Starting a medical device company requires some planning and preparation. Doing quick research on the causes of failure among medical device startup companies shows that many of them share certain mistakes. This ensues from certain misconceptions around medical device manufacturing and marketing. In this article, we are going to discuss 4 mistakes that medical device startup companies make and provide tips on how to avoid such mistakes.
Poor planning
A common mistake that the majority of medical device startup companies make is that they do not have a proper needs analysis and, as a result, come up with the wrong plan. A medical device company intends to manufacture medical devices that could be used in the health sector. There might be hundreds of such devices that seem to be of great help. But you need to ask yourself, “which ones have higher practicality? Do we have the means to produce those devices? How should we draw attention to our new products? Will our device solve a serious problem? Will physicians/surgeons vouch for our device? There are so many questions like these that you should answer before you can actually embark on manufacturing a device. In reality, however, many companies come up with an idea quickly and jump right into the manufacturing process. This, more often than not, ends in having a poorly-designed product that is not as practical as it should be and, consequently, gets no place in the market.
Underestimating the amount of work
The primary concern with a startup company is the safety and effectiveness of the devices it makes. You will need a lot of documentation to prove that the manufacturing process in your company is in line with the approved standards and that the devices you make will pose no threats to the users. The process of testing and verification of medical device startups is a strict and lengthy one. Unfortunately, many medical device startups ignore this fact and stay aghast when they’re rejected again and again. The rejections are mostly due to underestimating minute details that must be paid attention to.
In order to make sure that everything is done the proper way, the safest way is to have a medical device quality management system in your company. A medical device quality management system (MDQMS) guarantees meeting the required standards set by ISO 13485, which are primarily concerned with the safety, quality, and practicality of the product. Startup companies implementing an MDQMS will save tons of time by doing everything the right way from start to end.
Expecting perfect results from the start
Designing and manufacturing a good medical device requires a lot of testing and trials. There are simply too many things that go unnoticed at the start but intervene and sometimes stop the process. Then, you should start anew and take a different path taking the previous issues into consideration. Thus, to expect the best results from your first attempt is too idealistic and almost never achievable. This presents medical device companies with timing and budget problems. When you think of designing a device, you should always think about going through the process several times, each time removing certain obstacles in your way.
Even if everything goes well according to the plan and your device meets all your expectations, you should not expect glorious results. This is due to the fact that other manufacturers might have just made a better device than yours, or the market is not yet ready to appreciate your device. Always expect the best from yourself, but never accept others to feel the same about you! Your newly manufactured device will either prove practical in the near future or give you innovative ideas for your future project.
Not choosing the right marketing strategies.
The business world is a cruel competitive one. No matter how practical your newly-devised product is, as long as you have poor marketing strategies, your device is not going to sell well. It’s not like you creating a device today and the world coming to get it the next day. With poor marketing strategies, your device will remain unknown and, for that matter, unappreciated, regardless of how great and practical it is. Therefore, an important aspect of every medical device startup company should be concerned with the best marketing strategies that guarantee success. This, of course, is easier said than done.
Good marketing strategies are only possible if you have the right people in your company who have a proper understanding of the medical device market and know how to target the right audience. Many medical device companies do not have marketing researchers in their team and fail to gain enough attention from the market. If you want to start a medical device company, you will be several steps ahead of your business rivals only by collecting experienced market researchers and seeking their advice before manufacturing a medical device.
Final thoughts
As the old saying goes, “you should always look before you leap,” and this cannot be truer for medical device companies seeking a place in the market. To get the best results, you need to take the right path, which mandates avoiding certain mistakes. In this article, we discussed four mistakes medical device startup companies make and explained how these mistakes could be avoided. Tell us if you found this article informative, and let us know about other mistakes that you think medical device companies should avoid.
