Powerful Brand Strategies for Launching New Medical Devices and Med-Tech Products
We live in an exciting time for healthcare innovation. It seems that each day brings new, life-changing medical devices and med-tech products that elevate the health, quality of life, and speed of recovery.
We now have lifestyle wearables that monitor our heart rates and rhythms; patches that keep track of blood sugar levels, blue tooth devices that transmit vital data to our healthcare providers, and apps that control muscle-stimulating electronic pulses for orthopedic rehabilitation. Many of today’s leading edge medical device innovations are driven by the healthcare industry’s adoption of value-based healthcare (VBHC) and the universal need to reduce and control the cost of quality care.
- By 2020, the adoption of value-based care is projected to account for about 59% of healthcare payments (Aetna 2018 Health Care Trends)
- An estimated $65 billion was linked to value-based healthcare contracts at the end of 2018 (United Healthcare study)
Device manufacturers have little room for error when launching new products
Even for devices that have few moving parts, successful product launches will hinge on the coordination of a complex matrix of strategies and variables:
- Market/competitor research
- Adherence to value-based care cost models
- Pre-market submissions to the FDA for regulatory compliance
- Internal / external communication among all key stakeholders from engineering to sales
- Effective branding and digital marketing strategies
- Educating physicians and patients
- Establishing distributor networks, and more
Planning and executing these and other challenges will require massive amounts of investment by manufacturers—before the actual product launch commences. Even if the company or start-up is well-funded, there’s little room for set-backs or wasteful spending.
It pays to work with a digital marketing firm with medical device experience
While the lion’s share of the regulatory compliance and pre-launch tasks will fall upon the manufacturer’s design/development and leadership teams, working with a branding and digital medical device marketing agency with experience in the medical device space can help streamline the development of effective product launch strategies and professional digital marketing tools. Below are a few areas in which such a professional collaboration can add value.
Market and competitor research
As medical device manufacturers are ready to go to market with its approved products, it is important to understand how the potential customers are going to perceive their new product. Beyond looking at the overall market and competitive landscape, interviews with members of the engineering team, key leadership, product managers, sales leaders, and target customers will help tailor communications and refine what matters most to your end-users.
Developing a brand strategy for your medical device
Medical device manufacturers will need a strong brand and value proposition to stand out in the marketplace. A brand strategy for device or med-tech company with a value-based care audience should contain imagery and messaging geared toward not only to clinicians and patients, but also the buyers responsible for ensuring the benefits and cost savings that your product can bring to the overall cost of care.
At ParkerWhite, we work with you to define differentiated healthcare marketing strategies that address all key stakeholders involved in the decision making process.
Leverage the power of a dynamic website and integrated digital marketing tools
A dynamic, yet uncluttered website optimized for the user experience (UX) serves as the hub of your branding digital marketing efforts. Your website will serve as the primary showcase for your medical device’s unique features and benefits, including how it fits into the value-based care model—reducing costs and enabling patients to be active in managing their health care over the long haul.
Consistently branded and integrated digital assets and social media venues are key selling tools and the vital channels to engage and converse with the online world—to inform, entertain, stir emotion, guide decisions and ultimately drive conversions. Through carefully researched and designed integrated marketing campaigns, ParkerWhite works with you to drive a steady flow of traffic and leads to your website.
CyMedica Orthopedics: Empowering patients to find their strength.
The new Value Based Care mandates are looking to inspire solutions that engage patients in their own health and recovery and have the data to prove clinical efficacy— which is what makes our rebranding of the new CyMedica Orthopedics and e-vive product launch perfectly timed.
ParkerWhite worked with the CyMedica team on new brand messaging, logo identities, product naming, lifestyle photoshoot, product explainer video, and a website that was redesigned to showcase e-vive™ with CyMotion™ Technology, CyMedica’s new muscle activation and patient engagement solution. Optimized to help ACL and TotalKnee Replacement patients build up their quadriceps pre- and post-surgery. The app-controlled e-vive keeps patients engaged between office visits for faster, more effective rehabilitation.
Value Based Healthcare is here to stay
It takes massive amounts of planning, investment and product launch strategy to bring a new medical device product to the marketplace. The transition to value based care will continue to make that journey even more challenging. Manufacturers will need to clearly demonstrate the clinical benefits of their devices and med-tech products, together with a cost analysis and point to how they add value—saving patients, facilities and payers money over the long term.
Learn how ParkerWhite can help you create a powerful medical device marketing strategy and product launch campaign for your device or med-tech product. Ready to start? Let’s talk today.
