Emerging Trends in Medical Device Sales

We recently read a compelling discussion between Richard Ruff, Ph.D., co-founder of Sales Horizons, and Scott Nelson, founder of Medsider.com, regarding Emerging Trends in Medical Device Sales. The following presents highlights from that conversation.

In this changing environment for medical device sales, this discussion addressed questions such as:

• Why are hospitals hiring medical device sales reps? What are the future implications of this trend?
• What are the best practices of superior medical device sales reps?
• Can role-playing be an effective tool in sales training?

First, some facts that we know about the medical device environment:

• More and more hospitals are acquiring larger physician practices
• Physicians are aligning their objectives with hospitals on matters of cost reduction
• Value analysis committees are replacing the physician as the ultimate decision-maker

Why are hospitals hiring medical device sales reps? What are the future implications of this trend?

• Hospitals are hiring reps to call on physicians and persuade them to send larger numbers of referrals to the hospitals. This is a fundamental change in the way the hospital operates.
• Sales reps must now be even smarter about a new customer (the hospital: its finances, its physicians) and a new type of conversation (with the Chief Financial Officer, value committee).
• This suggests the need for a change in the way that reps are trained. They must develop a narrative to catch the attention of a hospital CFO, and must help the surgeon win over the value analysis committee.

What are the best practices of superior medical device sales reps? They all focus upon understanding the customer’s business.

Three of six best practices cited were:

• Understand and develop customer needs
• Understand the customer’s business
• Develop trust in the customer relationship

(Source: Sales Training Connection Blog, “Six Best Sales Practices,” February 11, 2011.)

Focusing specifically on the second: Average reps simply “get” the customer’s business. Superior reps gain a comprehensive understanding of the business imperatives and initiatives of a particular hospital, trends impacting that hospitals’ strategic direction, players within the organization, external competition, etc.

Finally, what new kinds of training can medical device companies undertake to better educate their reps?

Faced with increasing price pressures (among other challenges), large companies with sales forces of 700-800 are hesitant to pay by a per-head model year after year.

Sales Horizons has designed training by use of a license: companies may print the product and hold rights to use it in perpetuity.

Further, the company has redefined customization of training programs past simply classic role play. New ideas include creating a dossier on the new customer, e.g. a 4-5 page background sheet on the hospital, descriptions of individual physicians, new ways to sit inside the mind of the hospital buyer, etc.

About Medsider.com:
Medsider.com’s stated goal is to help ambitious doers and thinkers learn from a mix of dynamic and experienced medical device and medtech experts. Listen to podcast interviews or download transcripts.

www.medsider.com
About the Sales Training Connection blog:
Dr. Ruff’s blog features a number of posts focused specifically on medical device sales and sales training ideas.

www.salestrainingconnection.com