Metabical: Pricing, Packaging, and Demand Forecasting for a New Weight-Loss Drug
Questions for the Harvard case “Metabical: Pricing, Packaging, and Demand Forecasting for a New Weight-Loss Drug”
For March 20, write responses to the following questions for the Metabical case. 1) How is Metabical different from the existing weight-loss options? How is it better or worse than the other options?
Metabical is the first prescription drug approved specifically for overweight individuals (BMI between 25 and 30), those individuals who have weight-loss goals of approximately 10 to 30 pounds; other prescription weight-loss drugs were approved for use in both obese (BMI >30) and severely obese (BMI>40) individuals. Metabical is a dual-layer formulation: the first layer contained an appetite suppressant and the second one a fat blocker and calorie absorption agent meditonan. It helped people to lose weight, but also, it helped with behavior modification and healthier eating habits. 2) Printup (the protagonist) suggested various methods for forecasting demand. What are the strengths and weaknesses of these forecasting methods? What is the demand for the product under the different assumptions?
In her first approach forecasted demand by looking at the number of overweight individuals in the United States and narrowing down that population to those who were actively trying to lose weight. She felt those potential users should be narrowed to the 15% of those who were comfortable with weight-loss drugs.
The second approach specifically addressed consumer interest in a prescription weight-loss drug for the overweight and 12% were ready to go to their health care provider to request a prescription.
The third approach was the target market. Even though Metabical would be attractive to all overweight individuals, Printup established a primary target for the purpose of developing a communications strategy. The ideal Metabical consumer was found to be overweight females, age 35 to 65, who were college-educated. Printup
For March 20, write responses to the following questions for the Metabical case. 1) How is Metabical different from the existing weight-loss options? How is it better or worse than the other options?
Metabical is the first prescription drug approved specifically for overweight individuals (BMI between 25 and 30), those individuals who have weight-loss goals of approximately 10 to 30 pounds; other prescription weight-loss drugs were approved for use in both obese (BMI >30) and severely obese (BMI>40) individuals. Metabical is a dual-layer formulation: the first layer contained an appetite suppressant and the second one a fat blocker and calorie absorption agent meditonan. It helped people to lose weight, but also, it helped with behavior modification and healthier eating habits. 2) Printup (the protagonist) suggested various methods for forecasting demand. What are the strengths and weaknesses of these forecasting methods? What is the demand for the product under the different assumptions?
In her first approach forecasted demand by looking at the number of overweight individuals in the United States and narrowing down that population to those who were actively trying to lose weight. She felt those potential users should be narrowed to the 15% of those who were comfortable with weight-loss drugs.
The second approach specifically addressed consumer interest in a prescription weight-loss drug for the overweight and 12% were ready to go to their health care provider to request a prescription.
The third approach was the target market. Even though Metabical would be attractive to all overweight individuals, Printup established a primary target for the purpose of developing a communications strategy. The ideal Metabical consumer was found to be overweight females, age 35 to 65, who were college-educated. Printup