Marketing research of the Pharmaceutical market in Ukraine: Peculiarities, Trends, Problems, Tendencies

Pestun I. V.¹, Mnushko Z. M.², Ievtushenko O. M.³

¹Profesor of Pharmaceutical Marketing and Management Department, National University of Pharmacy,

St. Valentinivska, 4 , Kharkiv, 61054, Ukraine

²Profesor of Management and Economics in Family Medicine, Kharkiv Medical Academy of Postgraduate Education, St. Amosova, 58,Kharkiv, 61176, Ukraine

³Profesor of Pharmaceutical Marketing and Management Department, National University of Pharmacy,

St. Valentinivska, 4 , Kharkiv, 61054, Ukraine

*Corresponding Author E-mail: irynapestun@ukr.net, irynapestun.nuph@gmail.com

ABSTRACT:

Marketing research of the pharmaceutical market is the basis of any company's market activity, aimed at raising level of awareness and efficiency not only of individual marketing staff performance, but also senior management of company. The aim of this work is systematization and comprehensive exploration of the marketing research market in pharmacy in Ukraine. The objectives were to isolate the features of marketing research in pharmacy, identify current problems of researchers, analyze the activities of companies that specialize in marketing research in the pharmaceutical market, identify the main directions of research and development trends. For this purpose, the data of the Ukrainian Marketing Association, companies' websites, that carry out research on sectors of health protection, medicine, and pharmacy, has been analyzed. Companies are divided into two categories: those that specialize in pharmaceutical market research, and those with separate units where research of the pharmaceutical market is not the only area of activity. Also, companies could be divided by providing of quantitative research (assortment groups, prescription and non-prescription drugs, analysis of budget purchases in hospital segment, analysis of brands, analysis of companies market share, goods, manufacturers, wholesale and retail segment, etc.). and those who carry out qualitative market research (consumers, competitors, advertisements, activities, etc.). Results of studies allowed us to conclude that 11 companies are investigating the pharmaceutical market Ukraine, 5 of them specialize in pharmacy research. Main areas of research are related to market analytics, quantitative indicators, market players' market analysis.

KEYWORDS: Pharmaceutical market, Marketing research, Marketing research market.

INTRODUCTION:

Pharmaceutical market in Ukraine is under the influence of complex general conditions of the environment, political and economic components, influence of the international environment, socio-demographic situation, high competition between domestic and foreign companies, lack of state support and protectionism.

One of the main conditions for survival is the adoption of managerial decisions, that are based on comprehensive information. Possession of modern reliable and sufficient information can reduce the risk of making inaccurate decisions, increase the competitiveness and stability of a pharmaceutical company, avoid unnecessary costs and improve the financial and economic situation of an organization, and that it is especially important and socially significant to combine the interests of producers and consumers of pharmaceutical products.

Marketing research in pharmacy is based not only on the use of classical theory of marketing data collection and processing, but also on the need to take into account the specifics of the market, consumers, goods, activities of stakeholders, etc. For instance, consumers of medicines are both end-users and consumers of information about drugs - doctors, pharmacists, insurance organizations, health care institutions. A special feature is presence of pharmaceutical services on the market (pharmaceutical care as a pharmaceutical service), the provision of which is regulated by laws, directives, instructions. There are separate studies of the general scientific nature of the pharmaceutical market, but the complexity and peculiarity of it require professional knowledge of marketing (marketing research) and pharmacy.

MATERIAL AND METHODS:

In this work marketing research of Ukrainian Marketing Association was used, data of the web sites of companies conducting marketing research of the pharmaceutical market in Ukraine. To distinguish the features of marketing research in pharmacy, the definition of problems and trends in this direction used methods of comparison, logical analysis, formalization of reasoning.

RESULTS:

The results of research are presented in the form of tables that characterize the peculiarities of market research in the pharmaceutical market in the traditional directions; analyzing the activities of companies that are exploring the pharmaceutical market in Ukraine, and analyzing the trends of opportunities and challenges of conducting marketing research in the pharmaceutical market.

