Using Product Marketing to Launch Drugs That Outperform the C...( CHAPEL HILL N.C. Jan. 17 /- With ...),Health

CHAPEL HILL, N.C., Jan. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- With so much riding on new product development and market launch, the pharma industry is continually seeking to improve the expensive and time-consuming process. To launch drugs that outperform the competition, leading firms are focusing more marketing resources on the early stages of development, according to research from benchmarking leader Best Practices, LLC.

For instance, while many companies limit marketing spending in early stages to 10 percent of total pre-launch spending, organizations with consistently high product performance reported early stage spending levels as high as 27 percent, according to the study.

"Early marketing insights pay off at launch," said Cameron Tew, senior manager of research and publishing at Best Practices, LLC. "Companies that have achieved faster and higher sales uptake with new products are committing sufficient marketing resources as early as the pre-clinical phase."

The 169-page report, "Launching Pharmaceutical Megabrands: Best Practices in Marketing Blockbusters," includes 96 best practices drawn from surveys and interviews with 24 executives at more than 15 leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies such as Pfizer, Merck, Sanofi-Aventis, GlaxoSmithKline, Eli Lilly, Amgen, Boehringer-Ingelheim and Novartis.

For a complimentary download of a study excerpt, visit http://www3.best-in-class.com/rr900.htm .

Marketing and branding decision-makers can use the report to gather insights on development topics ranging from marketing investment and expense patterns to thought leader development for high-potential products. In addition, the report includes marketing success stories for 16 of the world's top selling drugs.

Some of the study findings include:

-- Companies that consistently launch blockbuster drugs foster a culture

that actively suppor
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