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Having worked for two direct mail and printing companies, I've seen my fair share of real estate agent postcards.

Most of these postcards fell into one of two categories -- average and mediocre, or unique and po

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

werful. Oddly enough it was usually one or the other, with not much middle ground in between.

Most of these postcards (perhaps 70% or more) followed the exact same formula, a photo of the agent with a message to

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

Examples of combination products may in

the effect of: "Call me if you're thinking about selling your home." These were the average and mediocre bunch, and they were nearly exact replicas of each other without much of an offer or motivator.

But every

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

once in a while, I would see the "other" kind of real estate agent postcard. Once in a while, I would see original, well-thought-out and powerful strategies that made me sit up and take notice. But they only made

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

up about 15% of all the real estate postcards I encountered -- a minority, to be sure.

So what were some of these unique and powerful strategies? Here are the top three that still come to mind:

Powerful Post

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

Combination pro

ard Strategies

1. The "How Many Sold, How Fast" Strategy
I've seen many postcards where the agent said, "I can sell your home fast." And while that may have been true in some cases, the language

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

was overused and therefore diluted.

Then I saw a version where the agent let the numbers, pictures and clients do all of the talking. On the front of the postcard there were four house photos, one in each corner

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

Under each house, the agent had listed the address (for relevance) and a summary of each sale (for legitimacy).

For example: "Sold in 14 days for full asking price" ... or ... "Sold in 19 days for more than ask

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

ing price." Beneath that was a short quote from the happy client. Things like: "Couldn't have done it without you John!"

The property address added legitimacy, the time-on-market details showcased the agent's sk

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

ll, and the client quote brought it all home.

In the middle of the postcard's front (surrounded by the house pictures) was one simple statement: "I can do the same for you."

2. The "Open House + Seminar" Str

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

tegy
I've seen plenty of "Open House" postcards. But I've only seen one that combined the open house with a free home-buying seminar. The sellers apparently agreed to let their spacious living room doubl

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

Following aspects would a

e as a classroom for interested buyers. From what I heard, it was standing room only. Not only did the agent sell the home quicker, but he was also able to pass out business cards and "rub elbows" with a lot of p

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

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

tential clients.

3. The "Expansion Report" Strategy
Every homeowner wants to know what's going on in their schools, neighborhood and town. These are the things we discuss with neighbors while water

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

ing the grass or fetching the mail. That's why I thought it ingenious when a real estate agent's postcard featured an exclusive "Expansion Report."

This agent zoomed in on recent development in the area. Apparen

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

ly, she had dug up all their was to know about zoning plans, future construction, impact on existing neighborhoods with detailed maps ... you name it. She then compiled the information into a 25-page report and s

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

owcased it on her postcard. All you had to do was visit the web page, fill out the form, and the report would be emailed to you. Talk about a lead generator!

The Common Thread
What did these real est

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

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

ate postcards have in common? For one thing, they all offered value in one form or another. Whether it was information about the neighborhood, a free class on home buying, or a selling-machine-of-an-agent, each o

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

these postcards conveyed something of value to the target audience.

These postcards were also unique in their ideas, which instantly set them apart from the "80% average" club. Here's something else they had in

.

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

common -- high response rates.

So what's your big idea? What value do you plan to offer through your postcards? How will you differentiate yourself from the competition? Answer these questions, and you'll be ab

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

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

e to join the "Top Three" memorable postcards I've listed above.

* Copyright 2006, Brandon Cornett. You may republish this article if you leave the hyperlinks active, and also retain the author's note and byline

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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