Nutrition Supplement - A Prescription Drug to an OTC Product

- Sohil Gandhi

The Indian Pharma Sector

The Indian Pharmaceutical Industry is buoyed by a strong

demand, improved spending on healthcare and rising middle

class incomes. Cipla topped the list by highest market share of 5.38% Among the largest growing drugs for the year was Abbott's insulin Human Mixtard, which rose 27% to become the second largest-selling brand, displacing painkiller Voveran ( Novartis) with a 6% growth. Overall, the Indian Pharmaceutical industry has achieved a growth of 16.5% in 2010 on a y-o-y basis.
*Source: IMS Health

Over The Counter (OTC)Market

The Indian OTC market have been growing at around 10% for

the last 2 years, leaving the US and China much behind, where
OTC drug sale is estimated at 4% to 5% respectively. The share of sale of OTC traditional drugs in India has gone up to 30% as against of cold and cough medicines, 12% of vitamins and nutritional and about 7% of analgesics. The OTC drugs in India are quite common because the number of pharmacists and chemists have exceeded 8.5 lakh.

*source: Sify Finance

Nutritional Supplements to Diabetic and cardiac patients

Now a days due to change in lifestyle patterns more and more

people are suffering from various heart problem

For such kind of Patients nutritional supplements are requires most the combination are of VitaminB12, Folic Acid, Methylcobalamin is being provided Such kind of drugs help in maintain proper health and it become a part of every prescription that prescribe for such patients and its growing day by day.

*source: Sify Finance

Big switch RX to OTC

Why Switch?

The Advantage
The decision to move ahead to switching a product from Rx to

OTC status is a major strategic move

Several key factors need to be assessed to determine its success potential, including whether:
The product is a suitable as selfmedication to Patient The product is going to be first in a Rx category to switch (creating a new OTC category) The product has a recognizable pointofdifference versus existing treatments The product has potential for modification into different forms to increase differentiation There is an unmet consumer need The Rx brand has adequate market equity to achieve a successful switch

A Successful Switch Requires

The Marketing Mix

Promotion

Place Price

Product

The Product
A switch product needs to have a clearly defined

pointofdifference in the OTC market where it will compete

and is only likely to be successful if it can fill an unmet need of existing consumers. OTC switch include packaging design: inclusion of recognizable elements that highlight key product positioning, benefits and link these to the Rx heritage. Product differentiation in OTC can also be strengthened by providing different formats for consumer use e.g. different pack sizes, liquid versus tablets etc.

The Price
It becomes a determining factor for OTC products, as India is a

highly price sensitive market

Based on the packaging, the prices should be fiercely competitive with competing brands. Also, a little push would be required to be given by the company to the retailers (maybe through contests or holidays), and the associated costs be incorporated in the same As a part of its CSR activity, the company can drop its prices in a previously identified segment, and reap the benefits of the same.

The Place
The product during its launch phase itself should be made

available all across the length & breadth of the country or

should reflect the promotion strategies used for the same. As an OTC product, the products should have considerable visibility in highly residential areas, as this will help the product gain popularity at a rapid pace. The metro areas (Tier I & Tier II cities) should be given priority as should the areas where the instances of the nutritional requirements identified through research are high.

The Promotion
Companies who plan a switch with an Rx product well ahead

can ensure that there is published data that supports use for
the product for the OTC indications and uses sought. OTC switch products effectively become new consumer brands and should focus on translating emotional benefits rather than the functional benefits traditionally communicated to

physicians. Longterm planning can ensure that the Rx product starts to communicate these through packaging at a much earlier phase than when switch is imminent. This enables a smooth transition from Rx to OTC with packaging changes reflecting an evolution of communications rather than an abrupt change.

Push & Pull - Strategies

Push Strategies
Retailer Wise:

Priority should be given in the areas where the instances of the

nutritional requirements identified through research are high. The brand visibility & business activations such as product statuettes & display posters should be on the higher (dominating) side, that can reinforce the customers. The retailers can be given Perks to promote the product by offering them attractive holiday or schemes, or enrolling them in competitions based on a number of pre-decided sale of product - either in numbers or financial terms.

