Medical Equipment Distributors | Dentists, Optometrists, Audiologists

Better to brand the medical equipment or the profession?

Products use to be the final goal and brands use to be the media to put them closer to consumer. Today, brands are the final goal and products are the media to reach them. Consumers are looking for brands that have same or similar ways to interpret life. Brands that help them to give or find significance to their lives.

Don't treat your customers as product consumers or they will treat you as product seller, which means price seller.

Matias Gaviria, National Marketing Manager, Carulla Vivero S.A - January 30, 2006

Profession is a different entity, from product. How can profession be compared with product in terms of branding?

Meenu Bansal, Product Manager, Wallace - January 30, 2006

Branding for the mature market is extremely important, despite the current mythology that older consumers do not switch brands. The language a brand uses is one of the most sensitive issues and calling them 'old folks' and 'geezers' even in the context of the debate (which is obviously tongue in cheek) is unhelpful as it perpetuates this stereotype. The marketing profession should be tackling these entrenched attitudes as ageist assumptions will be their biggest battle in the future.

Jane Silk, Director, Brand Manners Limited - January 31, 2006

Lipitor....Viagra....Zocor...The list is endless for these blockbuster drugs. They are branded and are sold as a brand and not as drug categories.

Similarly in case of medical equipments, brands matter more than equipment or the profession. In this overcrowded market, the main differnetiating factor of the product will get lost if it is not highlighted. Branding the profession will give a generic look and feel to such innovations and differentiations. Thus, to highlight these advances in medical euipments, it is utmost necessary to position these differentiators in cutomer's mind. And clearly branding will speak out this differentiation to the final consumer.

Thus, even if a doctor recommends, say, hearing aid to a patient, patient will act as reverse influencer onto doctor to prescribe a differentiated product and may be the brand itself.

Thus, branding not only helps in communication differentiation, it actually influences the influencer.

Thus, in my opinion, Branding the equipment is more important than branding the profession.

Mohit Bahri, Student (Marketing), Symbiosis Institute of International Business, Pune, India - February 2, 2006

This is a great question on an issue that needs attention.

The problem is not to extoll the 'the uniqueness of the business or the product.' A hearing aid is a hearing aid to anyone who will need one. Quality will be a differentiator, yes, BUT the brand needs to empathize with the user (consumer/patient) at an ulterior level.

The current look and feel of these devises is a stigmatic magnet because of the way the product itself looks. They are UGLY!

A good branding approach is not to add a logo promoting a brand but to redesign the product in a branded manner which makes the user feel like a hip 'maturing' member of the social fabric as opposed to a sorry patient who has to wear an ugly looking prosthetic device. If this devices, looked like an iPod, the branding issue would be resolved automatically, while delivering on a secundary, yet very important core benefit to the consumer: his/her image and self esteem.

A deteriorating eyesight is a fact of life, but one can feel good and distingushed with a nicely designed pair of eyewear, same goes for this hearing aids... make a very neat chromed version... heck, even I might want to go deaf! and will certainly become loyal to the brand which provided the sensibly designed device.

Franz Schnaas, SPLACE Inter-notional - February 2, 2006

It's not a question of whether or not to position the profession or product, but how does this market evaluate their purchase decisions.

Do brands matter to this market?

Has this market evolved with the growing emphasis on branding versus product values?

Stef Schram, Marketing Specialist, SBD - February 3, 2006

What is the main goal of branding? It is to create demand for the product or service. Thus the case of branding the product or profession depends on the market u r focusing on. If my market is a rural or semiurban countryside, where ppl are not even aware of (say) hearing aids, the profession shud b branded, that will cater to basic need of improved hearing, and demand for product too will b created! But in a more mature market, product branding would help as it will create demand for specific product, which can be differentiated on parameters like quality, cost and appeal.

Anubhav, Student, FMS Delhi - February 3, 2006

Firstly, does this segment really need the help of branding? Most often patients seek and act upon the guidance of the professionals, and hence branding to address the end consumer does not make sense.

The professional is a strong influencer in this industry. Hence, branding should address the professional. And when 'branding the profession' is concerned, certain professionals stand tall based on their proven track record. This in turn depends on the success of the product they recommend.

Ashok Neelakanta, i-Vista Digital Solutions Ltd. - February 7, 2006

Every product must be named or branded to differentiate the best from the rest. In the near future, eyeglasses or hearing aid devices and others will be developed to the convenience of customers to buy or use in their daily life.

Profession will be only a supporting influence to ease their buying decision.

Asuthep, Marketing, Osotspa Co.ltd., - February 7, 2006

Depends upon marketing mix aimed at:
- When it is to influence the consumer on product quality without any major customer support.
- When giving support is possible, approching med professionals is better option.

Dattaprasad Punpale, Regional Sales Eng, SMC Pneumatics - February 7, 2006

brand brand brand...... that is the 20th century language. I mean brand the product.

Louis Ogola, student, university of Nairobi - February 8, 2006

Consumers don't buy into professions. They buy into brands. Billy calls his parents and says he got a new job as a molecular researcher. His parents give the standard response - "Oh, sounds interesting." (Yawn). Then he tells mom and dad the job is with DuPont. "Oh!", they perk, "That really does sound exciting!"

Kevin Terry, Web Architect, KVN Design - February 8, 2006

I say brand the product! Product can grow without boundaries but profession needs to be there where it sells. If it is a branded product, the professional would have higher confident to recommend and thus further creating value to the product branding with the endorsement of professionals

Yap Keng Teck, Brand & Marketing Consultant, Bizsphere Brand & Marketing Services - February 9, 2006

Consumers are much smarter than they were ever before. They do not sell in to 'testimonials' or 'celebrity endorsements' that easily as they did a decade ago. Branding the product means talking to the consumers directly-the way you want to-giving them the confidence that they are being reached and heard by the company itself.

