Constantly and effectively bringing value can be a tricky business, but that’s part of the fun of being a medical device sales rep, am I right? Well, even seasoned veterans struggle with this integral part of the job from time to time. In the ever-changing world of healthcare it seems whatever is valuable today may not be valuable tomorrow. Furthermore, establishing value can seem like an impossible task in the world of big data, tons of competitors and the need for instant gratification. Pro-tip: nothing is impossible, especially when you’ve got the Sales Growth Engineers from ProSellus with 4 foolproof tips sure to establish value for current and potential clients.

Open With Empathy & Follow Up With Logic

Empathy

Big buzzwords outside of generic ones like “synergy”, “bizmeth”, or even “mindshare” are a big deal these days in every industry. One that comes up more often nowadays is the word “empathy”. Basically, this means putting yourself in the shoes of someone else, understanding their perspective, and developing a relationship based on this mutual understanding of that person’s situation. How does this relate to establishing value? So glad you asked! The better a relationship you have with a client, the more likely they are to trust your advice and believe in your services.

Extend empathy beyond the client/rep relationship and put yourself in the shoes of people using the device or service you’re offering. How can you appeal to them through your client?

Revenue

Your next step, once you’ve established an empathetic connection, is to remind your client of the logical reasoning behind the new device/service. What’s the bottom line for any business owner? PROFITS. That means you have a few questions you need to ask your client. Of course, if you’re worth your salt as a sales rep, you should be able to answer these questions FOR your client.

1. How happy are you with the current revenue numbers of your business?
2. What have you done to increase those numbers in the past?
3. What if I could show you a way how to increase those numbers?

Now, you might already see the next logical step in this process coming, but it’s not the cost of the new service/device. You just covered a “logical” reason for establishing value, so it’s time to switch back to empathy.

Notice, nobody has said anything about what you sell yet…

Quality of Life Determines Value

Time

That’s right – time. The biggest commodity on the market that everyone always needs more of (including you!). The obvious question is: “How much time do I have to establish the kind of value needed to win over this new customer?”. You can lead with that, but you never want to finish on that question alone.

How much time do I have and how much time does my customer have to really make an impact and potentially change the way we do things?  After all, if you want to increase revenue, and you want to create value; do you REALLY expect to be able to do that by doing the same things you’ve always done? Nope. My friend, that would be the definition of insanity. Keep this part short and sweet. Time is money, after all!

Again… no one has mentioned your product yet…

Cost

Closing with this as your final step in your value proposition is like the cherry on top of your favorite ice cream sundae. You can present hard numbers as to what the value you bring will be to the customer, but if you stop there…you’re probably not going to close the deal.

The second half of this step (and more important part) is to establish the cost of NOT using you/your product/your service.. Throw in some callbacks to your points about revenue, time, and make new points about potential ROIs. Close with a subtle reminder about “doing things the same ways will never get you beyond where you are today…”.

Again… what have we not even spoke about yet?  Our product…

You all may think I’ve fallen out of the clouds about not talking about my product at this point.  Here’s the last point I want to make about “Bringing Value,”  – when trying to work with new physician customers:  what do you think they (physician customers) hear all day long from reps just like you?  Here it is:  “Let me tell you all about our new product,” or, “Let me tell you why our product is better than our competitor’s product,” or, “Let me tell you about a new study with our product.” 

Newsflash: Let’s talk about something that your customer REALLY cares about.  I’m not saying all of those other things aren’t important, but, what is MOST important?  Wouldn’t you want to be the person who brings THAT value?  If you are the person bringing the most important value, you’ve just become irreplaceable.  Not a bad place to be for a rep if I do say so myself.

Are You Closing Often Enough?

Of course, even if you employ all the best advice from top sales reps, you still might not get the deal. If this becomes the norm, then that affects your bottom line which means it’s time to try something new. Email me at Scottwalle@prosellus.com and let’s explore strategies to improve your bottom line and maybe even – hear me out – your own quality of life.

Just How Does Big Data Work For You and Against You as a Medical Device Sales Rep?

