Social Marketing
GDI primarily follows commercial marketing strategies for financial sustainable, however, strategic departures which are consciously adopted in its operations are –
Pricing strategy:GDI does not follow the ‘maximizing of profit’ approach of the private sector especially that of the pharmaceutical industry and most social marketing enterprises in health. The norm followed by the private sector is to set the price to the consumer on a ’willingness to pay’ basis rather than constructing the maximum retail price (MRP) based on –
- product and marketing costs
- defined markups for each level of the supply chain
GDI’s price structure provides a healthy margin to its channel partners and covers its procurement and marketing costs. No going extra deals to spike profits are given to the trade which pushes the MRPs to abnormal levels. Business with channel partners is developed on timely visits, transparent financial policies and above all the assurance of the best quality products.
Integration of non-viable retail outlets for last mile connectivity:
For distribution channel partners GDI’s strength lies in its market coverage. Each and every partner is visited on a pre-determined date which is informed to the partner 48 hours prior to the visit, by SMS. Coverage outcomes are analyzed by the state-of-the-art MIS of GDI and feedback provided to the field team on a real time basis so that negotiations with the partner stays focused and yields maximum results. GDI’s channel partners perfectly understand this module and are comfortable with the on-time visits and doorstep delivery of products.
The same process is followed for rural markets and urban slums where handpicked entrepreneurs are mobilized through special training and revolving drug fund support. These entrepreneurs are based at population level of one per thousand population as is the case with the Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs). Initial movement of products clearly shows that GDI’s network supplements government short supplies and also cater to the section of population who wants to pay for their supplies if they are affordable and not depend on or even avail free supplies. For a growing economy like India this movement away from free supplies reduces the burden from the government system and also ensures uninterrupted supplies besides creating employment.
GDI sources its products from reputed pharmaceutical companies with Good Manufacturing Practices as norms set by The Government of India. Before tying up, due diligence is conducted by a committee compromising of –
- One director of the company
- An outsourced expert in due diligence process
- A member of the field team
- A channel partner selected by the Random Selection Process
- A healthcare provider also selected by the Random Selection Process
- Prices and payment terms are also negotiated with the shortlisted manufacturer in the presence of the committee.
- Maintains a non-tamperable computerized First In First Out (FIFO) system for all its products
- Does not sell products which has less than 6 months of expiry left as per the print on the primary consumer packaging