DISCUSSION:

General information about market research in Ukraine is traditionally presented by Ukrainian Marketing Association (UMA). Activities of marketing research companies are complicated by the fact that not all companies submit data to UMA. So, we can say that in Ukraine data on marketing research in the pharmaceutical market is absent and given results are relative. Presented analytics characterizes activities of 23 companies that conduct market research and public opinion polls (according to the state classifier of economic activity types). At the same time, the top three market leaders (only 63.99% in 2017) include the joint company Proxima Research and the Medical Date Management, which specializes in pharmaceutical research. In the top five market leaders is Kantar TNS (which shares with another company 16.8% of the market). The branch distribution of orders for marketing research is also of a relative nature, because the question of methodology is actual, according to the words of the president of the Ukrainian Marketing Association. Based on data, provided by few market participants in the market research of pharmaceuticals, the market share of such studies was 3.3% in 2017. According to UMA's research, 2017, GfK UKRAINE, Proxima Research and the Medical Date Management, Kantar TNS Ukraine, KIIS, Millard Braun ARMI Marketing Ukraine, New Image Marketing Group, IngDivision, Kvikstart Company, Yasno Research & Consulting Group were involved in the research of pharmaceuticals in 2017. [1] However, this list does not include such companies as SMD, IQVIA Ukraine, Business Credit LLC, Morion, that are known in Ukraine, and not all companies listed in accordance the analysis of information on their sites are involved in analysis of the pharmacy market.

Arguments in favor of specialized marketing research companies analyzing the pharmaceutical market say that following characteristics should be taken into account:

• specifics of consumer value of medicinal products (their therapeutic efficacy, safety, strength, duration of treatment, interaction with other drugs, etc.), which in turn implies appropriate qualification or knowledge of the researcher, use of certain research methods, etc. .;

• research on consumer preferences should be correlated with research in the field of experts (doctors, pharmacists);

• need to investigate not just the consumption of drugs, but the possible risks associated with the individual tolerance of drugs, complications of drug interactions, development of tolerance to certain drugs;

• high dependence of possibility and success of research with the consent of specialists and market operators to participate;

• presence of a large number of similar drugs on the pharmaceutical market;

• need for research on alternative treatment methods;

• state regulation of drug circulation;

• dependence of drug consumption on the level of morbidity, seasonality, etc. factors;

• research results usually have not only economic but also social efficiency, especially with regard to new needs, ideas, new opportunities and innovations in the pharmaceutical market in creation of drug, their clinical use and bringing them to consumer.

Direction of marketing research depends on market needs in certain types of marketing information. Data from UMA is the evidence that in 2017, as in previous years, surveys in the B2C segment (73.3% of studies) were more demanded, while the study of the B2B segment was 26.7%. At the same time, the largest percentage is surveyed on market measurement - 58.5%, media audience research - 12.73%, research on use / attitude of the product - 5% [1].

The table 1 represents a typical list of required information [2, 3], which has certain features in the pharmaceutical market [4].

Table 1 Characteristics of classical content of marketing research and the peculiarities of conducting research in Pharmacy in Ukraine

