At ROF, we get to see a lot of brand positioning. Sometimes we help develop it, but other times we are exposed to brand positioning as part of our strategic road map service. In all of the positioning statements that we have viewed over the years, there is one word that shows up more than any other – “confidence”. As in, “…so doctors have the confidence to…” and “…so that patients can be confident that they…”.
Given the ubiquity of this term within pharma and biotech brand positioning, we have been giving some serious thought to what it takes to actually engender a feeling of confidence within your customers. Not surprising for ROF, we came up with an equation of sorts.
Confidence = Knowledge + Positive Experience
Simple enough, right? Well, maybe not so simple when you think about execution.
The first part of the equation is pretty easy. This is what we do for our brands every day. Create great materials, hire awesome sales reps, buy the right targeted advertising, stir vigorously, and voila!, we have knowledgeable customers.
Now for the hard part – generating positive experiences. As with any drug launch, there are always early adopters who try a new product right away, specifically so they can gain personal experience with it. But what about the other 85% of your market, who are generally satisfied with their current options and are waiting until the product is proven in the market? How do we overcome their inertia and give them just enough confidence to try the product once or twice? Read On