Reinhard Vogt, member of the board of Sartorius AG, in conversation with Professor Riekhof

Reinhard Vogt from Sartorius AG will speak on November 11, 2016 as part of the 6th Göttingen Marketing Day. Professor Riekhof spoke with Reinhard Vogt in advance.

Prof. Riekhof: Sartorius looks back on an extremely successful corporate development. Are there any special success factors that you can reveal to us?

Vogt: There are a number of success factors, but the most important is probably the strategy developed in the 90s, which had focus and differentiation as essential content.

Prof. Riekhof: What role do innovations play for Sartorius? Is Sartorius perceived as particularly innovative in the market?

Vogt: Innovations play a big role, but only when they can be commercialized and lead to differentiation.

Prof. Riekhof: Innovative companies can often achieve price premiums. How is Sartorius positioned against the main competitors here?

Vogt: Sartorius operates in the biopharma sector in a premium segment, with the topic of “Value Pricing” being of utmost importance. If we create the greatest added value, which we are mostly able to do, we can also achieve the highest prices.

Prof. Riekhof: What special focuses does Sartorius set in marketing? Which communication channels play a special role today and in the future?

Vogt: The focus of marketing is always differentiation and creating added value for the customer. Communication channels have changed a lot in recent years. Trade fairs, for example, play an increasingly smaller role, and all digital communication channels, including social media, are becoming increasingly important in B2B.

Prof. Riekhof: Some international B2B corporations have a very carefully developed brand portfolio. How does Sartorius deal with product brands?

Vogt: This is a complex topic, especially against the background of constant acquisitions. In principle, one can say that we integrate products of acquisitions that can be assigned to our field of competence directly into the Sartorius brand portfolio, but use a migration strategy for acquisitions of new technologies. However, it is important that we bring clearly recognizable Sartorius design features into all products.

Prof. Riekhof: Even in the B2B sector, online business is becoming increasingly important, especially in cooperation with distributors. What challenges do you see in relation to the online channels for Sartorius?

Vogt: Online business is becoming increasingly important in the B2B sector. We assume that by 2020 already 30% of our business will be handled online, but one must distinguish between procurement tool and buying tool. The big challenges are undoubtedly content management and the adaptation of all processes to the online tool.

Prof. Riekhof: What role does direct dialogue with your customers play in the marketing strategy? Are there forums where users can exchange information about the production processes in which Sartorius products are used?

Vogt: No matter how you look at it, even in the highly technologized B2B sector, the emotional area plays a crucial role in every purchase decision. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs has not lost its importance for marketing and sales to this day, probably even increased. The satisfaction of these needs is most likely given by direct dialogue. Professional congresses and forums are ideal meeting places for direct dialogue in a neutral environment.

Prof. Riekhof: Sartorius owns a number of patents in the field of augmented reality. What is the background, where do you see the future fields of application?

Vogt: We see the applications in various areas such as sales, marketing, training and customer support. The topic here is also innovation and differentiation.

Prof. Riekhof: Thank you very much for the conversation!