Direction of research	Classic content	Features in pharmacy
Market	Comprehensive study of market conditions (quantitative market analysis: capacity, market share, average consumption)	Capacity of the market and individual segments, factors influencing the market capacity (trends in consumption of drugs, appointment of doctors, recommendations by pharmacists of medicines and other products of the pharmacy assortment) Analysis of the market share not only for brand, but also competition among generics and original medicines of similar effect Average consumption of drugs and factors that influence this indicator (in the absence of obligatory medical insurance in Ukraine, this indicator is highly dependent on consumer income and social guarantees at the level of individual enterprises, as well as on the tendency of self-treatment of the population) Seasonal structure of drug sales in the country and in the regions
	study of market firm structure: manufacturers, wholesale and retail companies, infrastructure (firms that provide the production and sales process)	Research of drug manufacturers and other goods of pharmacy assortment (medical products, dietary supplements, medical cosmetics): feature is the large number of producers of various profiles in pharmacy assortment, which can be both large enterprises and not large divisions of companies whose pharmaceutical activity is not the main type of activity and it is produced only one product (or several) from the pharmacy range Trends in wholesale trade of drugs: peculiarities of research are related to the opacity of the given market Research of pharmaceutical market retail segment: features in Ukraine are associated with availability of large pharmacy networks that have a significant impact on marketing activities of manufacturers and wholesalers.
	study of forms and methods of trade practice regarding product in this market and its segments	Features of marketing contracts conclusion Features of pharmacy websites functioning against the background of prohibitions in the country for implementation of medicines through an online pharmacy Adherence to Good Pharmacy Practice and pharmaceutical care standarts
Consumers	Analysis of market segmentation and individual research market segments in order to further identify the target markets and satisfaction needs	Identification of specific criteria for segmentation of drug users and consumers (pharmacists, doctors, insurance companies, health organizations) Needs satisfaction level (compliance with the incidence of drug consumption, consumption of drugs per patient, compliance of the existing range of medicines to health needs) Analysis of self-treatment tendencies, that has a major impact on consumption and trade practices of market operators Increasing the role of the patient in deciding on treatment
Consumers	Analysis of social and psychological characteristics of buyers and consumers in specific markets, their motivation making purchasing decisions, types of buyers depending on attitude to purchase, socio-psychological types of buyers, distribution of roles in different groups of buyers and consumers	Investigation of influence on doctors᾿ appointments, pharmacists᾿ recommendations, mass media advertising of drugs on consumption of medicines Formation of assortment by market participants taking into account level of morbidity, benefits of consumers, doctors, pharmacists, seasonality of demand, influence of advertising, promotional activity of producers Necessity of influence not only on treatment, but also on prevention of diseases
Product	Requirements of consumers to product (quality, compliance with functional purpose, conformity of price to quality and consumer value, availability of accompanying documentation, quality of after-sales service, variety of assortment, possibility of choice) Brand research	Requirements of doctors, pharmacists, end-users to drugs: therapeutic efficacy, compliance with quality requirements, safety, strength, cost of treatment per day or total course (pharmacoeconomic characteristics of medicinal product), possibility of using special groups of patients (children, elderly, etc.), speed onset of effect, duration of action, dosing regimen, number of testimonies, ease of use, profitability (price, availability) Development of tolerance to certain drugs, increased side effects risk of therapy and drug interactions Analysis of pharmaceutical services Brand research as a marketing characteristic, not the characteristics of the drug novelty in the market (brand - original drug, branded generic) Postmarketing research
Competition	Competitive goods in the market Opportunities to enter the market and competitive struggle	Presence of generic competition, a significant saturation of market with similar products Significant level of competition among domestic and foreign manufacturers of pharmaceuticals A large number of wholesale and retail companies
Regulation	Influence of government policy on the market as a whole Influence on separate parts of the sales system	Permanent need to regulate certain areas of activity in the market of drugs Regulation of entrepreneurial activity in pharmacy (production, wholesale and retail trade, production and sale of narcotic, psychotropic, tranquilizers and precursors, etc.), drugs prices, introduction of programs protecting vulnerable groups of population, regulation of drug trade forms, regulation of promotional activity of manufacturers and advertising of drugs

Table 2 An analysis of the companies that are exploring the pharmaceutical market in Ukraine