We’ve talked a few times about how Big Data can be harnessed for your benefit and transformed into “Actionable Intelligence”. In fact, that’s one of the main tenets of the ProSellus philosophy in utilizing sales acceleration: Work Smarter, not Harder.  That means making all those numbers from all those social media platforms and sales spreadsheets work FOR YOU. But, we aren’t talking about your Facebook digital footprint here. We’re talking about ROI’s from your favorite clients vs. potential ROI’s from your most well-known clients. We are talking about tracking the popularity vs. the effectiveness of one device over another in your territory. We’re talking about your job.

You Have Data…But So Do Your Clients

While social media platforms like Facebook would have you believe that data always comes in pretty graphs and easy to digest percentages, that just isn’t the case. Especially when it comes to the life and work of a medical device sales rep. Your data involves so much more than “Likes” and “Re-tweets”.

“Data is at the center of it all—and unfortunately, that data is dynamic.  More than ever before, companies have loads of it—marketing technologies gather data from many sources, not only on the leads and accounts themselves, but also on how those leads interact with your brand, campaigns, and sales teams.”
– Heinz Marketing

This means you must constantly play catch-up with all kinds of analytics. Whether you have everything expertly organized across various Google Docs, spreadsheets, and digital files or you have a desperately jam-packed file cabinet, it’s nearly impossible to keep up with all the metrics at your disposal. (I remember this all too well. In my past companies we had data all over the place.  One set was sent in a Microsoft Excel document, one was a monthly spreadsheet some analyst sent, one set came from my manager and then we had marketing folks always sending us something new. Enough already!!!! How are we, the salespeople in the field, supposed to look at and analyze all of this different data from all these different sources?  To make matters worse, it’s not the sales person’s job to have to slice and dice data in Excel or CSV files. Seriously? Excel to me was a Microsoft Word document with box’s.  Sooner or later the reps say to themselves, “Forget it.  I’m just going to do my job the best way I know how. I can’t spend hours upon hours trying to open, analyze and then make a decision on this!”  It becomes paralysis by analysis. More data isn’t always better….)  So, in the time it takes to locate and organize and then understand all of these numbers, is it worth it? Isn’t that time you could spend instead tracking leads, researching new devices, or using sales acceleration techniques?

“The impact of “big data” analytics is often manifested by thousands—or more—of incrementally small improvements. If an organization can atomize a single process into its smallest parts and implement advances where possible, the payoffs can be profound. And if an organization can systematically combine small improvements across bigger, multiple processes, the payoff can be exponential.”
– McKinsey Quarterly October 2016

Well….when you put it THAT way….

Asking Yourself “What’s Actionable Intelligence”? You’re Late to the Party…

If the phrases “Actionable Intelligence” or “Sales Acceleration” stumped you, don’t worry. You’re late to the party, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have a good time. Two of the biggest ways data influences the business of a medical device sales rep are simple: work and time.

Any medical sales rep – 1099 or W-2 – can answer the following question: what do you spend the MOST time doing? If you’re anything like me, and you may not be, the things I spent the majority of my time doing was simply trying to make my number, and if the stars aligned, trying to KILL my number.  I didn’t want to spend time trying to analyze all the data we mentioned before, it took too much time and, in the end, didn’t give me actionable intelligence.  It didn’t tell me, “Hey, go here, talk to this person, they have the patients you’re looking for to help make your business grow or to continue killing your number.” It also didn’t say “Hey look at your existing customers’ relationships, those docs (who are already referring to my customer) who, most likely, have a ton more patients that fit the profile of the patient that could benefit from our product, device, therapy, etc. Go talk to them!” IF I would’ve had that, that is EXACTLY what I would’ve been doing.

Like we said, work smarter because, no matter what, you WILL be working very, very hard. This is where Actionable Intelligence (also known as Actionable Insight) comes into play.

“Actionable insight is a term in data analytics and big data for information that can be acted upon or information that gives enough insight into the future that the actions that should be taken become clear for decision makers. It is often the result of extensive data analytics and other data processing; in short it is an analytical result that provides enough data for managers and organizations to make an informed decision.”
– Techopedia.com

Awesome – you can spend hours and hours and hours tracking data in order to improve efficacy and revenue! But there’s only one of you and you have to sleep some time, right? What if there was a way to combine that dated file cabinet, those highly organized spreadsheets, LinkedIn, Salesforce, and all those hours spent interpreting data?

