4. SALES & MARKETING PLAN
Treatment gaining Doctors trust with peer-to-peer
Direct endorsement, CET exhibition to reach and educate
Customers doctors concerning new technologies.
(Push) Demonstrate effectiveness and ease of application
for patients.
Indirect Consumers are often searching for the procedure
Customers that is right for them so create campaign to attract
(Pull) patients to doctors with print and digital material.
5. CHANNEL STRATEGY
Doctors, Treatment Centers and
Sales
Channel
Hospitals
Patients & Families
Staff & Contractors
Service
Channel (Training, Marketing, Sales)
Insurance Companies, FDA, Patients,
Families and Doctors
6. CORE AUDIENCE
• Education focused on research physicians
• Continued International outreach to Europe
and Asia
• Strategic focus and education with SRS
• Presentations at conferences
(both for practicing and academic physicians)
7. MARKETING PLAN
• Specialized trade journals and exhibiting at medical
tradeshows
• Press release and development news for newsletters
issued from the Scoliosis Research Society, American
Academy of Orthopeadic Surgeons, Scoliosis Journal
• Publications, mailers and flyers, and continuing
education seminars for training health professionals
8. CROSS MARKETING STRATEGY
• Online campaign centered on education and
interactive tools to communicate value
• Spread awareness about availability of
treatment
• Tradeshows networking
• Mimic pharmaceutical industry approach
9. MARKET RISKS
• Compliance with FDA Guidelines for marketing
with all sales collateral and infrastructure
• Measuring and tracking web inquires and direct
sales
• Brand consistency with all marketing strategies
Editor's Notes
I will discuss some key risks and solutions for the Intrabrace market penetration which includes:Adoption of Intrabrace NEXT Technology for the treatment of scoliosis Resistance of medical community / hospitals with other available treatmentsLack of training Patients awarenessInsurance coverage for the procedureAdoption of technology is slow with limited medical market penetration Resistance from medical community about the proven affects based on trails and Lack of training capacity available to teach the new procedure to doctors and varied competency levels to master new procedure correct Hospital board’s approval to allow only limited integration of NEXT into their existing procedures Patient unaware of the existence of this non-surgical alternative and seeking doctors who offer this treatment Some insurance companies refusal to cover NEXT treatment but will cover surgical procedure – which may make doctor hesitant to recommend the alternative to patients
Scoliosis affects approximately 3 out every 100 people in the USapprox. 9.36 million people, beginning in children ages 10 - 15 yrs old (80% of patients requiring treatment are adolescent females)Ineffective or unproven long-term treatments (Bracing and Surgery) which can affect the physical and emotional health of a patientProblem with current scoliosis treatment options are the process
Within the sales channel, Intrabrace will manage direct relationships with customers. Within the service channel, support for doctors and surgeons administering the treatment will be provided by staff and contractors. Questions from many sources will benefit from the development of a centralized knowledge base that includes training materials. Additional complexities may arise due to medical billing law via insurance and FDA.It is essential to get doctor on boardPeer endorsement or rejection can make or break the success of a medical deviceMedical professionals gatekeepers and if they don't believe in the device's effectiveness or if the device is difficult to use, they won't apply it to their patients
Reaching core audiences of doctors, hospital buyers and consumers in a niche scoliosis market requires a strategic cross promotional strategy. This involves getting doctors to trust and rely on the device for scoliosis treatment with peer-to-peer endorsement which can make or break the success of the device. All doctors are required to attend CET and this is a common way to reach and educate doctors concerning new technologies. This is a venue where we can communicatethe effectiveness of this alternative treatment for scoliosis and ease of use to apply to their patients. Tradeshow, continuing education, and medical publications are usually where most medical device marketer traditional spent their budgets but digital marketing is provingto be very effective and much less expensive.Direct-to-consumer marketing is becoming more common as patients are using the internet to educate themselves aboutscoliosis and diagnosis so we will explain the importance of communicating to the medical community as well as the consumers.
Outsourcing to medical contract companies for marketing and sales team – tap into their experienced professional and medical networkIntrabraceDoctors, Treatment Centers and HospitalsPatients & FamiliesService Channel:Intrabrace (Content) Staff & Contractors (Training, Marketing, Sales)Insurance Companies, FDA, Patients, Families and Doctors
Traditional means of medical device marketing involves advertising in specialized trade journals and exhibiting at medical tradeshows that target physicians and healthcare professionals.Intrabrace will distribute press releases and development news for newsletters issued in non-branded, trustworthy non-profit environments like theScoliosis Research Society, American Academy of Orthopeadic Surgeons, Scoliosis Journal.This marketing strategy willinform the medical audience about Intrabrace through a series of publications, mailers,flyers, and continuing education seminars for training health professionals. Trends indicated that medical device industry spent $1.5 Billion annual in trade journals but it is forecasted that the industry plans to spend another $50 bill on direct consumer advertising. The internet has increase it role in virtual lectures, seminars and demonstrations for time-constrained health professionals.
It is important to follow up with a consumer campaign to attract patients to doctors. Patients and caregivers will be looking for what procedure is right for them through the internet and promotional materialsLaunching an effective online campaign centered on education and interactive tools to interpret the value of our non-surgical treatment with accurate clinical information.Marketing strategies from web, mobile and social media to spread awareness about availability of treatmentTradeshows to network with influential healthcare industry executives and cliniciansThe marketing environment for medical devices is beginning to be very similar to the pharmaceuticals industry, where the consumer is at the heart of equation as much as medical professionalsThere are many regulatory issues and emerging opportunities in digital marking for medical devices which involves launching an effective online campaign to educated the public about Intrabrace and the NEXT Technology. The large community of scoliosis websites, forums, blogs and social groups indicate that more consumers are looking online to learn more about scoliosis and advances in treatment. We aim to reach this audience of web savvy medical clinicians and consumers seeking reliable diagnostic information about scoliosis and treatment options. There is a high potential to reach the direct consumer market that searches the internet for credible health information and access to content to demonstrates treatment for scoliosis. This digital marketing allows convenient access for users to be engaged with the sales process to remember important information and drives people to interact with the solution Intrabrace is presenting.
Our NEXT solution addresses this core need for healthcare to be more cost effective both to the patient and to the healthcare system itself. We anticipate CMS approval as well as the insurance industry enthusiastically adopting the NEXT device as the primary standard of care for Scoliosis. Any clinical data expected to be required by CMS to secure reimbursement acceptance will be included in our US trials to insure CMS coding coverage. Our core audience will be medical professionals such as orthopedic surgeons and clinicians but our method will also attract patients looking for an effective solution to treat scoliosis.Intrabrace messages and imagery will be consistent throughout all channels including sales materials, trade show displays, website and advertising targeting consumers. Developing an effective targeting strategy will involve measuring and tracking inquiries from the web inquires and direct sales to improve for future advancements with the N.E.X.T. Technology.As a medical device company we will be sure adhere to the FDA Guidelines for marketing with all sales collateral and marketing infrastructure.Marketing and education for medical devices has not reached its full potential with communicating to both the medical community and patients through new media to spread awareness that would be beneficial to sales.
