Title: Professional Healthcare Representative, Professional Medical

Representative, Pharmaceutical Sales Representative, Territory Manager

representative will introduce them to new products

from his company. In the afternoon, he might visit
hospitals to meet with doctors on staff to persuade
them to purchase his products.

Department: Sales Division

First Line Manager: District Sales Manager, District Sales Supervisor

Skills

Second Line Manager: National Sales Manager

Summary of Position: A Professional Medical Representative is

responsible for bringing business for the pharmaceutical company by
effectively promoting pharmaceutical products to healthcare
professionals and asking them to prescribe such products to appropriate
patients.
Duties and Responsibilities:
Plan, organize and execute product presentation to physicians
and pharmacists regarding the therapeutic use of the product,
mode of action, features and benefits;
Plan each call through the proper identification of appropriate
product or products to promote, which sales tools to use and
the right schedule to execute the call;

Calling on pharmacies to create awareness and educate clients

on products and sell to target accounts;

Observe, record and report competitor activities executed in the

territory and identify appropriate counter strategy.

Constantly endeavor to improve product knowledge, disease

knowledge and selling skills at company standards in order to
deliver appropriate information to physicians effectively and
professionally;

Attain assigned sales, prescription and market share goal

Effectively manage expenses and maintain desired sales to

expense ratio

Education

A medical sales representative is engaged in the selling and marketing of

health care products and supplies, frequently pharmaceutical drugs. The
job is fast-paced and requires a high level of energy and enthusiasm. It
can be highly demanding, often requiring the representative to work far
more than a 40-hour week.
1.

Daily Activities
o A typical day may involve one-on-one meetings with
doctors, pharmacists or nurses in their offices or
places of business to monitor their supply of drugs
and to inform them of forthcoming changes. The

Because of the complex nature of the products they

sell, medical representatives will receive extensive
training upon being hired, usually in the form of a
structured training program. Since the medical field
is constantly changing and evolving, including the
frequent introduction of new products to the
marketplace, the training process is ongoing.

Compensation

Applicant must be a graduate of a minimum four year course preferably

in business, health and other related field. Must have at least 1 year sales
experience. Must be computer literate, with above average
communication skills and knows how to drive.

By Chris Joseph, eHow Contributor

A day might involve meetings with doctors or pharmacists.

A bachelor's degree in a field related to medicine or

pharmacology such as biology, chemistry or
physiology is highly desirable, as well as a strong
understanding of how a drug works in the human
body. An advanced degree is often required to move
into the management ranks.

Additional Training

Position Requirements:

Job Description of a Medical Representative

Interpersonal skills are required to develop trust and

rapport that are a necessary part of the sales process.
You must be able to "speak the language" of the
medical profession by becoming familiar with often
complex medical terms and procedures. You will
need to be able to manage your time well and project
a highly professional image.

Because of the high level of technical knowledge

required and the high profit margins for
pharmaceutical products, a medical sales
representative can earn a substantial income,
especially when selling brand-name drugs as opposed
to generic. There is also a high level of repeat sales.
According to an Economic Research Institute survey,
average annual salaries for pharmaceutical
representatives range from $87,304 in Orlando,
Florida, to $108,238 in New York City.

http://www.filipinomedrep.com/

buhay med rep

Nov 8, 2011
Our district had a 3-day escapade in Cebu dubbed as the Queen City of
the South. This came as a reward for bagging the 2nd best District in the
Philippines for the E-Card program contest for the 1st Semester. Thank
you Pfizer! By the way, this was my first time to explore and discover
Cebus main district attractions.
As I also traced the roots of my paternal grandmother ( The Carillos and
the Garcias ) I just cant help but notice how rich the culture of the
Cebuanos is dating back in the 16th Century. Armed with my Nikon

