Looking at the Medtech industry and their IT solutions, it’s obvious that many companies underestimate the power of their digital solutions. With a deteriorating commercial climate, it’s more important than ever to fully capture the value of digital solutions and ensure they’re properly monetized – either directly or indirectly. But how should companies go about this?
Six fundamental mistakes companies make when implementing IT solutions
From our work on numerous projects, we have identified six common mistakes companies make when offering an IT solution in addition to their core product. These missteps occur all across the industry but can be easily resolved with a simple resolution strategy.
• Lack of strategy and vision: In our opinion, companies often don’t have a clear direct or indirect monetization strategy. Most Health IT solutions are provided free of charge or added on top to improve the appeal of the offer and increase the odds of success. A clear strategy and vision on how to integrate Health IT solutions into the portfolio is often missing.
• No dedicated commercial setup: A lack of focus and poorly defined ownership of tasks have resulted in Health IT solutions being used solely as a means to “sweeten the deal.”
• Limited experience in IT pricing: Health IT solutions and services require different revenue models than pure equipment sales (e.g. subscription models, SaaS, licensing fees).
• Unused data potential: Customer information and data captured through Health IT solutions are often not considered for monetization purposes (companies lack the knowledge on what to do with this data).
• Poor value communication: Far too often, companies haven’t developed a dedicated approach to Health IT value communication. They need to highlight the economic and clinical benefits to relevant stakeholders.
• No integration of governance: Limited integration of business targets and KPIs results in little transparency on implementation success and lack of alignment with compensation schemes.
How can these mistakes be avoided? Or if they’ve already been made, how can they be corrected? In our point of view, companies have to be aware of the benefit of their digital solutions and develop their strategy accordingly. Simply put: Think of software as providing value, not as a freebie. This doesn’t necessarily mean that companies have to directly monetize their solutions. Monetizing indirectly, such as by driving win-loss success, achieving a price premium for core products/counter price erosion, or achieving a higher volume commitment, can be just as effective as charging directly. However, if companies don’t know the value of their solutions, they will never be able to use this value as a selling tool.
Innovative digital solutions will enable access to new stakeholders and markets and potentially capture a larger share of the value chain. Use this opportunity to differentiate your offers from your competitors’. Acknowledging the value of your Health IT solutions will not only increase customers’ value perception but will also help you get to know your customers and their needs.