The glucose monitoring devices market is set to hit $16 billion in 2014, according to Research and Markets. Want a slice of that pie? In the face of fierce competition, a report out from Affinnova, a global marketing technology company, shows the difference between your sales and your competition might be the packaging. In this era of healthcare reform, we’ve all heard patients are becoming the consumers and medical device companies should focus their efforts on impressing them.
Medical device companies, if you want diabetic patients to buy your glucose meter, it’s time to market.
Testing the packaging on 600 patients, the biggest finding was there’s a gap between brand perception and packaging design. The report studied the glucose meters (pictured in the photo) with attention to visibility on the shelf to how consumers viewed the “personality” of the packaging and what words consumers associated with each brand among other metrics. According to a press release:
In the study, half of the patients were asked which personality traits each brand name alone is known for. The other half was asked about personality traits specific to the Diabetes Meter package design itself, uncovering important brand perception gaps. Eye-tracking tests then measured on shelf Visibility and Share of Attention, while qualitative feedback was also captured for specific design elements on each package.
Though the generalizations of the findings–packaging affects brand perception, unique design stands out and so on–would seem obvious to any marketing 101 student, it may be news to some device manufacturers. It’s not just the quality of the product that helps justify its existence. It’s the look, too. Packaging can even affect overall brand perception, the report found.
Glucose meters not scoring high in one coveted area–say, “modern”–could score very high in another positive area that’s its near-opposite, such as “simple.”
The highlights read a little like high school superlatives, but give an idea of how patients think about medical devices as products (and how the actual specs aren’t the bottom line). Here are a few:
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
- Roche’s Accu-Chek Aviva got most “reliable, safe and caring.”
- Johnson & Johnson’s OneTouch UltraSmart was top in the “smart, confident, trustworthy and protective” categories but finished last for simple.
- Even though Contour USB doesn’t have as many advanced features as some of its competitors, it is perceived as the most “innovative” and “modern.” Look at its packaging–it obviously connects to a computer, there’s asymmetry and sleek shapes. It finished last for simple.
- OneTouch Ultra Mini was viewed as the simplest.
In fact, Walmart’s ReliOn got lots of the share of attention. Why? Because of its shelf visibility.
For that next-gen device, take a cue from Barbie. Make the package one your consumer must look at and can’t put down.
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