Get With the Times

The world is increasingly interconnected, so why shouldn’t your business be the same? Fuse all the features of social media with the utility of customer management using ProSellus.You might have heard of the term “Growth Hacking”, well we are the Sales Growth Engineers here to see YOU succeed. Why continue going to the same customers HOPING for more business? Engineer your growth! Take hold of all the data at your fingertips in a fraction of the time others do. Literally, doesn’t it make more sense to spend 5 seconds while walking to your car and figure out where the best places are to grow??? When you’re a medical device sales rep, the name of the game is innovation and ambition. Are you hungry for more? If not, I can guarantee there are THOUSANDS of people lined up waiting for you to miss your number so they can get a shot in the medical device industry. Email me at Scottwalle@prosellus.com and let’s grab a bite, there’s much more to tell…

It’s 5 AM. Your alarm goes off and you hop into the shower, groggily rubbing the sleep out of your eyes. As you stand in the shower and let the hot water wake you, your mind begins racing thinking about your day.  You think about all the things you need to get accomplished today and how in the world you’re going to make your quota by the end of the month, which gets closer day by day.

You dress to impress (which if you’re like a lot of medical device reps means you throw on a pair of scrubs), quickly check email on your phone to make sure nothing has changed in the middle of the night for your surgery schedule, grab a bar or some sort of quick breakfast and you’re out the door racing to your first case.  Unfortunately, your mind hasn’t slowed since the  alarm went off, it’s only sped up.

You might know it well: the daily life of a medical sales rep. But, what if your well-oiled, constantly changing  daily routine is missing something that could drastically improve the most important aspect of your business (making or exceeding quota)?  Hint: if you are reading this wondering, “Am I missing something? Could I make this easier?”  You more than likely are missing something if those thoughts even remotely crossed your mind. You should definitely keep reading.

Just an Ordinary Day

Whether you’re a coffee, tea, energy drink, or sans caffeine person, no day is complete without creating goals on a to-do list and deciding what to DO. This can be daunting sometimes, especially when you factor in the ever-changing line-up of your cases at the Hospital or ASC – hence the added courage of caffeine – but every successful sales rep knows that organization is one of the keys to success.

PharmaWeb lays out not only a definition of what a medical sales rep is, but also what they should do.

A medical representative is employed by a pharmaceutical (or… medical device, bio-tech or distributor of products) company to maximise the prescribing of that pharmaceutical company’s products in a geographical area. There are no strict formula for how to maximise product prescribing – hard work is only part of the story and often working smarter is the key to success. This is why pharmaceutical companies are constantly looking for candidates who have the ability to think (and then put into practice) new ways of approaching sales opportunities. As an experienced representative you will know your territory, know your customers and have a clear idea which part of your territory offers the highest potential for sales. You set yourself clear objectives for every day that you work and will know exactly what you want to achieve from each customer visit.
– PharmaWeb

Sound familiar? If only it were that straight-forward in the real world…

The daily task of meeting with physicians, hospitals and administrators  while maintaining all of these customer relationships is more than half the battle. Sometimes, it’s probably the majority of your day, and at the end of a day like that you have to ask yourself, “Did I do what I needed to do today to really move the needle and get closer to achieving my ever-growing quota?” Did I really do anything to help “Dr. Jones” put more patients in the pipeline for my “product, therapy, prescription, etc?”  How in the world can I do that when I have 15 balls in the air trying to juggle them all and I’m caught up not doing the things I need to be doing to move the needle forward?

Often, you might feel like you have too many things to do in one business day. That’s why planning is an essential part of every sales rep’s daily routine.

Can ProSellus Revolutionize Your Life?

Product demos and sales meetings can be stressful and  time consuming, but they need to take place. Some customers require more care than others just as some clients require a firmer hand than others when it comes to recommending equipment or markets to potentially expand to. The reality is that if you’re an “A” player in this industry, your customers look at you much more like a consultant than “John” or “Mary” the medical/pharma rep. They ask you questions that are far beyond the scope of the products you represent it seems quite ludicrous.  For example:  “I love your product and it really helps my patients, but what about all the patients I don’t see?  What about all the patients who could benefit from this product or therapy?  How can we educate them or their managing physicians about the wonderful therapy available today?”