Pull Strategies
Consumer Wise:

A product can be pushed through to the consumer if via

longterm planning one can ensure that the Rx product starts to communicate through packaging that a switch is imminent. This enables a smooth transition from Rx to OTC with packaging changes reflecting an evolution of communications rather than an abrupt change. The company to increase its consumer base to different sections of the society, can come up with varied dosage (the strength) and the medium (Tablets, Syrup, etc.) and more health awareness to Cardiac and Hypertension patient along with cost saving

The Demand Model

To influence the consumers, a holistic demand model is required to be constructed, of which the doctors and the pharmacists, become the prime players and Word of Mouth plays an important role in it. The key modeling factors to consider may include the

frequency of symptoms and treatments per year, units of

product used per episode and how patients will use the treatment provided (full course, some or none of what is recommended). Understanding and implementing this will help the retailers push the specific product and simultaneously on the other hand will create a pull for the consumers to purchase the

same.

The Demand Model

The demand model will need to reflect assumptions on

consumer need for the new OTC product, their reactions to

price and the impact on consumers of visiting a pharmacy for treatment versus a physician. The demand model will also have to take into consideration the cannibalization of sales and the threat the product faces from its competitors & traditional remedies. Proper indication and contra-indication of the product are informed properly along with the dosage.

Print - Outdoor - Radio Television (PORT)

Awareness: Print
One of the basic requirements for any brand is to create

awareness amongst its targeted consumers, the following can

be implemented:
Newspaper adverts (more than 1/4th of a page, to create impact). The best positioning for the same would be to act as the cover page to the

newspaper itself.
To have various educational/informational pamphlets distributed in high potential areas & also be distributed as a keepsake. Articles on dos & do nots in popular magazines on the disease and the remedies along with strong recommendations of the product. Posters on Medical Store and its near by areas.

Awareness: Outdoor
To create an impact, this becomes one of the cheapest modes

as far as the eye-sight goes:

Painting a complete train rake, for a period of 6 months, and depending on previous research either Central/Western/Suburb & giving information on causes & remedies with a suggestion to visit chemists to ask for remedies A Health Check up Camp in dominant areas/estate to be carried out across the country to act as a business activation point for the consumers about the brand and educate them on the same as well. Outdoor - embossed hoardings at prominent traffic junctions

Awareness: Radio
To create an impact, this becomes one of the cheapest modes

as far as hearing goes:

To club up with a popular radio show, have live interactions with popular personalities, who suffer from similar abnormalities, ask them for natural remedies & as a voice over also suggest the brand as an option. To create awareness drive with the radio channels at popular hotspots, like malls on weekends to further promote the brand to piggyback on the radios brand equity.

Awareness: Television
One of the most important & expensive mediums, it also helps

to convert maximum consumers:

To directly contrast & compare the advantages of the brand, with other remedies in a very discrete manner via ongoing serials & features. To create advertisements based on recommendations by the medical

fraternities as this helps in boosting the morale & the confidence of the
consumer towards the product. To promote the product through interactive online purchase channels like CJ Alive, by showcasing the before and after effects of the usage of the product.

Retailers Schemes
The retailers in order to push the sales of the product can be

encouraged with a lot of different kind of offers. All of these if

possible are to be given on a basis of a tier system that is explained in the latter slide. Some of the suggested offers include:
Based on Tier system provide retailers/chemists with holiday packages For retailers who do not have a computer based logistics system at the shop, offer the same (hardware & software plus training, again based on a tier system To have an quarterly draw for the retailers, promising a heavy discount or a complimentary health check ups for the owners as well as his family.

Tier System

I
II III

On X Amount of Sales Financially Driven

On X plus 20%of X Sales Non-descript retailers stop here

On X plus 50% of (X+20%) Sales Major gifts accommodation here

Additional Strategies: Social Media and CSR Activity

The Social Media can also be used to promote the brand among its potential consumers. Since this is a relatively new brand the

company can willingly experiment with different online options to

create a positive impact. The company can also create an emotional connect to its consumers by promoting - creating brand awareness & product visibility through CSR activities. This will help the company in accomplishing two goals simultaneously. It will help circulate the brand and also increase its credibility in the market.

The company can enlist the services of medical associations of the

country and make them approve the product. This will instill confidence in the mind of the consumers that it is a good quality & dependable drug for self-medication.

Conclusion
An OTC switch is one effective approach to extending the

brand lifecycle rather than accepting sales declines as part of

the inevitable fallout from generic competition. It helps, the company instill confidence about the brand in the consumer and also helps in increasing its credibility in the market. With Indias rapidly growing OTC market, this all strategy does play a major role in the companys long term sustainablity and product growth.

Thank you