4 Ways To Control Pharmaceutical Print Marketing Materials Cost
With rising costs affecting how much you pay for materials and services, it’s essential to know how to save money on printing pharmaceutical marketing materials. We’ll discuss four ways to keep costs down and include particular insight into how our print management platform can facilitate your efforts.
Why Are Print Costs So High?
Throughout the domestic and international print industry, several supply chain issues have limited the availability and cost of paper. During the global pandemic, many paper mills closed or began producing other products.
Contributing factors include:
- Increased demand packaging
- Pulp shortages
- Rising fuel prices
- Chemical shortages
- Container shortages
- Transportation issues
- Fewer people to do the work
All this resulted in a longer wait and higher prices for marketers and consumers.
Importance of Print Materials in Pharmaceutical Marketing
Pharmaceutical printing includes numerous media, styles, and sizes. Some examples of essential marketing materials include:
- Prescription documents
- Labels
- Inserts
- Brochures
Accuracy and readability ensure the safety of consumers and protect pharmaceutical companies from liability risks. Why are the stakes so high? One typo, smudge, or unclear dosage could result in deadly consequences. With so much on the line, it’s natural that a good chunk of your advertising budget goes to printing new materials and destroying outdated ones. Executives juggle several factors to deal with supply chain challenges and increasing paper costs.
At an estimated annual cost of $2.5 billion, pharmaceutical advertising results in brand awareness for specific drugs and the pharmaceutical companies that make and market them. About 10% of this money goes into print materials. Unfortunately, about a third of all marketing and operational costs remain hidden due to poor business practices and tools.
The following section explores four ways to cut your printed marketing costs. Before implementing these ideas, make sure to follow any regulations that apply to your sector.
According to Gartner, supply chain cost management models will continue focusing on short-term goals delivering maximum impact. However, this narrow focus has pros and cons. So, keep sight of long-term goals; keep an eye on how changes affect performance. Top supply chain leaders face disruptions such as pandemics, recessions, and politics. However, they can handle them with diverse resources and networks.
Here are four ways to reduce print costs to protect your bottom line.
Build Fexibility into Your Planning Processl
How can you better communicate your needs and specifications prior to the deadlines for printed materials? Paper pricing changes every day, and availability fluctuates. Therefore, you’ll want to confirm your order and freeze the estimated prices. This gives you first dibs on the
coveted materials.
What if your current stock selection isn’t available or has a much higher price point than similar paper stock? Consider various weights, finishes, and alternate brands. Flexibility lets you pivot quickly to keep your campaign or project on schedule, and it can also minimize the hit to your budget.
Assure Compliance with Formalized SOPs
Pharmaceutical companies document and adhere to internal standard operating procedures (SOPs) in line with the FDA’s reporting rules. A Pharmaceutical SOP includes easy-to-follow steps for employees executing a specific operation.
When documenting SOPs, it’s essential to focus on both compliance and key factors driving profitability. Otherwise, organizational goals may become lost in minutiae.So, your SOP must keep quality assurance, compliance, and costs in line. Fortunately, our print management platform makes it easy to establish workflows. From secure access to online sign-off on materials, these tools make compliance and cost control easier. Additionally, our platform makes it simple to recall printed materials and destroy them according to your SOPs.
Maintain Flexibility in Paper Choice
Keep a constant lookout for cost-effective alternatives that reduce printing, storage, and shipping costs. Paperweight assigns a number corresponding to the paper’s thickness and sturdiness, not the material’s actual weight. Discuss grades, sheet sizes, weights, and other factors with your printer.
Here’s an example. You decide to ditch your 110lb index material and go with a 67lb Bristol. It’s essential to understand the terminology and how to evaluate different paper stocks and weights. The more you understand, the better conversations you can have with printers and other providers.
Select Print Management Systems that Enforce SOPs
Set up a framework to discuss, approve, and implement processes and procedures that make it easy for employees to seek guidance. Instructions for each process serve as a clear, scannable way to communicate critical procedures. For example, numbered procedures allow new hires to learn tasks quickly without extensive training requirements.
Print management systems, like the Circulo Management Platform, enforce these SOPs with automated SOPs for:
- Ordering procedures
- Sign-offs (internal approvals)
- Standards validation
- Multi-level user access
- CRM integration
- Inventory
Circulo Print Management Platform Facilitates Print Cost Control
We have a web-based portal; your sales and marketing teams can use this to order product samples and materials. This centralized approach reduces redundancy and saves time.
Print management platforms have built-in features that make the following processes easier:
- Compliance
- Automatic product and material recalls
- Real-time scheduling of audits
- Inventory management
Inventory Control & Management
Reduce operating costs with features that make it simple to do the following:
- Optimize warehouse operations
- Reduce inventory holding costs
- Implement e-commerce management
- Keep your inventory updated
Streamlined Approval Management
Who doesn’t want a simplified approval process? Our portal automates several approval management processes, including:
- Changing the order expiration date
- Sending alerts to anyone using the materials
- Automating approvals and rejections
Management and Analytics
Speeding up your audit and analytics processes gives you more time to focus on the business. Our platform allows you to quickly compare data sets across various dimensions. Put the emphasis back on the people consuming your pharmaceutical print marketing materials — your customers!
Streamlined Approval Management
Who doesn’t want a simplified approval process? Our portal automates several approval management processes, including:
- Changing the order expiration date
- Sending alerts to anyone using the materials
- Automating approvals and rejections
Workflow Management
Automate business processes with customized workflows for:
- Assignments
- Approval email notifications
- Routing
- Tracking of work items
- Escalation
Distribution Management
In a perfect world, you can control your inventory at the touch of a button. Our system can handle inventory and distribution tasks for multiple channels.
Schedule a Demo Today!
To learn more, schedule a demo and take back control of your pharmaceutical print marketing budget.
