Analysis paralysis? Build a better commercialization plan with these launch considerations

As small to midsize biopharma organizations turn the preclinical corner with their assets, things start to get real—real fast. A rapid-fire queue of considerations can suddenly land in your lap, many of them topics you haven't thought much about before, from market access and brand strategy to pricing, manufacturing, and patient services.

It's a deluge of decisions all at once, and often, companies suffer analysis paralysis along the way. Maybe they're so overwhelmed by all the complexities of commercialization that they put launch planning on hold. Or perhaps they shift too quickly in an effort to conserve their investments without considering the ripple effects one chess-like move has on another.

In either case, that's risky. If you delay go-to-market planning, a competitor may not. Or the market might be unprepared to receive your product. And if you move too quickly, one wrong decision could jeopardize regulatory approval or revenue. Even so, managing the tidal wave of pre-launch considerations is hard to do alone—and even harder if you're a small to midsize organization. Regardless of whether you are launching a product to address an unmet need, or adding another option to an existing, competitive category, payers, patients, and providers all need to be prepared.

That's why emerging biopharmas often consult with partners like Cencora to help them navigate the complexities, including decisions they didn't know needed to be made. And indeed, there are a lot of them across different dimensions of the product lifecycle. Once decisions are made, the smaller headcounts in many emerging companies mean there may not be proper people power to pull those strategies through into tactics. A thoughtful commercialization launch plan can help you assess how much your infrastructure can support—and where assistance is warranted.