Improve Market Research Impact (PH120)

Pharmaceutical Market Research Report Sample

The following excerpts are from Chapter 1: Communication Strategies for Market Research's Expanding Role. The full report provides detailed findings.

Deliver Insights, Not Findings

The head of Company X's market research group approaches adding strategic impact in two key ways. First, he has defined a process for each research project that includes research, analysis, and clear, concise conclusions. He has the teams working on each project get second and third opinions upon both the analysis and the conclusions, to ensure that each problem has been looked at from a number of different angles and the insights do not suffer from insularity or narrow perception. According to this executive, "The key action that we want to take is that we validate actual insights as opposed to just findings."

This executive's second goal for his team is to "provide the highest level insights to drive strategic direction." Driving strategic direction which proves profitable is concrete and irrefutable evidence that the market research team holds significant value and will maximize its resources for the most impact. For the interviewed executive from Company X, this is accomplished by market research analysts who are "good picture painters."

According to him, many studies exist that have results but few insights. His team's presentations and final products are not 100 slides of findings but "5 or 6 slides that get us where we need to be. I want someone who can clearly show what the pictures are with some key insights." His team takes a consulting approach rather than a vendor approach and describes to its clients the market realities, what needs to be accomplished and how to do it, not what it found.

With this approach, Company X's market research team does not overwhelm internal clients or waste their time. But the team also stands ready to enter a more in-depth discussion if the clients have questions or want to engage the market research team further concerning its findings and suggestions. In this way, the market research team proves multifaceted, showing itself as both a wealth of knowledge and research, as well as advisers on strategic direction...

The following excerpt is taken from Chapter 2: Market Research Structure, Budgets and Staffing

Functions that Contribute to Market Research Budget

Market research groups' traditional clients have always been brand teams and business development groups. These clients feed the market research budget with their annual needs. This system certainly still exists at many companies; however, the strategic elevation of market research across the industry means more dedicated budgets, as well as a greater number of organizations supplementing the budget.

As Figure 2.25 shows, a large number of departments contribute to market research budgets. Primarily, market research activities are funded by the functions that request the research studies. The percentages represent the percentage of companies whose departments receive funding from the departments listed.

As shown, marketing provides funding to 91% of surveyed market research teams. Brand teams as well as therapeutic areas request and receive support from the vast majority of market research groups.

Another 82% of market research teams hold some level of their own budgets on which to draw. This is an increase over the 54.5% of companies that reported spending their own budgets on research activities in 2007.

Company U is one example of a market research organization whose budget is funded by various business functions. Typically, most of the funding for Company U's market research comes from the marketing budget or the strategic planning budget...