Advantage India due to the Biosecure Act

The pharma and biotech sector is among the most valued segments with upward growth peaks even in turbulent economic turmoil. A sector that is directly synergistic with this segment is the CRO/CDMO industry. There are almost 100+ CDMOs in India with the addition of new start-ups every year. The CDMO industry is going to be around Rs 18,800 crore in 2024 with a CAGR of 14.67 per cent as per a recent report. A few big players in India are Syngene International, Aurigene, Jubilant, etc. which have set very high standards of services in the global market.

So far China has been predominantly the market leader in the APAC region for CRO/CDMO services with giants like Wuxi Aptech, Asymchem, etc. dominating the market with a CAGR of 19+  per cent. The recent buzz of the “US Biosecure Act” is the talk of the town in the CDMO industry. The US Biosecure Act has made a strong impact on the entire Pharma and Biotech sector recently which restricts US Pharmaceutical and Biotech companies from outsourcing their services to China-origin CDMO/CRO. The Bill has not been passed yet in US legislative but there is a strong chance the Bill will be passed. This move will further boost the already global approach of the China + 1 strategy and help grow India-based CDMOs. A few Indian CDMO companies have already stated an increased inflow of RFPs (Inquiries) in Q2 with a real impact on incremental business might take another 4 to 6 months to materialise.

A well-designed outreach activity to target customers and creating a healthy prospect pipeline are two very critical factors in this journey of growth and sustainability. Many factors play a significant role in the sales cycle, but outbound leads play a crucial role in the whole sales process of the CRO/CRDMO industry.

Outbound leads are mainly target customers who are not yet on your billing list or have not yet placed an order with you. It is majorly a hunting process for new customers. With so many developments happening in the world of drug discovery and development, it has become the need of the hour to catch customers at an early stage. The initial three-step focus is very crucial – (i) Build more quality leads (ii) Convert more leads to qualified leads and (iii) Convert qualified leads to opportunities to ensure a healthy pipeline to meet business objectives.

Outbound leads are very target audience specific, and the objective is to fulfil the needs of those customers who are looking for a solution or will be looking for it shortly. Email outreach can be a potential way to generate sales-qualified leads (SQLs).

The six-step (ProPerConTRA) approach to increase outbound lead generation for the CRO/CDMO industry are –

1. Profiling – The first and most crucial step in the process is to identify your target customers. To ensure it’s done properly – Profiling of customers is very important. Normally we dig into a lot of databases and tools apart from open source and company websites. Having a sound knowledge of the subject matter will lead to better customer profiling and thus more relevant leads. 
2. Persona – Once profiling of the customer is done the next important step is to whom we shall connect. A clear strategy is to be made in selecting targeted personas to whom the email outreach activity will be addressed.
3. Content – This is the heart of the entire outreach activity. A beautifully crafted message can lead better response rate and thus increase qualified leads. Often, we capture all the USPs in our sales brochure and 90 per cent of the content is about us. The content should always be customer focussed, highlighting their success, and achievements and then connecting to what they (customers) might be looking for. Highlight values that can be of help rather than just USP or features and benefits.
4. Time and location – Develop a delivery strategy based on the location of the customer and time zone. If you are sending emails from a different time zone, then be careful that they reach the customer’s inbox on a working day and working hours rather than on weekends or beyond office hours.
5. Reference or common connection – This acts as a catalyst or booster which leads to a better chance of getting a response and creating an impact. Mentioning the name of the common person creates a level of trust which helps to further qualify the lead.
6. Automation and digitalisation – Integration of tools and databases with CRM helps to reduce a lot of time in capturing outcomes. With the introduction of AI, a lot of customised platforms are now being built that are effective and time-saving. 

The ProPerConTRA has been a proven process of Lead generation ensuring quality leads are generated by targeting the relevant prospects. A well-planned dashboard and activity tracker can ensure the timely execution of the tasks required in the ProPerConTRA process.

It has been observed that one of the top Indian CDMOs, a positive response rate from customers concerning outreach activity has increased by 30 per cent in the last three months following this process. In addition, they were able to take more advantage of the current situation and could generate 20 per cent more qualified leads over the last quarter and thus increased RFPs.