top of page

The secret of successful drug launches

About two-thirds of drug launches don’t meet expectations. Improving that record requires pharmaceutical companies to recognize the world has changed and adjust their marketing accordingly.

Pharmaceutical companies have long relied on successfully launching new drugs to drive growth. This pressure is only likely to increase. Patents are expiring and product pipelines are shrinking. Austerity measures in many countries are increasing local and national hurdles for market access. And, at the same time, launches are becoming more numerous, smaller, and more competitive. We estimate that pharmaceutical companies will launch some 400 new products in the next three years, up 146 percent from 2005. Given this changing external landscape, awash with more products of ever greater diversity, it’s never been more important for pharmaceutical companies to crack the new-product launch code.

Yet their recent track record is sobering at best. About two-thirds of new drugs fail to meet prelaunch consensus sales expectations for their first year on the market,1 and those that fall short typically continue to underdeliver for the next two years (exhibit). There’s no question that every launch has its own set of success factors. Yet by analyzing a sample of 60 launches in late-stage development along the dimensions of clinical differentiation and the perceived burden of the disease area in which the drug is to be launched, we identified four drug archetypes:

Exhibit
Two-thirds of a sample group of drug launches failed to meet prelaunch sales expectations for their first year on the market.

Featured Posts
Recent Posts

About pharmanaming.com

The Global Naming Network (GNN), headquartered in Geneva, is the world's largest network of independent naming and brand identity agencies.

 

With 16 offices and around 120 cooperating naming and branding specialists in 11  countries, from Shanghai to New York and from Seoul to Paris, GNN works for clients ranging from large multinationals to small startups all over the world.

Healthcare and pharmaceutical projects are coordinated from the GNN partner office of Readge consultants in Rijswijk.

 

Please get in touch for more information.

16

offices in 11 countries

120

creatives, strategists & consultants

GNN partners

China                     South Korea

France                   Italy
Germany               Japan

Netherlands         UK

India                      Singapore

Spain                     Canada

Switzerland          Russia

USA                       Dubai

5000

projects successfully executed

Pages

home                           name to brand

health & pharma        people

regulatory                   test & submit

India                            FDA

work                            blog

clients                         contact

>20000

linguistic professionals worldwide

Global Naming Network

© 2025 by Readge consultants

Leeuwendaallaan 24, 2281 GP Rijswijk, the Netherlands

call +31 653528944 or mail to pharma@globrands.com  

 

  • White LinkedIn Icon
bottom of page