DSLR, I was anxious to get pictures of their heritage parks and

architectural wonders. Unfortunately, I was confined to shoot for an
estimated of 4 hours only during the city tour since we had to go to our
hotel for the much awaited celebration. Good thing I was able to get a
few Sunrise pics to cap off our Cebu trip.
Au revoir Sir Gerry! ( 1st part )
Jan 6, 2011
"Gratitude is never invisible or silent." This statement struck me while I
was listening to Edge Radio last week. Mr. Webster calls it
"acknowledgment of having received something good from another."
As I was waiting for our Awards night to commence, I had the glance of
the man whom I truly admire and give my highest regard. Mr Gerry
Bacarro, our LEADER and RGEB to most of us, was generous enough to
pose some pictures with the Sales force. I was a bit hesitant to approach
him since it felt like asking for a picture with the President of the
Philippines. Nonetheless, it took some guts to finally approach him,
tapped his shoulder and told him " Thank you very much Sir for
everything, you've been an inspiration especially to us na taga
Mindanao." Then we had the "Kodakan" moment- a precious moment to
say the least. It may have been the last chance to say Kudos to the person
that has led Pfizer to greater heights and to where Pfizer stands in the
industry now.
A couple of days ago, he shared his unparalleled wisdom as he was
imparting his farewell speech to us and shared his realizations. These
were as follows:
1. In order to succeed, you should OVERCOME your greatest fear.
2. You have no right to dream to be great outside, if you don't have a
Champion-like spirit inside.
3. Without a challenging vision ( small or big) of a group, it would be
like driving at night without headlights.
4. A high IQ could get you anywhere, but being good with people and
working hard can bring you far.
5. In order to succeed, you must build leaders sincerely and unselfishly.
There are very few whom I've known who has exemplified true
Leadership, unyielding passion and competence characterized by
diligence, intelligence and hard work like Sir Gerry Bacarro- a leader like
no other.

Engineer or Medrep?
Feb 6, 2008
Who in Mars would have thought that Mr. Reginald Torres Cua will
someday be a Medical Representative? I mean, after hurdling a very
challenging college life when he took up Industrial Engineering at
Ateneo de Davao University, he was one of the few students who passed
the string of exams and interviews made by Hitachi Computers. HICAP
as we often call it, is a leading multinational electronics company in
Japan in which every new engineer would seek to work for. He then
worked shortly for Kodak Philippines before realizing that Manila was
just too crowded to accommodate a newly -wed couple who was trying to
build a family then.
But you know, his God has a cunning and distinctive sense of humour
who sometimes works in mysterious ways. To shorten the long he
eventually went to become a Professional drug pusher- legal at thata.k.a. Med Rep. A colleague of his once told him kiddingly youre not

ordained to be a medrep, youre an engineer! Its unarguable since he's

introvert and his often straightforward attitude has no place in Sales
career.
Over the years, he eventually developed his personality and even
managed to cater an ever challenging yet rewarding Sales career.
Modesty aside, last 2006, he bagged the highest National Sales
performance ( in %age) in their team helping him attain the 4 th runner-up
honors and just last year, he settled as 3 rd runner-up nationwide for their
team.
In all of these, he can say that God is really in control of his life and has
acknowledged that God's ways are better than ours... All praises, honour,
and glory goes to Him alone.
Now is he an Engineer or Med Rep?
Maybe both can work in harmony.

Resume Writing Tips

Before youre every given an interview, an employer will pick apart your
resume and assess your skills. Poorly constructed, grammatically
incorrect resumes will more than likely be skipped over, while organized,
concise resumes will more than likely get a call back.
Individuals who struggle with writing will find it difficult to compose a
coherent, concise resume, but even professional writers find it
complicated to create a resume. Thats because resume writing asks you
to write and organize your thought in a particular way, making it hard for
most people who are unfamiliar with the process.
Add in a varying degree of different formats, styles and organization
methods, resume writing can be tricky. For example, the business major
looking get a job as a financing major may use several different layouts
and most students might visit specific websites, such as
www.businessdegreeonline.net, for help.
Tailor to Your Audience
Resume writing, unlike most styles of writing, requires a different style
and method of organization. When you organize and compose a resume,
you want it to reach a specific audience. For example, a writer applying
to be a copy editor will discuss different skills than a biology student
hoping to apply for a teaching position. Each position will write to a
different audience and require a different set of skills.
Your words, sentences and even organization should speak to reader. You
want to express your qualifications using action verbs and use sentences
that speak of your abilities to complete a job. Some information you may
need to omit; other data you may want to add. For example, if a job
requires a specialization in organic chemistry, you could omit
information about working at a food store.
Organization is Key
A hiring manager looks at the organization of your document to
determine how well you can compose thoughts and ideas. Poorly
organized documents fail to place relevant information closer to the top
and tend to include unnecessary data, irrelevant job skills, work history
or education.
Your goal is to emphasize your content through the placement of

information. Headers direct the eye to specialized skills you possess. For
example, under relevant experience you would describe your skills that
qualify you for the job instead of placing your relevant skills under the
education section.

and the industry they belong with can be very useful during the job
interview.
Be on time. On time means ten minutes early. Or better yet, arrive half an
hour earlier so that you can feel at ease with the surroundings.

