with you)

Music continued

Music: Akele hoti hai har nayi shuruaat... (Every new beginning is made alone)

Music: Tumhare pass hai shakti (If you have the power)

FIGURE 7.3 (Contd)

Music: Hero hai hero Hero Puch... (Hero Puch is a hero)

Music: Naye yug ka hero. Hero Puch naya yug nayi shakti...(Hero Puch is the hero of the new generation. New generation. New power)

MVO (A. Khan): Aur zammana dega saath...(And the world will be with you)

VO & Music: Hero Puch

FIGURE 7.3Hero Puch - Beyond positioning. Changing the frame of reference

75

can think of a new type of cartelization - promotional cartelization.

Let us take a case. Typhoid can be prevented. There are at least two companies in India which are marketing typhoid vaccines which can prevent the disease for a particular number of years. But, unfortu-nately, typhoid is not considered as serious an infection any more by the medical community.

The doctor today has antibiotics that can take care of typhoid in just five days, with the overall cost of therapy running to less than Rs 50. Moreover, many of these antibiotics virtually guarantee hundred per cent results with no relapses. At present, the vaccines are pegged at Rs 275 (for an oral dose of three tablets) and Rs 400 (for an injec-tion). Both companies are at each other's throats to prove how their form is better.

A lot of energy is going waste. Can it be fruitfully channelized to provide the marketers larger gains? Yes, through promotional cartelization.

How? Rather than fighting each other, if these companies were to fight the current perception in the doctor's mind that typhoid is not a very serious disease, there would be synergy. There will be success.

If the fact that it is much better for a patient not to suffer from the infection (though it is controllable) could reach the doctor's mind effectively, far more sales for these companies could be generated than they can snatch from each other.

Teaming Up for Mutual Gain

A potent avenue for marketing peace is co-promotion. The pharma-ceutical industry has just begun to exploit this area. Companies are realizing that product usage can be extended to market segments and geographical areas not being effectively covered if they were to team up with companies that are strong in areas where they are weak.

Another area where the concept of marketing peace is working well

Marketing Peace

76

is that of strategic alliances in research, Glaxo and Searle have formed such an alliance which is working for the advantage of both. IBM, Motorola and Apple Computers have been collaborating on the power chip. Hewlett Packard has a partnership with Canon for laser printers - Canon develops the engines for splitting ink on the page, while Hewlett Packard develops software, microcontrollers, customer research and marketing.

Claiming Higher Ground

Marketing peace is a valuable concept because there is much unclaimed territory in the market today. However, how often do we indulge in expensive and wasteful fighting to snatch what is some-one else's? It happens in all industries. Take the example of media. Magazines the world over have been trying to take on television channels. However, if a magazine group could instead tie-up with a television channel to offer special rates to those who subscribe to both, it could be a win-win situation. Peace! In fact the largest magazines in USA is one which tells people about programs which will appear on TV in the forthcoming week.

Many markets all over the world are in their infancy. Unclaimed green pastures are waiting to be acquired. This fact is overlooked. We assume full adulthood of the market. It is wrong to believe that it is necessary to fight to win. But mostly, one must have the sight, the vision, to win. With vision most wars can be avoided and precious resources conserved.

The markets are not saturated. Our minds are saturated with the idea that all marketing is war.

Take the example of the Carefree advertisement - 'Dhona, sukhona, banana ab gaya vo zamana' (Washing - drying - gone is that era.) (See Figure. 7.4.) Also note how the line 'Akhir unhe bhi to pata chale ki hum bhi modern hai (Let them also know that we too are modern) taps into a common Indian instinct of status. It may be argued that though you are not fighting these categories, you are fighting others. But you need to understand that times have changed.


Video: A young girl is being teased about her marriage.Audio: Aur Pooja, naye ghar mein jaa kar apni purani mausi ko math bhool na(Pooja, don’t forget your old aunt when you go to your new home.)

FIGURE 7.4 (Cond)

Video: Her elder sister addsAudio: Jahaan itni nayee baaten sun rahee hai...(Where you’re hearing so many new things...)

Video: Close-up of Carefree PackAudio: Ek zaroori baat sun! Yeh hai Carefree(Listen to something important. This is Carefree.)

Video: Her elder sister continues...Audio: Kyonki main janti hoon... Vahaan nahi chalega purane style ka dhona, banana...(Because I know that there the old style will not do. Washing, making...)

Video: She shows a Carefree napkinAudio: Carefree ek readymade napkin hai...(Carefree is a readymade napkin...)

Video: A close-up as she continuesAudio: Jo zyada sokhe aur poora saaf dry feeling dey(Which soaks more and give a clean and dry feeling)

FIGURE 7.4Another example of marketing peace

Video: She shows the elastic beltAudio: Aur saath main yeh napkin ko hilney na dey(And this will keep the napkin in place)

Video: The bride to be gigglesAudio: Didi!(Sister!)

Video: The elder sister retortsAudio: Aakhir unhe bhi to pata chale ki hum bhi modern hain(Let them also know we too are ‘modern’)

Video: Pack short superAudio: Carefree belted sanitary napkin dhona, banana, sukhana ab gaya woh zamana(Carefree belted sanitary napkins... Gone are the days of washing, drying and making...)

Bahadur bachchon ki pehchaan(The symbol of brave children)

Antar rashtriya Handyplast(International Handyplast)

Handyplast

Duniya bhar mein bahadur bachchon ki pehchaan - Handyplast(The symbol of brave children the world over - Handyplast)

FIGURE 7.5Handyplast - A medal for bravery. Ingenious!

80

We have moved from the disposable concept of income to the discretionary concept of income. There is greater purchasing power available today. Most small-ticket purchases are impulsive. You don't always buy one thing and then have to go without the other. In such a scenario, is it necessary to battle head to head with your competitor? Isn't there a higher ground that is above street fighting?

Take a look at this ingenious Handyplast 'bahaduri ki patti' adver-tisement (Figure 7.5). It exploits the fact that every child likes to feel that he is brave and display his valiance to the world. Therefore, he uses a plaster even when it is not called for. It is his way of showing off. The advertisment exploits this and tries to market Handyplast as a cosmetic - a medal of bravery for the child - without attacking other products. Marketing peace. (I only wish they used the brand name more often.)

But, all said and done, marketing peace is a path of great resistance which is difficult to find. It needs a high degree of creative search. It needs courage. Bahaduri.


The Rx factor

Education

Transcript of The Rx factor