9. KNOW THE LOCAL POLITICS

MSLs are adept at understanding the underlying politics in medicine. They build rapport with key players, who then divulge all kinds of tidbits, such as who used to practice with whom and why they split, who competed heavily in their fellowship programs, and other information that can help you to be more effective in your territory. New reps unwittingly make a lot of political mistakes by inviting competing practices to a small dinner, or by inviting chiropractors to an orthopedic meeting, for example. Sit down to lunch with your local MSL or favorite tenured rep, and ask them to teach you about the local politics in your area. Then use that information to make smarter choices in your territory.

10. BRING DOCTORS TOGETHER

Invite key doctors out together for lunch or dinner. Perhaps invite the university's chief of cardiology out to lunch with the president of the state's medical society. Obviously, make sure you know the local politics to avoid accidentally inviting adversaries out together! You can start by asking the president of the local medical society who she might like to meet with, if she could pick someone's brain. Then make it happen. One great way to bring key doctors together is to start a journal club on your disease specialty. Request that one doctor brings an article on your product, but everyone else can bring any article related to the disease state. This not only gets doctors thinking and talking about pharmaceutical issues, but they will also tend to get very honest with their colleagues about what they think ... and you will hear the real stories about why they prescribe the way they do.

Working as a sales rep should never mean that you have to be a second-class citizen, begging the doctors for their time and attention. By taking some lessons from MSLs, you can quickly build rapport with your customers, and gain their respect and attention!