Get Creative

Stay Calm

Thousands of resumes pass through a hiring managers desk. Most use a

basic, white page background with a standard organization. If youre
applying to a creative position, be creative and change the format; dump
the plain white background and add in some graphics.
Your creativity will show that youre different. Hiring managers will see
the colorful resume and combined with solid writing will be hurrying to
schedule an interview. Your resume is your first impression. Make it a
good one and show a hiring manager that youre unique.
Resume writing takes practice. Youll experience some bumps in the
road, but with enough practice and plenty of samples to mimic, you can
build a killer resume. Skip the standard layout and aim for a creative one
(if your job requires it). If you know your poor at grammar, have a friend
review it for clarity and mistakes. Remember to tailor your resume to
your audience.

Try to be relaxed and calmduring the interview. Remember, interviewes

can be made by a single interviewer or a panel of interviewer. They
would know if you are not comfortable. Usually, they are looking for
applicants that are oozing with self confidence because that is one of the
qualities of a Medical Representative. If you still have the nerves, don't
go to the interview because it will be such a waste of yours and the
interviewer's time. You better practice more.

The Art of Selling

Before anything else, sell yourself first! Remember the market is being
dominated by products having the same generic name with different
brand names. Most of the products in the market today have been in the
market for more than 5 years. The doctors know almost everything there
is to know about these products.

If you decide to return to school, such as pursuing your masters degree,

you can use the online guide to career education to determine the best
school for you.

Interview tips for aspiring Medical Representatives

Job interviews are the most crucial part of the hiring process and the
most nerve-wracking activity any job applicant encounter. Why wouldn't
it be? You are trying to sell yourself and hoping that they would buy.
There are many stages of interviews and they are designed to filter the
numbers into a select few. Your objective, as an applicant, is to standout
from all the other applicants.

In the interview, you will be meeting unknown people and you will try
selling yourself (skills, competencies, experiences). In the
pharmaceutical industry, you will not only be assessed by how pretty or
how action-packed your resume was.
To better guide aspiring Medical Representatives in job interviews, I
have prepared some tips which can help you get to your dream job.
Practice Makes Perfect
Yes, that is right. Constant practice can build up your
confidence. Practice answering the most basic interview questions first
and then go to more complex ones. Think of possible interview questions
and answer the questions based on your qualities or competencies.
Providing evidences of your past successes is the best way to sell
yourself.
Be Prepared
Be prepared, not just on the possible questions that the interviewer might
throw at you, but on how you present yourself. Business attires should
always be the standard dress code in any interview. In hot weather like
we have, coats or jackets are optional, but long sleeves and neckties are a
must.
Try to learn as much about the job you are applying for and the company
you wanted to join in. They may want to know how an outsider like you
perceive their company. Your understanding of the job, their company

Make an impression, a good impression. This could make or break your

career. Its always better to under promise and over deliver than over
promising and under delivering. When you do the latter, some of your
clients would feel offended. They will feel short changed. In short, never
commit something that you cannot give. If for some unavoidable
circumstance you would not be able to deliver on your promise, be
strong, face your client and explain with all honesty and sincerity why
you wouldnt be able to deliver on your promise. Sometimes it works,
sometimes it doesnt.
Selling Skills
Calls or coverage is a face to face interaction with your target customer,
the physician, with a planned business objective done on a regular clinic
day. The purpose of the call is to achieve the physicians commitment to
continuously prescribe the product you are promoting by means of
providing product information (action, indication, adverse effects, etc.)
and quality customer service (uncovering needs, address concerns, etc.).
The call starts not on the actual visit but on the planning, usually outside
the clinic. Pre-call is conducted in preparation for the actual call. Usually
a review of the past conversation is made and then formulating a new
objective for the call. Pre-call should be made using the SMART format:
S Specific
M Measurable
A Actionable
R Results Oriented
T Triggers Action
Pre-calls should include qualitative and quantitative objectives. In
qualitative objectives, you may want to ask the doctor about his practice,
about the profile of patients he sees or how he treats them. You may also
want to have the doctor to agree to a key product message you intend to
deliver. Quantitative objectives may include the number of prescription
you want the doctor to produce or the number of patients he may try your
product.
A good pre-call plan will allow you to directly influence the flow of the
call because you already have the outline in whichever way the call

