Medical device companies spend tens of millions of dollars every year on sales training, often with no measurable improvement in sales. I know because I sat through countless seminars, training sessions, and home-study courses for 20 plus years. I was also been brought in as a trainer, handed a company-designed training manual and told to “use this.” […]
You may have heard that positioning is everything. That’s true only if you want to successfully gain the attention of the decision-makers you call on and close more sales. Many sales reps use the term, but too many don’t really understand what it means or how to position their products and services. Do you think […]
I’m amazed whenever a medical device representative bungles a presentation. The sales presentation – that shining moment when those of us who have chosen this profession get to demonstrate our skills and ability – becomes a display of incompetence. In my opinion, this occurrence is due to two things: 1. Lack of proper preparation, or […]
I’ve been getting a lot of calls lately from sales representatives asking me if I think the rep model will change. It’s already changing. More hospitals around the country are adopting a model where representatives are no longer used in the operating room during orthopedic recon cases. In fact, the representatives are not even allowed in the operating […]
I’m brought in to work with under-performing medical sales teams. When I interview reps one-on-one and ask why they’re not growing their territories, they’re often quick to blame the company for not supporting their efforts or crediting their competition with having better products. Flash forward to the sales training workshop when I get to see […]
A sure sign of an ineffective, rookie medical sales rep is one who infuses the sales conversation with statements such as: “This is the best on the market.” “This will be great for your practice.” “Your patients will get better results.” “My product has numerous advantages over what you’re currently using.” …and any statement that […]
Recently, I had the honor of being interviewed by Donald Kelly, The Sales Evangelist. Donald asked some killer questions about sales and I think my answers will help you in your sales efforts. I’m talking pretty fast so there’s a lot of content here! I encourage you to subscribe to The Sales Evangelist Podcast on iTunes […]
It amazes me when I’m with salespeople who try to tell a doctor or other healthcare expert what he should know or should do. It’s intuitive for salespeople to do this, but they need to realize that too often, they’re just pissing off the customer. Let’s put this in perspective so you understand the dynamic that’s […]
A few months ago, I was talking to Denise, a medical sales rep who was asking for some help with a specific sales challenge. I asked her for some specific information to better define the problem. She said, “Wait a second…I have that written down.” She pulled out a large planner, about the size of […]
Many of the people I meet in medical sales have healthy egos. I don’t mean that in a bad way. A healthy ego is necessary to sell to highly-educated healthcare professionals. But ego can blind you and make you lose the sale. Medical sales is a job where most people work alone. Even when salespeople […]