Why should a doctor entertain a pharma representative? -Sales Management 20
Think over – Why should a doctor entertain a pharma representative? They won’t even consider your existence if they don’t understand why they should pay attention to you.
Can you make yourself valuable? Doctors will notice you only if you and your brand have a strong value proposition.
First – your brand’s value proposition. What is your brand’s value proposition? Do you know it thoroughly?
Will you be able to make a doctor feel proud to prescribe your brand? Are you in the game of building brands? When the doctor feels proud to prescribe your brand it is a self-expressive benefit he derives – the same pride you get when you wear a Raymond’s Suit rather than from S. Kumar; or when use an iPad and not just a Samsung Tablet.
Will you be able to evoke positive feelings for your brand? Say for example, can you make a doctor say “I prescribe your brand because I know my patients will not have to run from pillar to post to get my prescription honored.” This is an emotional benefit you have unknowingly conveyed because he knows that you are caring for his patients.
Have you been able to communicate your brands functional benefits effectively as promised in the promotional literature? Will your doctor say, “I use your pain killer because my patients get relief from pain in minutes”.
Now that you know what is a brand’s value proposition, what is my own personal value proposition?
Think over – “What is my own personal value proposition that will make a doctor eagerly wait for my call me? What will make him respect me?” You should constantly think how you can turn your unique talents unto a winning formula!
Develop ‘Brand You’!
Loyalty is less important than it was before. Your employer is not one who will take care of you in good times and bad times. Loyalty is unlikely to be supported with job security. Even blue chip companies like TCS and HUL have fired people who have spent a long time in the company. They pay only for performance. That’s the harsh corporate reality.
So continually update yourself. Your deep knowledge will help you to distinguish yourself not only within your organization but also with your customers. You will be welcomed by doctors. This will make others notice you.
Work on what can help you make a solid first impression. Watch your body language, your facial expressions, gestures and postures and your attire.
The Final Thought
To make yourself heard in a doctors chamber, develop ‘Brand You’. Develop your own micro equivalent of the Nike swoosh. The good news — and it is really good news — everyone has an equal chance to stand out in the doctors chamber to get his attention. Everyone has a chance to learn, improve, and build up the latent skills. Everyone has a chance to be a very strong ‘Brand You’.
So build a personal brand so that you appear indispensible to your employer. And your personal brand should be so strong that the industry and competition takes notice of you. Get yourself a competitive edge. Social media will help you make yourself visible – if you do it the right way.
Market yourself well. That doesn’t mean floating your CV across the universe. Avoid the push strategy to market ‘Brand You’. Be very careful what you write in your social media profile. Avoid statements like ‘Open for Change’ or ‘Highly Successful Personality’
Rather use the pull strategy. Talk about your guru’s and mentors who have made you successful. Sound authentic and consistent. What is the kind of photograph do you have in your social media profile. Does it have a pull power?