Marketing Research (Process and Methodology)

In the constantly changing pharmaceutical market

environments characterized by vast R&D costs,
heightened competition, increased regulation, and
ever more demanding consumers,
pharmaceutical marketers are called upon daily to
make critical judgments and decisions.

They evaluate a market's potential, the possible

influence of new government regulatory
restrictions, the effect of past price lowering by
competitors, or the extent to which a new product
satisfies the needs of prescribers and patients. In
addition to their prior education and professional
experience, they rely on accurate, timely, and
detailed information describing the factors that
have, are, or will be affecting their business-
operating environment in the future.

PROCESS AND METHODOLOGY

The marketing research process can be divided into distinct steps, namely…

1. Defining the problem

2. Setting the research objectives
3. Designing the research plan
4. Selecting the optimal sample and its size
5. Collecting the data
6. Analyzing the data collected
7. Creating a model based on the data; and, finally
8. Evaluating this model and deciding on the optimal marketing strategy

A closer look at each of these important steps follows.

1. Defining the Problem

This step is critical to the whole research process because the wrong definition of a problem may lead
pharmaceutical marketers to misleading and dangerous conclusions.

A commonly employed method used in marketing research problem definition is exploratory research. This
process uses a small number of interviewees and explores their beliefs, attitudes, or actual experiences
regarding a particular product to uncover the often concealed reasons for their prescribing or purchasing
behavior. A more thorough and expansive marketing research is then designed based on these findings.

The purposes of exploratory research are…

1. To develop hypotheses;
2. To better define the problem
3. To establish research priorities
4. To collect information on research methodologies
5. To test various alternatives

2. Setting the Research Objectives

Often, research objectives are distinguished as primary and secondary objectives, with emphasis and
thoroughness placed on primary objectives, and less time and effort allotted to secondary objectives.

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Consider the following example for better understanding primary and secondary objectives…

A migraine medication is to be introduced to the Pakistani market. The company marketers are busy creating
their product's targeting and positioning. They have conducted their exploratory research, which led them to
the definition of the following research objectives…

 Primary: Which medical specialty primarily consults migraine sufferers, what is their
practice and prescription volume, what are their unmet needs, and what are their
current prescribing habits?

 Secondary: How do they react versus the product's campaign alternatives, their
brand awareness, and competitor company image?

3. Designing the Research Plan

Research planning involves the following three main steps.

Selecting a marketing research agency

This is a very sensitive process because, when identifying an able, external partner, it must possess essential
characteristics. Marketing research agency must have recognition among pharmaceutical market, therapeutic
category expertise, considerable human resources, practical location, and reasonable prices.

Preparing the research brief for the agency

This document has to be thoroughly researched and prepared so that it clearly describes the problem and
presents all knowledge about the problem with the external partner.

Agreeing on the research plan with the agency

In order to avoid possible misunderstandings, conflicts, and delays, the final research plan is mutually agreed
upon and respectively signed.

4. Collecting the Data

The collection of primary data is done using one of the following research methodologies…

Survey
A survey is systematic research effort, collecting information from a sample of individuals, using a
questionnaire.

Observation
Observation is the systematic recording of customer behavior, events, or objects. Some of the observation
research subjects are physical actions, verbal/expressive behavior, temporal patterns, and spatial relations.

Experimentation (test marketing)

Experimentation is often used by pharmaceutical marketers to test specific product characteristics or
marketing campaign items in an effort to fine-tune their R&D or promotional activities in advance of the actual
product launch. Common examples of such tests are patients tastes and packaging testing.

6. Analysing the Data Collected

Once the data collection phase has been completed, the data are entered into a suitable electronic database
and various statistical tests are utilized for their analysis.

7. Creating a Model, Based on the Data

The systematic collection and analysis of marketing research data eventually leads to the creation of a
detailed situational model describing customer’s attitudes and behaviors. These models are extremely

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valuable tools for marketing decision making. Examples of such models include the prescribing-decision
process maps, patient purchasing decision and follow up.