Mariam Durrani, Manager Strategic Brand Development, Dadex Eternit Ltd. - February 9, 2006

It all depends. Do we brand the toothpaste or brand to the dentist? It depends. If it is a mass market-FMCG product like the Colgate toothpaste, we'll brand the product because we are reaching the mass market. And we have to plough deep enough to get an USP out against a plethora of competitive brands out there that has their own USP to shout about. Because of the size of the market and simplicity (they have to make it simple for the mass market to shorten the buying decision process) of the product, we brand to the consumers. Having said that, there are some specialised brands of toothpaste out there that depend on scientific efficacy. Here, we brand to the dentists who further make their informed recommendations to their clients. This will be back by datasheet, specialised microsites, and communicate by DM approach like email campaigns, direct mailers and personal professional selling. These are supported by consumer brochures racking up at the clinics, postering, videos that the specialist clinics that can air when the patients are waiting (manufacturers may want to pay a small token advertising fees to the specialist clinics, etc) Those old folks out there are already a 'captured' market to those specialists whom they (the patients) depend on their specialists' recommendations -- seriously. And if you can't find them on a Walmart shelf but at specialised pharmacies or at clinics, it's gotta cost a lot more. So to brand or not brand to the consumer… it all depends on the target market, the size of the market, the 'technical knowledge' that goes around the product strategy and, finally your marketing strategy.

Benny Lee, Group Marketing & Communications Manger, Furama Hotels Group - February 9, 2006

We must go back and analyze the decision tree of the customers, what happen the parents of child notices difficulties or retards in their child hearing so they consult a specialist who does the entire test and later prescribe medications, aid etc.

So, I do believe that to position the products you must address ENT specialist, pharmacist, and rehabilitation centers to make aware of the product who will later recommend and prescribe it to the patents out there.

Mohammed Mashjari, Category Manager (Durable), Max Discount Center ( Cash & Carry) Saudi Arabia, Riyadh - February 10, 2006

When you speak of branding, there is internal branding and external branding. The internal customers should feel that the product is good enough, for them to want to push it. The medical industry has the unique problem of being a top down approach industry. A lot flows through word of mouth particularly in this indstry. Branding the product, diffrentiating it, and making the end user realize that the value add exists, would be intern convincing the, audiologist in this case, to recomend this product. Hence, if the product is branded well, the audiologist feels assured that by recomending the product, their brand will also be established. hence it is a symbiotic relationship.

Madan Menon, JobLess, Dole - February 10, 2006

I think it is better to promote the product.

Anonymous - February 10, 2006

Ahhh yes the debate raises its ugly head once again. Product or profession?

Honestly product is easy but there are some proven professions out there also.

Just make sure your product has that unique selling point. An incredible warranty, a slicker look, tough....?

Anyway I think go product on this one the audiology profession may be a hard sell to the general public.

Travis Bort, Creative Director/Owner, ABC Creative Group NY - February 10, 2006

I think it is easier to brand the product. Consumers can better wrap their head around the idea of quality, ease, price etc of the hearing aid. Although the audiologist may be providing the customer with great service and personal attention - it is not as strong a message as is the actual thing they're going to stick in their ear for the rest of their lives.

Anonymous, Account Executive - February 10, 2006

Why not brand both?

This is a great case for a product that needs a balance between B2B & B2C branding. From the distributor’s perspective, they must brand the product and the profession hand in hand.

The product should strategically be branded to the profession for the objective of creating awareness through the right marketing mixes. Second, the distributor must create enough of an interest on the B2C level for the targeted customer to enquire about it from their doctor/specialist.

There must be consistent and authentic branding at every touch point from product design to product packaging. Once this is accomplished, the distributor will have branded the product on both levels.

Moses Mehraban, Chief Hothead, Chama Inc. (www.chamainc.com) - February 11, 2006

it is ultimately the product which is going to serve the purpose not the profesion or price first the product should be brabded and then it shoul later be followed by the branding of profession.

vivek krishan moal, student, IIRM campus - February 13, 2006

Bit of a red herring question as the answer depends on who you are. If you are the manufacturer then you brand the product. If you are the professional or their association, then you brand the profession. If you are the retailer . . . etc, etc.

The only real issue is if you represent more than one entitity (manufacturer and a retailer) then answers depends on whether you have any intention to have your product sold by another manufacturer.

Sean, Research Manager - February 13, 2006

I guess you need to first understand the market size, reach and then decide whether the product or the profession. Eg. if the total market size itself is limited, then there is no point of go TOM TOM on your brand and what it does since the exercise would be quiet an expensive propostition to work upon. I suggest if we take profession route and have a mix of brand route to give recognition on the ground and the much needed impact to satisfy the customer needs through a brand recall.

madhusudan, let's leave for the moment - February 14, 2006

It depends on the long-term goals of the company and the potential for growth. Are they planning on developing several products for the profession? If yes, it would be more efficient to market all the products under the umbrella brand of the profession and then sub-brand each piece of equipment. That way new products can more easily build off the equity of the existing ones because they have the commonality of the "profession" brand. Marketing dollars can be pooled together to promote the "profession" brand versus having to divide a budget among all the products for their individual promotion. In addition, if you brand the profession, there is more potential to own the category. Branding just the product without the support of something larger may give the impression that the product is a one-time wonder. Given the category, peoples' conditions continually get worse as they age and they will need to update their equipment as this happens. The one-time wonder impression could hurt the brand's credibility and lifespan.

Sarah, Account Manager - February 22, 2006

The product, cannot really exist on its own, unless has some sort of endorsement from the "professional group".