Often the worst part of conducting a lunch presentation in a physician's office is the act of placing the order. If you call
at a busy time, you can never be sure that the person on the phone is paying attention and isn't distracted by other customers.
And if you don't have a free minute during standard operating hours, you may not be able to place an order at all until the
next day – not exactly an ideal situation for the last-minute lunch. Fortunately, Web-based catering services are popping
up all over the country. Many of these services are geared to pharmaceutical sales representatives and understand the issues
reps face, from compliance with industry guidelines to not wanting to be seen as a caterer. These online services may be the
perfect solution for busy reps looking for a one-stop ordering system for their lunch needs.
Ordering made easy
Online ordering isn't for everyone (technophobes or those who have developed solid relationships with local restaurants),
but it does offer some benefits that are worth considering. "Placing orders by phone, there's always a risk that your order
is going to get messed up," says W. Carter Hoerr, CEO of Charlottesville, VA-based Vmeals. "You call at lunchtime – someone's
busy. They pick up the phone at the restaurant, they're trying to do 10 different things, they take your order and the order
falls on the floor and just never happens. We've got a series of steps in place to make sure that if you place an order today
for Friday, that order's going to show up on time on Friday." All of the companies interviewed for this article provide e-mail
confirmation of the order and will follow up with a phone call to both the representative and the restaurant.
What to look for
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Another benefit of online ordering is the ability to access a variety of restaurants from a central location. "One of the
problems that we face out in the field is, how many times can we bring Dr. Jones pasta?" says Sheldon A. Krancher, founder
and owner of Los Angeles-based SalesAid and a pharmaceutical sales rep for the past eight years. "You end up using, by default,
two or three caterers or two or three restaurants really out of convenience, the problem with that being you end up bringing
the same thing and you're limited in your ability to add variety to what you're bringing to your account. So with SalesAid,
you have an entire network; we have over 50 restaurants in the network currently, and we're always adding caterers and restaurants."
With more complex online-ordering systems, the advantages become even more advanced. Companies like Stoughton, MA-based Physician's
Fare and Vmeals allow users to schedule orders months in advance and change orders online. Reps can access their account anytime
to print receipts or see their order history. "We have custom reporting features, and what's really great about these reporting
features is they allow reps to be proactive with their budgets," says Karyn Forman, CEO of Physician's Fare and a former sales
representative. "They can look in and select criteria based on date or number of people or a date frame, say from January
1 to January 15, and know how much they've spent so they know how much they have left in their budget."
Choosing the right service
Web ordering services come in many varieties. There are the local companies that deliver the meals from the restaurants themselves
and put the emphasis on service rather than technology. There are the national companies with the widest variety of restaurants
and the most advanced Web sites. And there are the individual restaurant chains that provide a more personal relationship
but less variety. Ultimately, what you choose will depend on your needs and priorities, but there are a couple of points you'll
want to consider no matter what online service you are ordering from.
