The unseen side of MDR:
Companies might transform technical features into unique value messages
If you consider the Medical Device Regulations (MDR) a regulatory topic, you must read this article series.
In our last post, we started to dive deep into the three reasons why Marketing and Sales teams should focus on the MDR since it can revolutionize how medical technologies are commercialized.
The reasons are:
- The MDR leverages Value Messages
- Companies will transform technical features into unique value messages
- Marketing collateral will go to a different level
Here, we discuss the second reason and the opportunity MDR creates for medical companies to demonstrate unique, differentiated value. In short, there has never been a better time to translate technical features into value.
Reason 2: Companies might transform technical features into unique value messages
We have always been critical of companies that attempt to demonstrate the value of their products by focusing on features. Colors, sizes, weight, and even the type of Operating System platforms are examples of arguments we have heard during the almost ten years of ValueConnected. And none of them resonate as value to healthcare stakeholders.
But this might be about to change.
Even after receiving the MDR approval, companies must continue with Post-Market Surveillance to track complaints and usability and with Post-Market Clinical Follow- ups, which consider additional clinical data such as registries.
In both initiatives, companies can apply questionnaires to collect reliable data on any specific product feature, meaning technical aspects can be directly linked to clinical outcomes and become value messages.
Reinforcing unique features can be crucial for companies in markets where competitive products are technically similar. An example of this is coronary stents, where companies are aggressively competing for market share and relying on their particular technical details to demonstrate how their solution is better than the competitors.
With the MDR, a coronary stent company might be able to prove and demonstrate that a specific stent tip or length has led to superior clinical outcomes across the European Union.
In addition, during the Post-Market Surveillance phase, it will be possible to link product features to benefits such as ‘ease of use’ which translates into concrete and quantified value messages.
And there won’t be many questions to that type of data if generated under the MDR process.
Moving forward
Many companies took a shortcut and focused on promoting their product features without even knowing how they translated, or not, into actual perceived value.
The MDR establishes the opportunity and a credible methodology to translate features into value. And this will lead to companies taking differentiation to a whole new level in the eyes of providers and payers.
Do you want to explore how to use your product features to create a unique value proposition? Let us know, and we will be glad to review some real case examples of companies with such a competitive advantage today.
Are you the next to explore the MDR process to create unique value?