8. Evaluating the Model and Deciding on the Optimal Marketing Strategy

The final step in the marketing research process is the evaluation of the situational model by company
experts, ranging from R&D to upper management, marketing, sales, manufacturing, advertising, and others
working in functional teams toward the improvement of the product's competitive advantage.

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a. Market Analysis Techniques 3Cs (Company
analysis, Customer analysis, competitors
analysis)

What is the 3Cs Model?

The 3Cs Model is an industry/ business model, which offers

a strategic look at the factors needed for success. It was
developed by Japanese organizational theorist Kenichi-
Ohmae.

By using the 3C’s Model presented by Kenichi Ohmae, you

will have a great chance to keep things simple as you focus
on just three key components that are sure to be critical to
your success moving forward.

The 3Cs model points out that a strategist should focus on

three key factors for success.

These three key factors for success are:

1. Company
2. Customer
3. Competition

This balance within the 3C model can lead to a sustainable

competitive advantage.

1. Company Analysis
The Company needs to focus on the maximization of its
strengths. As a result, the company can influence the
functional areas of the competition that are critical to
achieve success within a certain industry. The functions
that might not be up to standard initially can gradually be
improved over time.

Focusing on a key functional area may create an

effective improvement in other functions of the
competition (For example quality improvement). By
functional areas is meant for example products, services, technology, etc.
It is also important for a company to informed decisions to contractors (capacity, cost structure,
significant strategic advantages) and how effectively this can be realized with respect to cost
reduction (selective purchasing, stock management, choice of commodities, use of automation).

It’s certainly not necessary for a company to excel in one specific function. If there’s a clear
advantage in one important function, the company can then also reinforce and improve other
functions from that strength.

If labor costs are rising, it can be an attractive option for companies to outsource part of the work.
They then do need to consider the competition; if their production is outsourced to subcontractors, it
can influence the cost price. To counter this, a company can improve the cost effectiveness. Firstly,

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by trying to lower the basic costs compared to their competitors. Secondly by lowering the functional
cost including those for transport. A third option would be to combine certain key functions with
other businesses, sharing overhead costs. Examples could be transport, warehousing or call
centers.

Simple you can say that you need to answer the following three key questions during the
company analysis

1. What product and/or service is your company really good at offering?

2. What is your company vision or what do your company want to be?
3. What resources do your company have in hand right now?
Your company needs to focus on the maximization of its strengths. As a result, your company can
influence the functional areas of the competition that are critical to achieve success within a certain
industry.

2. Customer Analysis
The customers are the basis for any
organization according to Kenichi Ohmae.
Without a doubt, organization’s top priority
interest is customers rather than other
stakeholders or parties. Important elements are
their needs, requirements, demands, problem
areas, buying motives, value components, and
decision-makers etcetera. Segmentation of
objectives (use of products) and customers
(geography, age, social interests) and the
market (potential customers, competitors) are
important for constructing and adopting a strategy. Using digital questionnaires, reviews and
platforms, a company can find out what customers are thinking and seriously include this
information in strategic decisions.

Simple you can say that you need to answer the following three key questions during the
customer analysis

1. Who are your customers?

2. What are the needs of your various customers?
3. Can your product and/or service meet these needs of your customers?

3. Competitors Analysis
Do you know where you stand in the market
related to your competition? Is the competition
trying to catch up to you, or vice versa? For
instance, a smaller competitor might not be
able to compete on cost with a bigger firm, so
you might be able to gain market share
successfully against your smaller competition.
Of course, this is just one example, and there
are nearly endless ways in which you can use
the weaknesses of your competition to claim a
bigger piece of the market for yourself.

According to Kenichi Ohmae these strategies can be constructed by looking at possible

differentiation in functions such as purchasing, design, engineering, sales and maintenance. One of
the most important factors is image and this can provide the necessary power. Both Pfizer and
Sanofi for example, sell more than their competitors because they invest more in public relations
and advertising. Smaller corporations and organizations can use franchise concepts or low margins
and make the necessary investments in service.

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Something that’s sometimes overlooked is using the difference in profit source. Where does the
company get most of its profits? With selling existing products, selling new products, selling
services, etc. Related to this is the difference in the ratio between fixed and variable costs, which
can be particularly important to low-turnover companies. Fixed costs can for instance lower prices in
a slow market and help gain market share.

