Oxford University Press helps pharmaceutical companies overcome product launch failures by providing trusted, data-driven content strategies. With highly cited medical journals and targeted digital advertising, OUP enables pharma marketers to engage healthcare professionals effectively, bridge market access gaps, and drive adoption through personalised, evidence-based communication beyond traditional promotional channels.
Pharmaceutical product launches face significant challenges, with research indicating that a majority fail to meet market expectations. According to Deloitte, 36% of pharmaceutical products do not achieve their anticipated performance, while McKinsey reports that up to two-thirds of launches fail to reach their objectives.
IQVIA data further reveals that 80% of new pharmaceutical launches do not show improvement in their initial sales trajectory within the first six months to two years post-launch.
These findings highlight a consistent trend: the success of pharmaceutical product launches is the exception rather than the rule. A variety of factors contribute to these failures, including inadequate understanding of market and customer needs, poor product differentiation, ineffective distribution models, and regulatory and compliance challenges.
Other issues such as insufficient data capture, inadequate reimbursement support, and ineffective stakeholder collaboration also impact market access strategies.
The consequences of these challenges are substantial, resulting in significant financial losses each year.
Key factors behind successful pharmaceutical launches
By analysing the causes of failure, insights emerge into the factors that contribute to successful product launches. Research conducted by Indegene and Everest Group involved interviews with 15 industry experts specialising in product commercialisation. Their findings indicate that the main challenges in pharmaceutical product launches include:
- Payer activation and reimbursement challenges
- 93% of experts identified payer activation and reimbursement challenges as a leading cause of launch failures.
- Sub-challenges include slow market access (six to 12 months), unfavourable pricing negotiations, and poor formulary placement.
- Regulatory roadblocks and competition
- 80% of experts identified regulatory barriers and competition as critical hurdles.
- Issues include weak product labelling, lack of supporting evidence, and unexpected delays.
- Healthcare Professional (HCP) adoption issues
- 47% of experts ranked inadequate market adoption by HCPs as a high-impact challenge, while 40% identified it as a medium-impact issue.
- Problems include segmentation issues, demand for comprehensive data, and ineffective omnichannel engagement.
- Field force effectiveness and efficiency
- 7% of experts viewed field force challenges as high impact, with 53% ranking them as medium impact.
- Sub-challenges include high sales and general administrative expenses, limited traditional channels, and insufficient training in digital tools.
- Patient engagement and adoption issues
- 60% of experts ranked patient engagement issues as having medium impact on missed launch forecasts.
- Sub-challenges include insufficient understanding of patient journeys, diagnostic pathways, and reimbursement scenarios.
The role of data-driven personalisation in market success
OxfordSM highlights that successful pharmaceutical launches require data-driven personalisation strategies. Market responses are unpredictable, particularly as medical technologies evolve and therapies target smaller patient populations.
Sonal Shah states in her research:
“The technologies behind new therapies entering the market are changing rapidly. As new therapies target smaller and smaller populations… we have entered the age of personalised medicine. The market’s response to all of this can be hard to predict… One-size-fits-all approaches to market access are no longer viable.”
A common oversight among pharmaceutical companies is failing to distinguish between early adopters and the broader market. This leads to a decline in adoption rates, as healthcare professionals beyond the initial high-engagement group do not embrace new therapies.
Despite significant advancements in medical research and technology, campaign sophistication has not kept pace. The lack of data-driven personalisation continues to impact product launches negatively.
Healthcare professionals and content engagement
Research highlights the importance of engaging healthcare professionals through effective content strategies. IQVIA identifies key barriers in HCP engagement:
- Many HCPs struggle to discover relevant digital content due to overload and poor channel optimisation.
- Nearly half perceive pharmaceutical communications as promotional rather than informative.
- 73% of HCPs request better access to diagnosis information, yet only 36% of pharma companies prioritise this content.
- Pharma companies are refocusing on in-person events despite the continued demand for virtual engagement.
- Companies often overlook third-party sources that HCPs trust, instead prioritising their own platforms.
EPG Health states:
“To effectively engage, pharma must focus on being relevant and add value where it does not already exist, creating unique content that is easy to find, and work towards an omnichannel approach offering personalised journeys for discovery.”
A strategic approach to market access
Deloitte proposes a structured framework to guide pharmaceutical campaign managers in making informed, personalised channel decisions. The framework categorises therapy areas into five segments:
- Vaccines: Requires coordination with policymakers and regulatory bodies for effective distribution strategies.
- General medicine: Further divided into chronic and short-term use, requiring tailored engagement strategies.
- High-volume speciality: Necessitates an in-depth understanding of patient demographics and reimbursement strategies.
- Oncology: Requires collaboration with key opinion leaders and centres of excellence to enhance clinical guidelines.
- Rare diseases: Demands long-term patient registry development and integration with real-world evidence.
By defining the therapy area, pharmaceutical companies can tailor their strategic choices and address core market access challenges effectively.
Enhancing product adoption through targeted strategies
OxfordSM emphasises the importance of understanding different prescriber segments to optimise adoption rates. The challenge lies in transitioning a pharmaceutical product from early adopters to the broader market—a concept described as “crossing the chasm.”
The prescriber segments include:
- Innovators: Rapid adopters who base their decisions on clinical data.
- Early adopters: Professionals who incorporate new treatments based on initial clinical trial results.
- Early majority: Require validation from peers, guidelines, and protocols before changing their prescribing habits.
To enhance engagement, pharmaceutical campaign managers increasingly rely on Oxford University Press (OUP) digital advertising solutions. OUP collaborates with leading scholarly and professional societies, publishing highly cited medical journals that reach 26 million page views per month. With 54 million monthly ad impressions and a readership exceeding 100,000 clinicians, researchers, and scientists, OUP provides an effective platform for targeted HCP engagement.
The future of personalised pharmaceutical marketing
The pharmaceutical industry must prioritise personalised, data-driven marketing strategies to improve product launch outcomes. Key recommendations include:
- Engaging HCPs and payers early to refine product positioning.
- Communicating product benefits effectively through targeted segmentation.
- Using independent third-party sources to enhance credibility.
- Implementing therapy area-specific launch playbooks to standardise best practices.
- Continuously monitoring market responses and making agile adjustments.
An executive from a small biopharma company highlights the importance of early engagement:
“You will get a feeling for payers’ enthusiasm. You will know whether they are intrigued by the science of the product or they are like ‘this is just an old blah-blah.’ You get a feel for their pain points, and if there is something they don’t really understand, or they are asking a lot of questions on. You know that those are the areas where you need to tighten up the story or you are going to need strong objection-handlers.”
Shikha Negi is a Content Writer at ztudium with expertise in writing and proofreading content. Having created more than 500 articles encompassing a diverse range of educational topics, from breaking news to in-depth analysis and long-form content, Shikha has a deep understanding of emerging trends in business, technology (including AI, blockchain, and the metaverse), and societal shifts, As the author at Sarvgyan News, Shikha has demonstrated expertise in crafting engaging and informative content tailored for various audiences, including students, educators, and professionals.
