Telemarketing Partnership Secures £17m in Revenue

OUR CLIENT IS A LEADING FLU & TRAVEL VACCINE DISTRIBUTOR. BASED IN THE UK THEY THROUGH NHS TRUSTS, PHARMACIES, GP SURGERIES AND OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH DEPARTMENTS. FIND OUT HOW TELEMARKETING IMPROVED THEIR DISTRIBUTION STRATEGY AND HELPED THEM SECURE £17M IN REVENUE.

They also sell directly to the consumer through a nationwide network of clinics and partner clinics.

They are part of a global pharmaceutical technology and distribution giant – a fortune 500 company with 70,000 employees globally and an annual revenue of US $179 billion. Find out how we helped them improve their distribution strategy.

WHAT THEY NEEDED

With new competitors de-stabilising the market and undercutting our client on price, the vaccine market was becoming increasingly competitive, and their market share was under threat. On top of this, our client needed to adapt to changing approaches to vaccination delivery – such as the government drive to deliver  vaccinations through pharmacies as well as GP surgeries – and they, therefore, needed a new distribution strategy.

Our client previously employed a field sales team but decided to reduce the size of this division as the market became increasingly cost-driven. Due to the seasonal nature of the sales process, it was not cost-effective to have a full sales team all year round. Our client wanted a flexible resource they could draw upon to expand their capacity around their seasonal requirements. They were actively looking for an external partner to help them transition to a lower-cost sales process.

They needed a partner which was fully compliant with ABPI marketing guidelines, and also willing to undertake necessary pharmacovigilance training. Our rigorous processes to quality assurance, and our ability to offer additional capacity on a flexible basis were key considerations when choosing to work with us.

WHAT WE DID

We provided end-to-end telemarketing and sales support across their customer and prospect base – from sending out quotes to confirming orders, including vaccination volumes and requirements.

We offered a flexible service that provided extra capacity within an evolving market, helping them to react responsively to market changes. For example, when a competitor experienced safety issues, which meant they were unable to fulfil any orders, we worked as a scalable extension of our client’s internal team to provide an immediate response. We contacted those that had been affected by the fulfilment issues, helped prospects with their short-term vaccine shortfall, and then subsequently leveraged these newly formed customer relationships to generate longer-term business. Having a reactive approach improved their distribution strategy which in turn generated both immediate returns for our client as well as provided longer-term ROI.

On other occasions, we assisted with customer care activity at short notice, for example, when they experienced their own logistical or supply chain issues. Our immediate crisis management communications smoothed customer relations, preventing these issues from seriously impacting customer satisfaction and averting the knock-on effect this would likely have had on retention rates.

DISTRIBUTION STRATEGY

Initially, the focus of our telesales was on the GP market, as GPs were responsible for delivering flu vaccinations to high-risk groups as part of the government’s annual immunisation programme. However, changes to government strategy were leading to market fragmentation – with pharmacies providing an increasing percentage of vaccinations. This entailed a change in distribution channel strategy to ensure no loss in market share.

We adopted a proactive telesales approach to engage existing customers, leverage buying group and consortia recommendations, and confirm flu vaccine orders for the following year. At the same time, we supported a drive to diversify away from the GP market, reducing reliance on this distribution channel. This included using telemarketing to target independent pharmacies, pharmacy chains and buying groups to generate new and repeat business.

We also assisted the travel vaccination team in exploring new routes to market and distribution strategies. One route we identified was to offer our client’s travel health planning tool to GP surgeries free of charge. Once using the tool, surgeries are more likely to buy travel vaccines from our client and refer patients to their network of clinics where needed. Throughout the campaign, more than 1,000 surgeries were signed up to use the tool.

Our client also works with independent pharmacists, training them to deliver travel vaccinations, and thereby providing an easily scalable channel to market for their travel vaccinations. We supported them in trialling and establishing this approach – using a combination of face-to-face appointments and event promotion to drive awareness and interest among independent pharmacists.

WHAT WE ACHIEVED

We have now worked with our client for six years, and over this time have been responsible for generating more than £17 million in confirmed revenue. By working closely with them to streamline the sales process and eliminate inefficiencies at the start of the relationship, we reduced the marketing cost per unit from 6.4p per vaccine sold in the first year of our contract, to 3.5p per vaccine two years later. This meant the total cost of the end-to-end telesales process is only equivalent to 1.28per cent of the revenue generated as a result. In addition, overall market share was increased even as the market was becoming increasingly fragmented and price competitive.

* ABPI stands for The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry

* Pharmacovigilance is the science and activities relating to the detection, assessment, understanding and prevention of adverse effects or any other medicine/vaccine related problem.