Defining a Market – The Basis of a Brand Strategy

Defining a Market – The Basis of a Brand?Strategy

Just last week I was in a session with my students from a top B-school in Mumbai when Pooja, a bright student asked me:

“Is it really necessary to define the market when you launch a new product? For example, I decide to launch nabumetone (an NSAID), PainGo (fictitious name for an example). This means the entire NSAID market is for me. Or maybe the entire NSAID + Opioid analgesic market. That is my market, right?”

“Pooja, it is not so simple. You cannot craft a robust brand strategy unless you really understand your market and your customers. And you cannot understand the market until you define it the same way as your padocumer wants. So create a padocumer-centric market definition”

“That’s new to me – padocumer and padocumer-centric market definition.”

“Pooja, till now, in the 20th and even in the early part of the 21st century, only doctors were perceived to be our customers. This evolution is continuous. The patient is becoming more and more enlightened; she would like to be engaged in the treatment.??The patients are therefore becoming our customers too. But that cannot be at the cost of doctors. So both, patients and doctors together – the padocumers (blending the word patient, doctor as consumers) – are the true customers for the pharma industry.”

“This sounds very interesting. Yes, pharma should be committed to the padocumers,” responded Pooja.

“However, for this discussion, we shall consider only the doctors. Begin your brand strategy crafting process with a doctor-centric definition of your market,” I said. “Your inputs are very simple: your knowledge about who your doctors are and what are they interested in. The output is a crystal clear definition of the market in which you are competing. Just as a mega-tower like the ‘Burj-Khalifa’ has a very deep and strong foundation, the new market definition will help you lay a solid foundation for your brand. Be focussed. Think deeply. Building brand strategies based on a doctor-centric market definition is the first stage of your brand strategy process.”

“And equally important Pooja, spell out the doctors who are not in your definition of the market.”

“Got it Sir,” she said.

I continued: “Next, to define the market, you need to take into account the needs of the doctors. The needs are both the hygiene needs and the motivating needs.”

“What’s that,” asked Pooja.

“The hygiene needs are the very basic needs. These can include efficacy safety, quality, and affordability for a great mass of patients who have pain, in your case for nabumetone. The ease of use should also include the caregiver at home. This is important as the patient spends 95% of the time with the caregiver at home. And the caregiver could be the mother, father, or someone near and dear to the patient.”

“What then are the motivation needs?” shot Pooja.

“The motivating needs of a doctor can include applicability across a wide range of chronic pain types, showing health economic efficacy and minimization of change of practice by nursing staff.”

“What is health economic efficacy?”

“This means utilizing healthcare resources to get the best value for money. The doctor may adopt the criterion of economic efficiency so that the patient has choices to maximise the health outcomes from her resources. The doctor and patient together can discuss GoPain as the line of treatment which costs Rs. 16 per day, or etodolac which costs Rs. 30 per day or naproxen costing Rs. 6.00 per day. GoPain and etodolac are better in its anti-inflammatory action than naproxen. Then the doctor and the patient together can take a decision.”

“So does this mean that the motivational needs are tangible??”

“Yes Pooja, you are right. Some doctors for example may be motivated by the need to reduce pain, which is a common feature in such medical conditions. Some may be less tangible, such as the need to feel innovative and pioneering in meeting that need. Some doctors could be motivated by the wish to be perceived as being at the leading edge of practice whilst others are more conservative.”

“Remember Pooja, the important thing about the motivating needs is that they differ from doctor to doctor. They, therefore, form the basis for differentiating your offer to the market and your competitive advantage.”

“So the next step, based on the hygiene needs and the motivational needs, define your market.”

“Now that you have written your doctor-centric market definition, it should be the reference point for the rest of your process for making brand strategy.”

“I think,” said Pooja, “the market definition should be created by the brand management team and the sales team together. Not just the corporate office based senior sales managers, but also the District Manager’s, the first-line managers.”

“Wow Pooja, you are right. Now can you define the market for GoPain?”

“Certainly, let me try.”

“GoPain is in the pain relief market in which doctors want safety first, and efficacy next (hygiene needs) and includes general and orthopaedic surgeons who want to be perceived as exceptional surgeons who are courageous, realistic to the patient’s needs and is a continuous learner (motivation needs). My market will not be for doctors who want efficacy first and safety next, nor for doctors who are conservative. My market is also not for the late adopters or the laggards who are not willing to learn new things continuously.”

“Yes Pooja, you have fully understood the concept and the importance of market definition.”

With inputs from Peter Drucker and Brian Smith