Eli Lilly and Company (ELC) had many successes in the manufacturing and selling of insulin products. But despite its dominant position, the company suffered a decline in its overall market share from 1980 to 1995. ELC launched three innovative insulin products: the “Insulin pens”, “Match” at a premium price compared with industry’s traditional insulin delivery syringes. It tried hard to improve its products, only to find out that its new product became rival commodities of its own old product. ELC’s declining market share is reflected with the company’s propensity to invest in products that are viewed by customers as supplies. ELC and Novo unveiled the same insulin products concurrently to race their place in the market. They tried to put out the newest product in order to attract more customers and gain more profit from it. But does the customer really need these newest products? Concomitantly, the behavior of a majority of the patient population towards the treatment and care of diabetes is shifting such that patients are determining their own ways of therapies. In order to utilize insulin pens, patients must effectively monitor and administer multiple insulin shots daily. Though it may be a difficult and lengthy procedure for all groups, exerting efforts that will change the behavior of this majority can make a difference in fixing the damage that has been created. ELC appears to avoid speaking or listening to the appropriate groups of individuals that can significantly improve their position by determining products and feature advancement. When it comes to asking the customer what they need, they asked the wrong customer. Instead of asking the people who are actually using diabetes care products, they went to the doctors. What the doctors want may be totally different from what the patient need. The doctors would want the customers come to them on a regular basis because that may be a way they can earn money. What went wrong with ELC’s business strategies? While other companies are constantly introducing new products along with incremental improvements to existing ones, ELC refuses to play on a constant competitive space. You may have heard people say that they have “a touch of diabetes” or “their sugar is a little high”. These words suggest that diabetes is not a serious disease. That is actually incorrect. Diabetes is serious and patients should learn how to manage it. ELC does not understand the world from its customers’ point of view and needs. ELC does not explore the “customer pain” by using quantifiable market research to uncover the target market. As much as they are out to know what the customers are demanding, they must set ways to be successful. ELC should watch and ask customers the way they use the products, what their values consist of, and what they prefer starting with the most important aspect of the product. They need to determine the advantages of different products that customers may have opted for. This will identify the competition and open up dimensions of customer experience. After product requirements have been identified, they need to go back and seek solutions and improvements based on what is possible. ELC needs to implement effective ongoing strategies for assessing customers and their needs in order to validate the market over and over again.
We want to create a differentiated customer experience: one that is uniquely pure. But do you really know what your customers want and need?