The above question seems to be the #1 thing that came up during my time as a device rep.  Where are all the patients and how can we let them know about “XYZ” product or therapy?  Initially it seemed pretty daunting.  How in the world was I, a device rep running around like a chicken with its head cut off, going to possibly take on this task? Many device and pharma company’s marketing departments provide information to hospitals or physicians for “outreach” programs where mailer’s are sent out letting the community know that “Dr. X” will be speaking Tuesday night at “The Steak House” about advancements in treating “XYZ”.  After a month of planning, securing “The Steak House’s” private room, putting down a sizeable deposit, inviting as many physicians in the area as we can, we wait to see who shows up…

And we wait…

And we wait…

After 3 physicians of the 64 we invited have a seat we decide to start.  No one really knows who these 3 physicians are or what kind of patients they actually see.  They just got a blast fax or an invite and thought, “Sounds interesting maybe, I’ll go…”  The physician who presents the material is very happy you and your company went through the effort to arrange the opportunity, however, no one leaves very impressed. It was a flop.

Unfortunately, this is the result more times than not.  Sometimes a good amount of docs appear, sometimes not, but was it really worth the time, money and effort to set all of this up? If you’ve been in this business for any length of time I bet you’re laughing to yourself saying, “Yep, complete waste of time…”

So, in today’s ever-evolving, fast-paced workday how are you supposed to help your customers grow and gain the single thing they want more than anything else? Patients. How do you do that in a timely, efficient, effective manner?

What if you knew exactly who the most valuable customer targets were each day? What if you could easily view data on your customers, potential customers, potential referral sources etc. from the front seat of your car all in a matter of seconds?

You might have heard the buzzword “actionable intelligence” thrown around some PowerPoints, but it’s a real thing and you are doing it totally wrong. ProSellus is your first step into making the big world of Big Data work FOR you instead of creating extra work for you.

You can find plenty of articles about habits of highly effective sales reps, but none of them will mention the medical sales rep’s best tool. ProSellus is the best of social media and customer management, seamlessly integrating data and strategy to make your business leaner, more effective, and more profitable. How could ProSellus revolutionize your daily routines? Check us out at blog.prosellus.com and see how we can revolutionize your medical sales business!

You already know how ProSellus can augment and streamline your healthcare sales business. Whether you’re new to the game or a grizzled veteran (like me), you know there are certain key strategies even big data can’t replace. We touched on a few things in our Beginner’s Guide to Marketing, so consider this the next chapter in that same direction. Of course, for some of us, it might just be a much needed refresher course!

Three Core Traits All Sales Reps Should Have (to be successful!)

Psst: we are going to let you in on a few secrets – all successful reps seem to have 3 key traits when running their business. The first one is effective listening. If you don’t actually hear what your potential client is telling you, you could miss a very important opportunity and ultimately lose a sale. As a sales person, I was told a million times, “You were given two ears and one mouth for a reason; use them proportionately.”

The second key trait is the ability to create meaningful relationships and challenge the customer to think differently. Some people might tell you that formal sales training matters more than interpersonal skills, but they’d be wrong. Beyond the ability to be well-liked or hold a conversation, you have to learn how to forge lasting bonds of trust with your clients. If they trust your business acumen, integrity, and ability to be a significant resource, you can build anything with them.

The third key trait is one you’ve probably heard a million times: organization and goal setting. The old saying “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail” goes triple for the work of sales reps. With the amount of accounts, information, and numbers you have to maintain and monitor, strong planning abilities and an affinity for color coding are pivotal for any sales rep.

I can’t stress the last key trait enough, Planning & Goal Setting, because this may be one of the most important habits you can create in order to be a dominating force in the Healthcare Sales Industry.

As I mentioned before one of the significant challenges associated with planning is there are SO MANY MOVING PARTS to running a successful healthcare sales territory!  Just take a snapshot for a quick second and think about how many accounts you have to manage, both physicians and facilities (hospitals, surgery centers, etc), coupled with all the tasks for each!  Now, if you’re really successful you know how to connect the dots of customers to potential referring customers and after a quick few weeks it’s a tangled web you can’t control… But what if you could? What if you could literally control the market? What would that possibly look like to your territory then?