Name of the company			Marketing research activity in the Pharmacy
Companies that specialize in pharmaceutical market research
PROXIMA RESEARCH [Available from: http://proximaresearch.ru/5]	A company specializing in the field of systematization of information from the pharmaceutical market. Main activities is complex study of the pharmaceutical market and development and implementation of computer technology in medicine and pharmacy: data integration and data-handling (data from the market’s audit, distributor’s report etc.), database management (physicians, MPI and pharmacies), research and analysis of the pharmaceutical market, CRM-system, sales force control, geomarketing.
SMD [Available from: http://smd.net.ua/]	The company conducts marketing research of pharmaceutical markets, business analysis, forecasting, consulting. Pharmaceutical retail consumption report (medicaments, Nutritional and Food Supplements, medical devices, goods of personal care). Data on the volume of purchases of the RX- and OTC-groups of medicaments, Nutritional and Food Supplements, medical devices and goods of personal care in volume and values (USD, LC, Euro). All four ATC classes are presented (EphMRA classification), all medicaments and forms of production, the INN (international nonproprietary names). Monitoring of the Sales Force Effectiveness Monitoring of the company’s external service in the competitive environment (concrete staff in a particular area in the specific market). Areas are generated in accordance with the zone of responsibility of the company’s medical representative by combining the smallest indivisible territories correspond to zip code area. Hospital Consumption Report Data on the volume of hospital purchases of the RX- and OTC-groups of medicaments, Nutritional and Food Supplements, medical devices and goods of personal care in volume and values (USD, LC, Euro). All four ATC classes are presented (EphMRA classification), all medicaments and forms of production, the INN (international nonproprietary names). Import Report Monthly systematic data of the Customs Committee Survey of distributors Information about the work of distributing companies in the retail sector on a monthly basis. Targeting at retail pharmacies The number of working actors, share, trade turnover in the area and point of sale, growth, sales structure of RX- and OTC-groups of medicaments, Nutritional and Food Supplements, medical devices. Percentage of declared ATC4 and targeted product in the trade turnover of the chain. Comparison with market metrics (competitors’ market share at the national and regional level) in the specific area.
IQVIA Ukraine [Available from : https://www.iqvia.com/uk-ua/locations/ukraine]	Among the large number of services, the company conducts clinical monitoring, support for clinical trials, actual clinical trials, genetic and laboratory research, analysis of sales and demand for drugs by country, advisory and other analytical services.
Business Credit LLC [Available from: https://bck.com.ua/index.php/ua/]	The company is a national leader in the field of marketing and pre-investment research of the pharmaceutical and medical market of Ukraine. Research Areas and Information Products: Equalizer (strategy) - strategic analysis. An instrument for assessing the retail pharmaceutical market for strategic decisions. Market Edge Fusion (Reposrt) Automated System of automated viewing of the data of retail and hospital sales of pharmacy products. The data are systematized and processed on the basis of extrapolated model of the pharmaceutical market sales out. Tenders (hospital) System of automated review of data on accepted tenders. The data are systematized and processed on the basis of collection from open sources of actual "sales in" MarkSyst (pharmacies) An instrument for assessing the sales of a pharmacy network, with the possibility of comparing its own efficiency with the effectiveness of the relevant market
Morion [Available from: www.morion.ua/]	The leading Ukrainian company specializing in the systematization of information related to medicines. One of the main areas company᾿s activity is the analysis of the pharmaceutical market in Ukraine (analytical reviews in the Pharmstandard project)
Multi-profile companies that conduct research on the pharmaceutical market as one of the areas of activity
Pro-Consulting [Available from: https://pro-consulting.ua/]		The company offers market analytics and consulting services. Market analysis, sectoral research: market analytical research, strategic consulting, market passport, pricing justification for transfer pricing, production analysis, digital analysis, audit of social networks and site, foreign trade analysis, EBRD business support program, market analytical note, database enterprises, price monitoring, e-mail database of enterprises, electronic database "Market analysis" Marketing research: quantitative and qualitative, competitor analysis, retail audit, secret buyer service, media monitoring and real-time information field analysis, call center - telephone surveys For the pharmaceutical market in particular: analysis of general tendencies of the Ukrainian medicines market, leading manufacturers of medicines, analysis of the pharmaceutical market of Ukraine, the country's largest pharmacy networks, conclusions and forecast trends of the pharmaceutical market of Ukraine
