Diagnosis
You've considered your options, but how do you know if specialty sales is right for you?
Prescription
Knowing what the job demands can help you decide more confidently
It's no wonder that primary care sales professionals have a strong desire to switch to specialty sales. Access to primary
care physicians is getting difficult. Doctors can only have so many breakfasts, lunches and dinners per day. And more and
more physicians are taking a "no see" approach, limiting or blocking sales calls completely. Not to mention the abundance
of primary care representatives vying for a doctor's time, which is obvious to anyone who has been in a physician's waiting
room.
With an environment like this, it's only logical that you would consider all of your professional options – one of them being
a transition to specialty sales. Typically these specialists are calling on one type of healthcare professional in a specific
disease state, such as dermatology, surgical, ophthalmology, oncology – just to name a few. Or they are a sales specialist
in hospital or institutional setting. "Oftentimes primary care reps are looking for ways to keep themselves motivated or advance their careers and have a passion
for a particular disease state. They may want to be seen as a specialist," said Leslie Gaber, president of Leslie Gaber Associates.
"There's also an element of prestige and financial compensation you can't deny.
Innovation in pharmaceutical research is seen in the specialty arena. Many companies focus their research dollars here. People
see the growth potential, product pipelines are healthy and people consider it to be where the action is.
The right stuff ...
Knowing if this is the right move for you is the first step. Are you a contender for this kind of job?
The baseline for these candidates starts with being at the top of their game, and having excellence and drive. They go the extra mile and consider all the stakeholders
in the selling process. They are committed to following up, meeting the client's needs and ownership – they don't get discouraged
by barriers and hurdles.
They have a global view when it comes to customer focus, and are driven to add value and be a resource. They reach out to
nurses, pharmacists, billing, reimbursement, front-desk staff, caregivers and support groups – not just the physician.
"In the office-based specialty environment, there are often logistical considerations for the staff like ordering and stocking
the product, and billing and reimbursement. These aspects require (the specialty representative to have) interaction with
multiple people in the office, and an understanding of their roles is critical," explained Ann McClain, senior director, sales
professional training at Sanofi-Aventis.
"In an institution, your 'reach' needs to go well beyond the end-user, and very often multiple steps need to be taken before
the product can be ordered and utilized. You might be dealing with the pharmacy about their formulary or procedures for standing
orders. Or you might be conducting in-services for nurses and other hospital staff about all aspects of the product, such
as dosing, administration and storage," McClain added.
It's about the mastery of selling skills, relationships, in-depth product knowledge and the knowledge of the market segments
they are selling in. Specialty sales professionals enjoy the complex selling process. Navigation is part of the fun for them
– they don't see problems, they see challenges.
"You have to peel back the onion more to understand the business and needs when it comes to specialty sales," explained Dee
Brown, district manager at Novartis. "It requires more business savvy – relating to customers, understanding the politics,
understanding each customer's way of prescribing – the why and how they prescribe."
