Exubera Case Study

Summary

This case study reviews the failed strategy and tactics utilized by Pfizer for the launch of its inhaled insulin product Exubera for diabetes. The study reviews the pharma giant's missteps with payers, consumers and KOLs as it launched the product. Pfizer expected a blockbuster because of Exubera's perceived delivery system advantages over insulin injections but the product flopped - despite Pfizer's substantial marketing efforts - and was dropped by the company less than a year after launch. Executives and managers can use this research to gain insights into the sometimes-difficult process of winning key support from payers, consumers and physicians for a product with different characteristics than existing products.

Contents

• Executive Summary
  • Key Findings
  • Exubera Commercialization Milestones
• Market Entry Issues
  • Exubera Market-Entry Summary: Blockbuster Predicted
  • How Exubera Missed The Mark: Key Marketing Issues
  • Business Case with Payers Not Adequate
  • Thought Leaders Not Fully Engaged
  • Drug Delivery System Not Fully Received
  • Extra Burden on Physicians Impacted Adoption
  • Rush to Launch without Full Internal Alignment Hurt Entry
  • Rollout Too Rapid for Adequate Specialist Focus
  • Marketing Muscle Could Not Overcome Concerns
  • Massive Education Programs Failed to Influence
  • Sales Support System Drew Internal Criticism
• Product Issues
  • Failure to Overcome Safety Questions Hurt Uptake
  • Exubera Lacked Exploitable Efficacy Advantage
  • Positioning around Unmet Need Fell Short
  • Dosing Complexity Limited Drug Acceptance Rate
  • Scorecard: No Strong Driver for Medical Change
• Lessons Learned
• Appendix
  • Disease and Drug Information
  • Status of Competing Inhaled Insulin Products
• about Best Practices, Llc