Revenue growth, margin compression, customer attrition… If you are a product manager, sourcing manager, marketing manager, portfolio director, small business owner or category manager in the life sciences, you probably have heard these terms way too many times. Chances are you have some great new products, a brand-new diagnostic reagent, or a new consumable that fits perfectly into your customers workflow but without some additional supplies, it may sit on the customer shelves until they have the “complete solution”. All those research and development meetings, email blasts, sales calls, and customer service interactions are on hold until further notice. Well, adding private label consumables or equipment may be a good way to jumpstart your business in these three main areas.
- Simplification of Workflow – Modern clinical and research labs have a lot of processes running in tandem. If your customer has received a test kit to evaluate or a piece of equipment to demonstrate you may want to think about supplying everything that is needed to complete the process. It is relatively easy to source ancillary equipment to complement your process like a timer or a small incubator. The same thing goes with branded consumables, so the customer can quickly identify which tubes are used with what assay. The easier and more enjoyable a process is to run, the more the user experience is enhanced. This will expedite initial use and use frequency of the product, which will result in revenue growth and increased customer satisfaction.
- Standardized Equipment – We’ve all seen it; the vortex mixer or pipette that looks like it was used by Louis Pasteur himself. What if your customer intends on using this outdated equipment for your precision cutting-edge assay? That would be a major letdown. The materials and methods section of scientific papers is there to standardize experiments to reduce variability. Adding a standardized workflow option for your customers will improve your ability to support your customers technically and reduce the chance of a workflow anomaly. It will also increase revenue through additional product sales with an opportunity margin expansion!
- Supplier of Choice – The first order is the hardest to get. Once a customer is satisfied with the product that you provide, they will continue to reorder your product. When you delight your customer by providing everything needed for your process workflow (such as qPCR), and they can easily locate and reorder components necessary for the process, they will become a customer for life!
Of course, there are a lot of things to consider when adding products to your portfolio, but sometimes to hit those numbers all you needed was a little help. Private label products are an excellent option to add to the top and bottom line while building awareness for your brand.