The Second Ultimate Secret Weapon

ProSellus is your ultimate secret weapon when it comes to selling strategies. But you can’t reap the full benefits of this amazing product without pairing it with the second ultimate secret weapon: realistic expectations and goals. We touched briefly on the importance of goal setting, but you have to run before you can teleport. Realistic goal setting applies in two ways: with yourself and with your clients. You need to be honest with yourself about how many things you can accomplish in a day. Once you’ve identified what you CAN accomplish, add two or three more things to that list. You know the saying, “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll be among the stars” – that’s the idea here. Then, you need to be realistic about your clients. A physician with a small, family-focused practice won’t be interested in the same opportunities as a large scale business.

There are more tips and tricks to identify, of course, but this is merely chapter two in our ever evolving Beginner’s Guide to Everything. If you’d love to learn more about how ProSellus can upgrade your healthcare sales arsenal, email me at scottwalle@prosellus.com. Let’s discuss your present, but, more importantly, your future using actionable intelligence to improve profits and efficiency.

Being ‘old school’ with technology can be the kiss of death

During the press conference to announce NOKIA being acquired by Microsoft, Nokia CEO ended his speech by saying,  “We didn’t do anything wrong, but somehow, we lost.”  Upon saying this, his management team, himself included, teared sadly. Nokia has been a respectable company. They didn’t do anything wrong in their business, however, the world changed too fast and their opponents were too powerful. They lost.

The moral of the story is one which has been told thousands of times – You Snooze, You Lose.  Technology is a moving target these days folks, and if corporations don’t consistently, and I mean consistently, keep up with the innumerable amount of tools available to help achieve revenues, and use them, then they simply will be left behind.

The competition is already fierce, don’t be old school.

A tale which is also often heard, is that the Healthcare Sales Industry is behind the times when it comes to leveraging new sales technologies.  We hear the terms “prehistoric operations” or “dinosaur tactics” when it comes to how a lot of these companies run marketing, business development and sales. In stark contrast, we continually hear about the latest CRM’s, Marketing Automation platforms, SEO companies, Social Media platforms, and Inbound/Outbound strategies. It’s quite dizzying when you really pay attention.  So, my question is really pretty simple: Who’s buying all of this tech stuff?

Many companies are leveraging some form of automation as part of their “Tech Stack” or outsourcing agency assistance as part of their Go-To-Marketing strategy.  Why wouldn’t you? Why would you continue to travel via horse when cars are available? Sure, the horse works and he can get you from point A to point B – but the car can do the same thing, in a faster, more efficient way. It’s a no-brainer. So, why are these dinosaur tactics still around?

I believe one of the biggest reasons a lot of companies and salespeople operate in prehistoric times is resistance to change. The world changes, yet for whatever reason, it takes some folks a lot longer to change with it. Then you see the unfortunate result, just as Nokia did. Dust.

It could have been avoided. In fact, if you are in the medical device industry, you had better already be in the process of stepping up your game.  According to Morgan Phillips Executive Search, “The medical device industry is one the biggest industries in the $3.2 trillion global healthcare sector. The last decade has seen the industry go through a big shift, driven by innovation and new technologies.” The complex nature of the sales process for medical devices makes it very difficult to build and deliver a meaningful experience.  They are increasingly figuring out innovative ways to build compelling experiences while building credibility with their customer physicians.

Bridging the Sales Gap

While these sales folks are becoming more and more adept at utilizing new sales and marketing technologies, a gap still exists in the process. This void lies somewhere between a sales rep being handed a list of physicians to call upon and delivering an over-quota performance. Can you guess what lies inside this gap? I can.  In my 15 years of medical device selling, I managed to bridge that gap manually. I took my manual processes and automated them into a dynamic mobile solution. The ProSellus Linx Tool is innovative and revolutionary to the healthcare sales world. Reach out to me at scottwalle@prosellus.com and let me show you how leave the dinosaurs in the past where they belong.

Remember, if you ignore the new ways to increase your competitiveness in the sales industry, you might as well look for a new career. Like Nokia…you will turn to dust and, quite possibly, so will your company.

