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Recency is a technique used to predict future Customer behaviour, based on past Customer behaviour. It aims to capture & analyse how recently each Customer has interacted actively w

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

ith a Business. If recency is measured by an appropriately selected metric, it can be a very powerful predictor of future customer behaviour. Actually, it has been proved repeatedly

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

Examples of combination products may in

in practise, that recency is the strongest predictor of future customer behaviour, among the three RFM analysis factors: recency, frequency, monetary. Therefore recency analysis ca

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

n yield substantial business value, if carried out successfully.

The generic technique of recency analysis, has to be adopted to the different context of every Business: unique Cus

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

tomer lifecycle, product type. In this article we examine the important case of subscription based (or continuity) services. Such services involve the continuous usage by a Customer

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

Combination pro

, often based on a contract. Common examples are: bank accounts, credit cards, fixed & mobile telecommunication services. These services are offered in highly competitive markets, c

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

haracterised by high customer switching (attrition or churn) rates, which erode the profitability of those who suffer it.

The selection of suitable measurements for recency is not

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

obvious, in the case of continuity services. A bank account or a telephone subscription is potentially used every day, therefore ‘last time used’ cannot normally be the basis for a

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

recency measurement. The fact that the service is used, does not reflect an active choice of the Customer to interact with the Business. Therefore one should try to identify those e

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

vents which reflect ‘an active choice of the Customer to interact with the Business’. Moreover, these events should be divided into events reflecting a positive attitude of the Cust

ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi

omer towards the business and a predisposition to strengthen the relationship with the Business (e.g. a service upgrade) and events reflecting an increasingly negative attitude of t

ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a

he Customer towards the business (increased Customer friction) and a predisposition to terminate the subscription.

Events signalling a positive attitude are:

• An order in general

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod

• An additional order, building up a subscription portfolio (studies in the banking sector have shown that customers with a larger product portfolio, tend to be more loyal than th

cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin

ose with a smaller one)

• A service upgrade (e.g. moving to a higher fixed monthly fee contract in mobile telephony)

• An order for a service enhancement, taking advantage of a se

tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen

rvice feature not used before

• Enrolment to the web channel, offered by the service

• The acceptance of a campaign offer

Events signalling a negative attitude are:

• A complai

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

nt

• A product cancellation, reducing the subscription portfolio size

• A subscription portfolio termination

These two event categories of ‘reduced’ and ‘increased’ Customer ‘fri

ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

ction’, should be considered separately, since they have opposite effect. They should not be used in the same metric, since they may be cancelling each other.

Moreover, the select

y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products

ion of the appropriate division of time into recency time periods, can affect the effectiveness of the prediction. These time periods relate to the Customer lifecycle of each produc

.

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

t type.

Alternative recency metrics can be tested on their effectiveness, with a test campaign. The best measurement is the one that produces the best response rate prediction. In

elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

addition, this metric should yield substantial differentiation in response rates between quintiles, especially in the highest recency quintiles.

Copyright 2006 – Kostis Panayotakis

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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Digital printing is becoming more and more common. The question is can digital printing match the quality of the off-set printing press?

Many believe that it is human nature to make up stories, embellish and tell tall tales. Indeed it appears that these folks who say this are right, it must be human nature, because it is getting harder and harder to get a straight answer out of people?

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