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Think you have what it takes to be an consultant or a coach? I wasn’t so sure I knew when I first started in 1999. All I knew was I desperately wanted to work from home to raise my two sons after my divorce. It took a lot of trial and error to g

According to USFDA, a combination product is one composed of any combination of a drug and device; biological product and device; drug and biological product

et to the stabile and profitable business I am running now in 2006. There are some things I learned along the way I wish I knew much earlier in the game.

One thing I learned is that writing is a very small part of being a successful ent

; or drug, device, and biological product and fixed dose combination would include two or more combinations of drug.

Examples of combination products may in

repreneur. Don’t get me wrong. You DO need to know how to write. But your success depends largely on your savvy as a businessperson. How do I know? Because I’ve played it from both sides of the street. And I didn’t begi

lude drug-coated devices, drugs packaged with delivery devices in medical kits, and drugs and devices packaged separately but intended to be used together.

n to enjoy success until I started doing some very distinct things in my business.

Please let me share with you some of the mistakes I made starting out so you can avoid those pitfalls yourself…and catapult to success much faster
here is enormous increase in the number of combination products entering the market in the recent years. Combination products have proven advantages but fixe
g> than it took me.

Mistake #1: Don’t attract new clients

When I first started out in 1999 I had exactly one client. He kept me very busy…for awhile. Then, without warning, he suddenly shifted his business t
d dose combinations are still in the process of convincing regulatory authority on their advantages over the single ingredient formulations.

Combination pro
o 100% offline and began using a copywriter with more experience in that area. I floundered for 10 months before I got back on my feet again from that blow.

Solution: NEVER stop marketing yourself. Even if you have a full practic
ucts have become life saving products for the pharmaceutical companies who doesn’t have many innovative molecules in their product pipeline and have been inc
e, don’t stop getting the word out. Write articles and press releases. Do interviews whenever possible. Start an ezine and/or a blog so your name is always out there. Don’t get caught flat-footed.

Mistake #2: Don
easingly used in the product life cycle management. Even the companies having product patents are trying to extend their product life cycle through the combi
’t effectively manage your clients

At first I was so grateful to have any clients I let them call all the shots – regardless of what was in my best interest. It took me a long time to realize every client is not a match for me. Sometim
nation products and maximize the revenues. But the companies involved in this practice are overlooking that they are burdening the patients both economically
es they were unreasonable in deadlines. Other times they would call me at all hours…including 6 a.m. and even on the weekends. (Until I learned to communicate better there were even a few clients I had to fire!) Bottom line is you can never have
and physically. They need to rightly judge the benefits of the combination products and they have to even look at the risks involved when combining the produ
enough communication.

Solution: Have the client fill out a detailed questionnaire to open up lines of communication or have a long phone interview (which you record). Get a feel for his or her expectations. Add an extra cushion
ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi
o your deadline. If possible, get a gatekeeper (assistant) to set up schedule so you can focus on what you do best – writing.

Mistake #3: Poor time management

Eager to please, I often did not give mysel
ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a
f enough lead time for an assignment. I’d say, “I’ll do it!” before I looked at the reality of my schedule. So I’d have to pull all nighters or miss important family events. I was incredibly stressed and not a lot of fun to be around.

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod

Solution: Schedule your daily schedule BEFORE you go to bed at night. Turn off email until you’ve made some headway with your copy. And use a kitchen timer to work in increments of 35 minutes (studies show after that frame your mind craves
cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin
distraction). When the ding goes off, get up, stretch and clear your head.

Mistake #4: Not getting paid enough

Face it…in your business you do a lot more work than most people realize. You have to do d
tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen
eep research in your industry, around your competition, and with your own target market. You have to attract leads. Then you have to write powerful copy that crawls inside the head of the prospect and leads them to a specific action. You should
t?

As combination products don't fit into the traditional categories of drugs, medical devices, or biological products, the USFDA is in the process of devel
get paid what you are really worth – no exceptions.

Solution: Value yourself enough to get paid what you’re worth.

Mistake #5: Don’t invest in yourself

I have read the classic <
ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust
em>“Think and Grow Rich” 16 times. Every time I read it, I learn something new. I have watched the motivational movie "The Secret" 6 times to date. I go to seminars (even when I’ve heard the speakers befor
y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products
e). Because I learn something new every time. I have a huge marketing library of books, binders, home study courses, CDs, DVDs, MP3s and I listen to them over and over. Again, every time I take in material, whether it’s new or old, I learn somet
.

As there is an increasing trend of the combination products companies manufacturing such products should be able to tackle the problems involved in the de
hing new.

Successful people in all walks of life invest in themselves. It’s one of the keys that separates them from the less successful. (Trust me, at times it hurt to part with the massive amounts of cash I’ve laid out for this education. But
elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip
the payoff happens every time. Just do it.)

Solution: If you’re looking to attract more money into your business, start by investing in yourself. Think LONG TERM. As the old adage says, “If you’re not growing, you’re dying.”

tion in industry events and feedback to regulatory authorities would be able to face the challenges and will be successful in developing combination products

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