In this age of DIY and endless “How To” Guides, it’s no surprise that there are endless suggestions on how best to educate yourself about business. Market research has also never been easier and yet more difficult. With so many tools to extract all kinds of data, you can get overwhelmed or lost easily. Even experienced healthcare sales reps and Fortune 100 companies have struggled in this Wild West market.

Step One: Use the Tools That Work For You

There are hundreds of data interpretation tools and analytics software in the world today. Instead of trying to parse through information yourself, you can benefit from these analytical tools. Whether you’re a newbie or a veteran in the healthcare industry, you might still be operating on pen and paper (or the electronic equivalent: spreadsheets). While maintaining client information that way isn’t necessarily bad, wouldn’t it be more cost-effective and more time efficient to have that information at your fingertips?

Let’s tap the brakes here for a second Tonto…

That entire paragraph above scares people like you and me.  Ditch my pen and paper? Are you crazy? The overwhelming majority of software tools that “allegedly” are supposed to, “interpret data or provide analytics and maintain client information, etc,” have either been SO complex or SO unintuitive that we salespeople toss them aside. They literally don’t get used, unless of course we are forced to use them.  Even then, the results are subpar at best.

So, how do you bridge this gap we healthcare salespeople have with technology?  Not always like the example above, but many salespeople are resistant to technology and resistant to change.  For example, here is a conversation I’ve witnessed many times between managers and reps:  “Why do I have to use this stupid tracking tool now? I’ve made my quota for years without it.  Do you not trust me to just do my job? Why is it that you guys (corporate and managers) think you’re helping us with your tools, when really you’re making it harder to sell.  How about this: How about you guys actually give the sales people a tool that actually helps us sell!?!?”

Shocking idea… I know…

Ok. I’m glad I got all of that out. I feel better now…

Sales Acceleration is a strategy that incorporates the three biggest facets of the digital age: efficiency, interconnectivity, and influence. To that effect, ProSellus is your all-in-one tool.

Step Two: Do Your Research

Even though you don’t need to go to the library much anymore, you still need to hunker down and do your research on your current and future clients. Forbes suggests that it is the “key to success” which is exactly what we told you in our last blog. Another Forbes article offers tips to help better identify your target market, but the kind of research you need to do as a sales rep goes way beyond simply saying “my market are these buyers.” You need to craft relationships with physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, physician staff and companies – and then maintain those relationships. This means that “research” isn’t just googling information about something, rather, it’s checking in on clients every month, asking about their equipment, and asking about their lives.

Step Three: Build Your References

This step might not be the most difficult, but it is the most important. Once you’ve built the foundation of relationships and developed steps to maintain them, you need to build a network of references. The only advanced mobile tool of its kind, Linx by ProSellus, allows you to manage your market in ways like never before. The unique part about this tool is that it is has social media platform-esque qualities combined with a customer relationship management system. The best part? It is mobile and simple to use. You want to harness your target market in all the ways we have explained above?  This tool is your answer.

Can You Influence Your Market?

The next question is: who really controls the market? Is it even possible for someone to control the market? Here’s an idea: what if that person was you? Email me at scottwalle@prosellus.com to find the answers to these questions. In the meantime, check out our other blog posts for more ways you can improve your sales rep business!

 

 

No matter what industry you’re a part of, the biggest concern may not necessarily be the product or service you represent. Is it the people who work for the company? Maybe it’s the price point or barriers to entry associated with the product or service. In reality, it’s the market you serve. After all, they are the ones who purchase the product or service your company provides – no matter at what level you may be involved. We’ve already provided you with a few ideas on what tools can help you bring your Healthcare Sales Reps into the digital age. Now you just have to answer one question: who is the most influential physician in your market?

Quality vs. Quantity

This is an adage you’ve heard often: “It’s about quality vs. quantity.” But what does that really mean for Healthcare Sales Reps? In an industry based on quantities and quotas, is “quality” even a factor? In a way, yes. Take a look at your list of physician customers. If you’re not already using the ProSellus Linx Software App with all that information at your fingertips, it might take you a minute. Once you’ve got it, identify the physician with whom you have the best relationship. Now identify the physician who provides you with the most business. What’s the difference? Now it’s time for the “nitty-gritty”: take a look at those two physicians in the context of the entire industry and ask these questions:

• How do the numbers stack up?
• What’s the scope of each physician’s business?
• Has either physician referred you to other doctors and physicians?
• What are the differences between the professional networks of each physician?