Kantar TNS Ukraine [Available from: https://tns-ua.com/]		TNS Healthcare sector grants a broad range of research services to the international and regional pharmaceutical and biotech companies, diagnostic centres and manufacturers of medical devices. The company's research helps to identify priorities in product development and product lineages, differentiate brands, increase their profitability after market entry, and more. Studies allow: evaluate potential of the pharmaceuticals market depending on a patient profile, quantify a patient’s unmet needs, develop marketing strategies aimed at specific patient/consumer segments, evaluate advertising campaign efficiency, study awareness level of a drug and its use, determine price elasticity for the drugs, study perception of healthcare facilities by the patients, evaluate the service level and quality of services, determine perception level of pharmaceutical companies, image of the companies, evaluate effectiveness of medical representatives, study level of consumer loyalty, testing (product concept, TV advertising, package, visuals etc.)
Renting Agency Credit Rating [Available from: www.credit-rating.ua/ua/]		The company offers a passport industry - a set of medium-sized financial indicators of enterprises of the selected sector of the economy with a description of their dynamics and brief commentary. Provides information on trend trends for the average industry in the industry. Contains the dynamics of consolidated (cumulative) industry balance indicators and their calculated coefficients. Updated quarterly.
КIІС [Available from: https://www.kiis.com.ua/]		Kiev International Institute of Sociology. Has a Department of Health Research. Consumer research Testing of goods and services. Investigation of a group of goods or services with similar properties, but different brands and manufacturers; Studying the level of customer satisfaction. Study of certain characteristics / properties of a product or service that affects the choice of the consumer; Testing prices. Studying consumer opinions about the optimal value of goods and services in which they are ready to use such goods or services; Study the level of satisfaction with the service. Study of subjective assessments of consumers about the quality of services provided; Studying the attitude of consumers towards goods and services and their level of use. Identification of a unique set of associations, thoughts and feelings of consumers in relation to goods and services, as well as studying the frequency of the use of these goods and services. Brand research Definition of the brand image and its position on the market. Definition of a unique set of associations, thoughts and feelings of consumers in relation to the attributes or communications of the brand, as well as the designation of its place in the competitive range of the relevant product category; Determination of brand loyalty. Determination of the constant positive attitude of the consumer towards the brand, expressed in the repeatability of its purchase or use; Testing the name and logo of the brand. Studying consumer perception of the name and logo of the brand; Product testing, packaging design. Study of consumer ratings of product properties and their perception of packaging design. Advertising research Testing of advertising concepts, advertising messages. Study of consumers' reaction to the offered advertising products, revealing positive and negative evaluations, determination of how advertising is consistent with the basic idea, how convincing it is for consumers; Evaluating the effectiveness and level of advertising success. Study detailed memories and communications of advertising message and brand, as well as studying the influence of advertising campaign to increase sales. Market research Study the volume of the market. Study the volume of sales of goods or services for a certain time and in a certain geographical area; Segmentation of the market. Distribution of the market to subgroups, combined on one or several essential features (for example, geographic, demographic, etc.) Forecasting market trends. Forecasting the growth or drop in markets in the near or long-term prospects. Audit of retail trade A mysterious buyer. Evaluation of the customer service process using specially trained people who carry out verifications on behalf of potential / real clients; Merchandising. Definition of the methodology of selling goods at retail outlets, their range, prices, as well as the way of presentation and delivery of their promotional materials; Research of outlets. Research of retail and small-scale points, which includes the study of assortment and price characteristics of goods.
Milvard Braun A/R/M/I-Marketing [Available from: www.armi-marketing.com/]		A/R/M/I-Marketing specializes exclusively in custom research and does not conduct omnibus, syndicated and other research simultaneously for several customers. Research areas: Pre-testing Link ™ advertising, ATP ™ tracking communications and brands, and Brand Demo brand value testing, testing concepts and the potential of new products and services, packaging, price elasticity, quality and other types of research.
ing]DIVISION [Available from: www.ingdivision.ua/]		The company carries out marketing consulting, video marketing, marketing research, personnel consulting, quality management, drawing video production, media monitoring, IT consulting, Usability. Research areas: consumer research, product research, advertising research, market research and marketing. Technology: Survey, Telephone Surveys, Expert, Retail Audit, Price & Distribution Check, Panel Studies, Home-test, Store Cheking