Simple you can say that you need to answer the following three key questions during the
competitor analysis

1. What are competitors offering (and not offering) that your customers need?
2. What can competitors not easily offer that you might offer?
3. How do competitors go to market (sell, service, market) that does not connect well with
customers?

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Evaluating the Marketing Performance (Audit Tools and Audit Process)
Marketing analysis or marketing audit

At the end of each business cycle every

organization involved in evaluating the actual
company performance against the forecasted.
The results of this thorough and periodic
evaluation of marketing performance give
useful insights to industry managers about
what went right and what went wrong, what
could be enhanced or prevented in the next
planning cycle, and what overall changes need
to be made to the company's marketing mix in
search of a sustainable competitive
advantage. Evaluating the company's
marketing performance is called marketing
analysis or marketing audit.

The Marketing Audit Process

The marketing audit process is a systematic analysis of all major company strategies, tactics, and
performance indicators in an independent and periodic manner.

The marketing audit is generally conducted by a third person, not a member of an organization.

The firm conducting the Marketing Audit should keep the following points in mind…

 The Audit should be Comprehensive, i.e. it should cover all the areas of marketing where the problem
persists.

 The Audit should be Systematic, i.e. an orderly analysis and evaluation of firm’s marketing principles,
objectives, strategies and other operations that directly or indirectly influence the firm’s marketing
performance.

 The audit should be Independent; the best audit is the outsider audit; wherein the auditor is the external
party to an organization who works independently and is not partial to anyone.

 The audit should be Periodical; generally, the companies conduct the marketing audit when some problem
arises in the marketing operations. But it is recommended to have a regular marketing audit so that that
problem can be rectified at its source.

The Marketing Audit Tools

A variety of marketing audit tools is available to the industry.
These study various analysis subjects such as sales, market
share, innovation, advertising effectiveness, cost, profitability,
variance, contribution, competitive strength, resource utilization,
and distribution.

Sales Analysis
Sales analysis is defined as the collection, comparison, and
evaluation of a product or company sales data.

Market Share Analysis

Market share performance can refer to a product, a product line's
share of a therapeutic area segment, or to the company's share
of the total pharmaceutical market.

Cost Analysis
Cost analysis refers to the systematic evaluation of all costs related to products or activities. Costs are usually
categorized as fixed and variable costs. Fixed costs do not change with increases/decreases in units of
production volume, while variable costs are solely dependent on the volume of units of production. Examples

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of fixed costs often include rent, buildings, machinery, etc. while variable costs include labor costs, utility
costs, commissions, and the cost of raw materials that are used in production.

Break-even analysis
The break-even point (BEP) or break-even level represents the sales amount in either unit (quantity) or
revenue (sales) terms that is required to cover total costs, consisting of both fixed and variable costs to the
company. Any quantity sold in excess of the break-even point generates a profit, while any quantity smaller
than break-even results in a loss.

Profitability Analysis
Profitability analysis refers to the systematic evaluation of the rate at which profit is made. When determining
company profitability, two commonly used tools are the income statement and the profit and loss statement.

Contribution Analysis
Contribution analysis is used in estimating how direct and variable costs of a product affect the net income of
a company.

Variance Analysis
Variance analysis is defined as examination of the deviation of actual results from a standard. For example,
spending variance is the difference between actual spending and budgeted spending. Variance analysis is an
important analytical tool that is important to every organization seeking ways to monitor and control its costs.

Customer Satisfaction Analysis

Customer satisfaction analysis is the systematic analysis of customer satisfaction levels from all aspects of a
product's offering, such as the product characteristics and benefits, informational and educational content,
other product-related services, customer service, and so on. This analysis involves the evaluation of actual
satisfaction versus customer expectations

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)

The lifetime value of a customer, or customer lifetime value (CLV), represents the total amount of money a
customer is expected to spend in your business, or on your products, during their lifetime. This is an important
figure to know because it helps you make decisions about how much money to invest in acquiring new
customers and retaining existing ones.