Quantifiable Influence

Similarly to how companies are utilizing “influencers” on social media, you can make your most influential physician customer work for you. You can also do this without having a “robust social media (Facebook, Instagram, etc campaign.” All you need to do is incorporate the win/win relationship strategies we’ve discussed and get some simple information from your most influential customer. Customer testimonies come off as “hokey” in cheesy infomercials, but they’re still one of the most effective strategies in marketing. Not only can their endorsement increase your sphere of influence and customer base, it increases your reputation.

Added Bonuses

Your most influential clients can help you in other ways, too. In the process of identifying your most influential customer, you can better understand your overall market, as well as specialized markets. Basically, identifying your number one client helps you perform a more targeted market analysis. With the new data you’ve gathered, you can craft your sales pitches and marketing materials to better fit your target market.

Want to Confirm Your Thoughts?

Performing your own market research is a paramount tactic for any sales rep, but you’re still subject to bias and human error. With so many tools at your disposal, it can be difficult to know which ones will work best for you. Email me at scottwalle@prosellus.com and let’s discuss the implementation of your first key to success.

Plan Tomorrow Today!

You know the old adage “Why leave for tomorrow what you can do today?” That goes double in the world of healthcare sales. No matter who your client may be, it’s important to plan ahead. These conversations are critical, but can be difficult to negotiate or initiate. As the sales rep, it is YOUR job to think 5 steps ahead for your physician customer.  In my device days we were preached to in training: In surgery you have to be several steps ahead of the physician! You have to anticipate his/her every move and be prepared whatever that move was.

So, my question to you is this: Is surgery the only place we (I) work?

Of course not!  Today’s healthcare sales reps are asked to do more than ever!

Don’t Be In Trend; Predict The Trend

“The changes in healthcare are accelerating. The penalty for falling behind the change curve is irrelevance, that is, customers will replace you with competitors who anticipated and integrated change sooner and faster than you did. The take-home message, “You must remain relevant and to do that you must stay ahead of the change curve.”

This advice from author Jason Baker hits home for me in many ways. I have been the Sales Rep in his article – the top player in the medical device game, the heavy hitter….the king. That false sense of security can easily overcome reality because it is powerful and intoxicating. (A lot of us have been there)  You begin to think you cannot lose, but Baker speaks the truth – if you snooze, you lose. It’s as simple as the Tortoise and the Hare. Small changes set the stage for a giant shift in the market and you aren’t invincible.  None of us are…

Heed Warning Signs

In the healthcare sales industry, it is vital that you pay attention to the signs around you (especially these days). You must have the will to keep getting up after every failure. I, myself, did this time and time again. I didn’t think there was any other way to work, but I finally figured out how to break away from the status quo. I cultivated my own path to success when I learned how to TRULY listen to my physician customers.  I would hear them talk about this or that which was impacting their business, but I thought, “Well, glad that isn’t me.” OR “That kind of stinks, I’m glad it’s not my job to do that.”   Then I said, “Well, what if I could impact that? I would be fixing one of their biggest problems or concerns.”

I found myself asking these questions:

• What are they searching for?
• What worries and concerns kept them up at night?
• What can I do to address their concerns?

And when I did… the results are were nothing short of astounding.

Listen and Respond

If I could find a way to connect with my customer in a way which greatly differentiated me from the rest of the herd, I would be successful and so would the customer. After realizing what I had to do, I still needed to see the path before arriving at it. I needed to do my research and understand what the factors were that might affect my customer’s practice and, ultimately, my own business.  My advice to the other reps out there is to listen to your customers, monitor current trends in the market, predict future trends, stay informed, and challenge the norms. The worst thing you can do is get complacent. The second you fall asleep at the wheel, you fall behind. If you have questions like I did, feel free to email me at scottwalle@prosellus.com. I’d love to swap stories some time.