Great concept. Perceived need. Solid technology.
Now your challenge is: getting people to try it.
How will you identify your best prospects? How will you open the door? How will you get them hooked? How will you keep them engaged? In sum: What’s your plan to find, win, and grow profitable customer relationships?
Often the process starts with highly targeted prospecting – that is: Choose who you want to do business with. And get the conversation started.
Successful entrepreneurs will tell how they tightly focused on strategic beachheads – then grew out from them – to establish market leadership.
2. Presenters / Panelists
Sassa Akervaal
Owner and CEO
Akervaal Technologies, Inc.
Makers of the revolutionary SISU mouth guard
Gene Parunak
Co-founder and Managing Partner
in2being LLC
Product development for medical devices and life sciences
10. Their prospects’ roles and responsibilities …
LARGE MDM’S
• Product manager
• Software manager
• Direct IT sourcing
• Direct IT procurement
• Commodity manager
SMALL & MEDIUM-SIZE MDM’S
• Owner
• CEO
• IT director
• Purchasing manager
• Product manager
16. Prospects’ pains
1 “Our current OEM doesn’t offer the exact specs for the new
device.”
2 “The spec is too granular. We’ll be stuck with a short IT lifecycle.”
3 “We’re locked into this OEM. We don’t know all the options.”
4 “Can I count on this to be in stock? Will it be available next year?”
5 “This is going end of life. The replacement hasn’t been validated.”
6 “Hey, wait! This was substituted without notice or validation.”
7 “We’ll ship globally, but it’s sourced in the U.S. Is it OK for import?”
8 “An IT product’s life is simply too short for a medical device.”
9 “Multiple OEMs demand multiple relationships. What a mess!”
10 “Help! We’re overstocked – and we’re afraid it will go obsolete.”
17. NOTHING happens until someone from
Dynamic connects ONE TO ONE with
someone from the device manufacturer.
18. NOTHING happens until the customers sees
the VALUE they’ll gain by working with Dynamic.
20. Not the number of online mentions.
Not the number of click-throughs.
Not the number of page visits.
Not the number of conversions.
Not the number of likes.
Not the number of marketing awards.
21. Step by step to creating a new Dynamic customer
1. Find the right company.
2. Find the right person.
3. Reach out.
4. Start the conversation.
5. Follow through.
6. Build a relationship.
27. Step by step to a targeted marketing plan
1. Refine the message.
2. Rebuild the infrastructure.
3. Build the prospect database.
4. Re-arm the salespeople.
5. Selectively test trade shows.
6. Surprise and delight.
Positioning, brand audit, purpose
Website, webinar
LeadJen
White paper, case study, etc.
Pathology Visions, SLAS, DA4S …
IT Lifecycle Roadmap
28.
29. The 40-40-20 Rule of Direct Marketing
List – 40%
Offer – 40%
Execution – 20%
30. Meanwhile, no exceptional investments in:
TRADITIONAL MEDIA
• Aggressive PR
• Splashy advertising
• Mass mailings
• Big shows
• Fancy brochures
NEW MEDIA
• SEO
• PPC
• Inbound marketing
• Web analytics
• Social media
31. Dynamic’s bottom-line marketing metrics
How many good new prospects have we identified?
How many good new conversations have we had?
How many good new customers have we created?
How many good new sales have we generated?
How many good new relationships have we grown?
33. Not all companies will create customers in
the same way Dynamic does.