Table 3Trends and Problems of Marketing Research in the Pharmaceutical Market

Trends in marketing research of the pharmaceutical market

Modern features of marketing research in pharmaceutical market

Problems of the marketing research in pharmaceutical market

Automation of processes

Search for real-time dynamic data collection models

Patient-centricity

Using Big Data

Rapid change in the needs of customers and consumers

The need to combine "old" (panel, survey) and "new" (use of artificial intelligence information) research methods

Providing relevant content for health professionals

A quick, cheaper, standardized approach to collecting information

Viewing the concept of using Big Data, moving to more qualitative research

Creating digital applications (digital health) interpreting their data for diagnosis, treatment, consumer behavior analysis, identifying prevention pathways, improving marketing activity in general and individual marketing elements.

Analysis of search queries with their subsequent analysis by artificial intelligence

Ability to build logic chains based on available consumer data

Ability to integrate information exchange with partners and consumers through artificial intelligence

Personalize marketing efforts based on customer's search (customer targeting)

Ability to form an effective marketing strategy based on analysis of the market and benefits of consumers and customers, taking into account various variables through the use of artificial intelligence

Problems of research methodology

Use of modern information technologies requires permanent experience in the conditions of rapidly changing real business.

Complexity of transforming large data into a short report, interpretation, need for prior filtering of unnecessary data

Ever-changing of technology

A large number of primary and secondary data to be collected, processed, aggregated and interpreted

Relevance of the research data received is highly dependent on representativeness of sample and characteristics of consumers or customers who are selected to participate in the survey (respondents are not interested in careful answers)

Privacy, confidentiality, data privacy, security issues and data storage (especially relevant in the pharmaceutical market, since patients do not want to disclose data about their health

It is difficult to interpret scattered statistics

Collecting large data does not always give a better and full picture

Thus, in general marketing research in pharmacy is in line with current trends, but has many significant features and problems.

CONCLUSION:

Pharmaceutical marketing research in Ukraine is not sufficiently transparent. Research of specialized marketing companies is aimed at collecting quantitative analytical data. Trends, general problems of marketing research in Ukrainian pharmaceutical market indicate the necessity of introducing digital technologies and artificial intelligence for collecting data for its client orientation.

The conflict of interest is absent.

REFERENCES:

1. Лилик І. Ринок маркетингових досліджень в Україні 2017 рік: експертна оцінка та аналіз УАМ. Маркетинг в Україні. 2018; 1: 4-24.

2. Малхотра НК. Маркетинговые исследования, Вильямс. 2016.

3. Christiansen B, Yildiz S, Yildiz E. Handbook of Research on Effective Marketing in Contemporary Globalism, IGI Global. 2014.

4. Мнушко З, Пестун И. Теория и практика маркетинговых исследований в фармации: Монография, Изд-во НФаУ, 2008.

5. Aitken M, Clancy B, Nass D. The growing value of digital health. Evidence and impact on human health and the healthcare system. Edited by IQVIA Institute for Human Data Sience, USA. 2017.

6. Волошина М. Формула пилюли: анализ фармацевтического рынка: A review. Available from: URL: https://koloro.ua/blog/issledovaniya/formula-piluli-analiz-farmacevticheskogo-rynka.html.

7. Малишевская М. Анализ фармрынка: все познается в сравнении. Фармацевт Практик. 2017; 7-8: Available from: URL: http://fp.com.ua/articles/analyz-farmrynka-vse-poznaetsya-v-sravnenyy.

8. Искусственный интеллект в Фарме: где и как использовать? 2017. Available from: URL: https://www.apteka.ua/article/418643.

9. Global Market Research 2017. An ESOMAR Industry Report in cooperation with BDO Accountant & Advisors ./Published by ESOMAR, Amsterdam. Available from: URL: https://www.activaonline.cl/zip/activa/20180122105033_ESOMAR_Global-Market-Research-2017.pdf.

10. Агаева АН, Васильченко ТЗ. Перспективные направления информационного обеспечения технологий маркетинговых исследований. Международный журнал прикладных и фундаментальных исследований. 2014; 2-2. : 134-135.

11. Schmidt S. Predicted Market Research Trends for 2017. A review. Available from: URL: https://blog.marketresearch.com/predicted-market-research-trends-for-2017.

12. Murphy L. The Top 10 Challenges in the Market Research Industry. A review. Available from: URL: https://greenbookblog.org/2015/06/26/the-top-10-challenges-in-the-market-research-industry.

13. Greenbook research industry trends report. 2018. Available from: URL: https://www.greenbook.org/PDFs/GRIT_Q1-Q2_2018_Final_Report.pdf.

Received on 28.11.2018 Modified on 27.12.2018

Research J. Pharm. and Tech. 2019; 12(4):2049-2054.

DOI: 10.5958/0974-360X.2019.00339.1