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Received: 17.11.2022 Accepted: 22.03.2023 Published: 01.03.2024 DOI: 10.47750/QAS/25.200.07
Abstract
The study aims to build a mini-theory based on the implementation toward off-label drug marketing. The data was collected by interviewing eight respondents with managerial and operational functions from five multinational pharmaceutical companies in Indonesia. A qualitative approach was used in this research by coding, making categories, defining concepts, and linking one concept to others for building propositions. This research creates a mini-theory from four propositions; new product development influences competitive advantage reinforced with opinion leaders as a moderator, market segmentation influences competitive advantage strengthened by off-label drug prescribing as a moderator, customer relationship influences competitive advantage reconciled by the value proposition and off-label prescribing, selling skills influence competitive advantage and reinforced by value propositions, opinion leaders, and off-label drug prescribing as moderators.
Keywords: competitive advantage, multinational pharmaceutical companies, a mini-theory
Introduction
The pharmaceutical industry has a vital role in guaranteeing and repairing society's health, producing drug to overcome all diseases, to ensure sustainable health services for the current generation or the future (Sampurno, 2007). Hence the pharmaceutical industry is known to have an essential role in society, especially in maintaining health and overcoming various diseases (Ariana et al., 2015). However, considering the fact that the competition in this industry is too fragmented to reach out and maintain customers (Heriyati et al., 2013) persuades various ways to win the competition. Competition is essential in industry and company. Besides that, strategy is the crucial element of company's activity that plays an essential role in the organization's success. Therefore, the company is forced to make a strategy that focuses on creating a competitive advantage against rivals. Competitive advantage involves three dimensions: time, innovation, and reliability (Sharabati, 2021). Those encourage performance improvement and organizational toughness (Fathi et al., 2021), as long as being supported by learning capability and innovation, knowledge, and training for employees for a positive effect (Hajiabedin & Amani, 2016; Kovač & Basic, 2020).
One of the ways to gain a competitive advantage is by concentrating on attracting and getting new customers, through off-label drug prescribing. Off-label drug is defined as the use of drug that is not included in the indications or dosage regimens listed in the labeling drug (Alshehri & Mudawi, 2020). Off-label drug...