BUT …
34. Many of our clients have a tight core of top prospects.
250 small and medium-size businesses in Washtenaw County
750 hospital pharmacies and 120 schools of pharmacy
300 banks and credit unions in MI, OH, and IN
700 gift retailers in North America
60 commercial real estate brokers
A few dozen key physicians and a few dozen key social workers
About a thousand investors in the senior housing industry
A couple thousand targeted households in Ann Arbor
50. WHERE ARE WE NOW?
WHERE ARE WE NOW? Accelerate Michigan Business Competition
51. ● 2014 Gross Sales: $1.5 million
● > 30 SKUs
● Profit Margins > 50%
● 18 employees
● 15,000 sq ft facility in Saline, MI
WHERE ARE WE NOW? Accelerate Michigan Business Competition
52. HOW DID WE GET THERE?
HOW DID WE GET THERE? Accelerate Michigan Business Competition
53. 1. WE REVOLUTIONIZED MOUTHGUARD TECHNOLOGY
Jan Akervall, M.D., Ph.D
President, Chief Medical Officer
Valarie Thomas, Ph.D
Senior Research Scientist
Johannes Swank, Ph.D
Chief Scientific Officer
4 Patents Pending
HOW DID WE GET THERE? Accelerate Michigan Business Competition
54. 2. WE FOUND A NICHE MARKET WHERE WE COULD LEAD
HOW DID WE GET THERE? Accelerate Michigan Business Competition
55. 3. WE BUILT A BALANCED MULTI-CHANNEL BUSINESS
40%
40%
20%
Distributors
10 Global
Direct to Customer
10,000 individuals
Up 100% in 2014
Direct to Retailer
800 Retailers
SALES CHANNELS:
HOW DID WE GET THERE? Accelerate Michigan Business Competition
56. For Night Grinding
4. WE APPLIED OUR TECHNOLOGY TO NEW
PRODUCTS IN NEW INDUSTRIES
HOW DID WE GET THERE? Accelerate Michigan Business Competition
57. 5. WE GREW OUR TEAM
HOW DID WE GET THERE? Accelerate Michigan Business Competition
SISU Leadership Team
59. NOW, WE ARE BUILDING STRONG, SMART PARTNERSHIPS
WITH TRUSTED BRANDS.
WHAT’S NEXT? Accelerate Michigan Business Competition
60. ● Development of new mouthguard
material with NSF SBIR Phase II
● Innovation of intubation guard
● Development of sport-specific
mouthguards
WE’RE DEVELOPING NEW STATE-OF-THE-ART
TECHNOLOGY & PRODUCTS
WHAT’S NEXT? Accelerate Michigan Business Competition
61. WE WON’T STOP UNTIL WE ARE THE
GLOBAL STANDARD FOR MOUTHGUARDS.
WHAT’S NEXT? Accelerate Michigan Business Competition
64. Agenda
• in2being Background
• Who Are Our Clients?
• Capabilities don’t equal Value
• Early Felt Need
• Client Apparent Need
• Client Actual Need
• Finding VALUE
CONFIDENTIAL
65. Company Background
• Design and Development of Medical and Life
Science Devices since 2010
• Staff backgrounds include HandyLab and
Accuri Cytometers
• Spaces: DNA diagnostics, Catheter assembly,
Drug delivery, Cardiovascular diagnostics,
Blood testing, Cell culture, RF Surgical, CTC
detection
• Seven Employees
• Located in historic downtown Saline, MI
CONFIDENTIAL
66. Who Are Our Clients?
• Existing or new companies looking to create new products
CONFIDENTIAL
67. Capabilities ≠ Value
• Prototyping
• Risk Analysis
• Solidworks
• Vendor Management
• Document Generation
• Document Control
• 3D Printing
• Machining
• Early Stage Molding
• ISO13485 and 21CFR820
• ISO10993
• FEA
• Microfluidics
• Automated Systems
• Plastic Disposable Design
• But…
CONFIDENTIAL
68. Early Felt Need (Inspiration)
• Rewind to 2004
• HandyLab, Inc.
• Could find consultants and manufacturers and suppliers
• Couldn’t find many partners
CONFIDENTIAL
70. Client Actual Need
• Have you ever received the wrong product/service from the “right”
vendor after weeks/months of waiting?
• Has this ever thrown the rest of your extended team off?
CONFIDENTIAL
73. Client Actual Need
• Often “one shot on goal”
• Can’t afford to wait months for the wrong thing
• Need help finding the right thing… then doing it.
• Needs help managing a complex system
CONFIDENTIAL
75. Finding Value
• At in2being, we strive to execute our CAPABILITIES as PARTNERS to
help our clients BALANCE THE COMPASS.
CONFIDENTIAL
76. Finding Value
• Capabilities are only part of the picture
• Your clients have bigger needs than:
• “A marketing firm”
• “A mouthguard”
• “A prototyping shop“
• It helps to have lived in their shoes
• How can you feel their need?
CONFIDENTIAL
