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The primary reason to exhibit in a trade show is to generate sales leads or contacts for your company. So why is it that the majority of trade show exhibitors say that lead gathering and follow up i

According to USFDA, a combination product is one composed of any combination of a drug and device; biological product and device; drug and biological product

s the biggest area of improvement needed? The reasons can vary greatly depending on the organizations; however some good up-front planning for both lead generation and follow-up will help alleviate

; or drug, device, and biological product and fixed dose combination would include two or more combinations of drug.

Examples of combination products may in

many of the problems that organizations face in making trade show exhibiting successful.

Lead Generation Planning

The key to obtaining leads that can be turned into sales calls (and subsequ

lude drug-coated devices, drugs packaged with delivery devices in medical kits, and drugs and devices packaged separately but intended to be used together.

ently sales) starts with a good Lead Retrieval System. Most trade shows make good lead retrieval systems available to exhibitors at a very reasonable rate. These systems generally scan an attendee's

here is enormous increase in the number of combination products entering the market in the recent years. Combination products have proven advantages but fixe

badge or card, log the information into a database, and print a hard copy. What they do not do, however, is electronically log additional information that your booth staff may gain in a conversation

d dose combinations are still in the process of convincing regulatory authority on their advantages over the single ingredient formulations.

Combination pro

. So how do you make it worthwhile? A good way to make the electronic information valuable is to review the hard copy printout while your visitor is in the booth, and use it to make any notes about

ucts have become life saving products for the pharmaceutical companies who doesn’t have many innovative molecules in their product pipeline and have been inc

your conversation that will be helpful in the follow-up phase. Be sure to write legibly…back at the office you may not remember your conversation!

Another way to obtain contact names and numbers is

easingly used in the product life cycle management. Even the companies having product patents are trying to extend their product life cycle through the combi

the "fish bowl" approach. And although this provides quantity in leads, it does not provide quality. Sales people have little motivation to follow-up on these leads, as they do not contain details

nation products and maximize the revenues. But the companies involved in this practice are overlooking that they are burdening the patients both economically

bout the prospect or needs.

Tips on Obtaining High-Quality Leads

1.Have your booth staff (which is often your sales team) review the list of registered attendees. If there are curren

and physically. They need to rightly judge the benefits of the combination products and they have to even look at the risks involved when combining the produ

t clients or prospects on the list, set up an appointment at your booth during the show. This makes time productive, and creates activity in your booth – something that is a draw to others.

2.
ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi
b>Use the list of registered attendees to send a pre-show mailer or e-mail encouraging them to stop by your booth. Use a giveaway – which can be a promotional item, a white paper or something else o
ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a
f value to that audience – to create activity at your booth and hopefully enable you to speak to prospects.

3.Train your booth staff to greet booth visitors in a friendly way – shaking their
dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod
hand and greeting them by first name (if on their badge). Have your staff use open-ended questions that leads to specific needs that your company might be able to help with. "How are you doing today
cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin
?" or "Are you enjoying the show so far?" is nice, but will not lead to a conversation about your goods or services. An opener such as, "So what challenges bring you to the XYZ Show?" is a much bett
tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen
er way to get to the reasons that you're both there.

4.When gathering leads, be sure to write details about your conversation with the prospect, including your name, the prospect's name and
t?

As combination products don't fit into the traditional categories of drugs, medical devices, or biological products, the USFDA is in the process of devel
when you spoke to them, their needs, time frame, familiarity with your product/service, location, etc.

5.Be sure your sales staff is in a position to follow up with prospects immediately aft
ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust
r the show. That may mean faxing or overnighting leads back to the office for input into a database, or organizing the leads at the end of each day at the show in a notebook or folders for the sales
y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products
staff that will be following up. Put them in a safe place for the return trip home. It's a good idea to take them with you instead of packing them in one of your booth return boxes. They can be rev
.

As there is an increasing trend of the combination products companies manufacturing such products should be able to tackle the problems involved in the de
iewed on the trip back, or will at least be in hand the following business day for follow-up.

6.Have a plan for following up with the sales staff after the show to be sure that they are foll
elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip
owing up on the leads. Whenever possible, offer extra incentive for closing new business from the show. Trade shows are a large investment, and your company should be able to show real ROI from them

tion in industry events and feedback to regulatory authorities would be able to face the challenges and will be successful in developing combination products

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