should go. Your strategy should include assessments of his current

prescribing status:
1. Awareness
2. Interest
3. Trial
4. Usage
Was he still in the awareness stage or has he already moved on the
interest phase? You can indicate in your plan your desire to upgrade his
prescribing continuum to trial phase and that desire should be
accompanied by what types of questions to use, or what materials to
utilize and what message to emphasize.
The actual selling starts with Opening. Opening is the skill of obtaining
the doctors attention. It is the introduction phase wherein you capture
the attention of the audience and makes them want to listen and/or want
to know more about you, your company and most specially, your
product.

Example of Handling Concerns

MD: I seldom use Cox-2 inhibitors because of cardiovascular
complications.
PMR: Doctor, why did you say that it causes cardiovascular
complications?
MD: Well, there have been several studies about it and the FDA and
BFAD had issued warnings about them.
PMR: I understand your concern, but what if I can show you that my
product, Tucox, have comparable cardiovascular risk profile with that of
diclofenac and naproxen, would you be interested?
MD: Yes!
Delivering the message requires you to master the contents of the detail
aid. You should not relay all the contents of the material to the doctor.
You only have to highlight a key message relevant to the topic being
discussed. Key messages should also be translated to benefit in order for
that feature to be more appreciated.
Example of Message Delivery

Your opening strategy should have a link in your previous call, known
patient conditions or it may contain reference to current events, such as
politics, weather, showbiz, etc. If you are going to use current events, you
must be able to link or bridge it to a feature or benefit of your product.
But, if its going to be your first visit to the doctor, introducing yourself
and your company will suffice.
In the example below, we will be using a hypothetical product called
TUCOX, a cox-2 specific inhibitor. Cox-2 specific inhibitors are a kind
of Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug or NSAID that has fewer sideeffects than traditional NSAIDs such as diclofenac and naproxen.
Example of an Opening Strategy
PMR: Doctor, Im sure that you would agree that the onset of action is
very important when choosing medicines to address pain.
MD: Yes!
To have an in-depth understanding of your customer, you should ask
questions that will provide you with information regarding his practice. A
good probing strategy is needed for this. Probing is the skill of
uncovering customer needs, belief and concerns.
There are three types of probes. Open probe is a type of questioning
strategy where the ultimate goal is to allow the doctor to freely express
himself. This is usually used in the beginning of your questioning or with
a very communicative customer. Closed probes are a type of questioning
answerable by yes or no. This type is mainly used in funneling
technique, a series of probes to uncover specific areas of concerns. The
third type is choice probes. This type of probe is similar to the closed
probe in uncovering specific customer concerns but it uses options to
pinpoint the concern.
Example of a Probing Strategy
PMR: Doctor, in pain management what do you usually use?
MD: It depends on the case
PMR: What about in post-operative pain, do you use Cox-2 inhibitors?
MD: Of course!
Once you have identified the need of the doctor, you must tailor fit your
response. Do not divert the flow of the conversation or you may run the
risk of annoying the doctor. Stick to the topic, and with sufficient product
knowledge, you can win the confidence of the doctor. Issues and
concerns sometimes arise from your interaction with the doctor. This
may be due to various reasons, such as real objections, misconceptions or
scepticism about the claims of your product.

PMR: Doctor, Tucox is a highly selective Cox-2 inhibitor with rapid

onset of action and long duration of effects, allowing your patients
Freedom from Pain.
MD: Is that so
PMR: Yes doctor, aside from its fast on long lasting action, Tucox is
generally well tolerated. In fact, studies show that Tucox has the same
cardiovascular risk profile with diclofenac and naproxen.
MD: Hmmm
In Closing, you should be aware of the signals that are indicative of when
you will conclude the call. You may have uncovered a need from your
probing strategy and had provided the feature and benefit of the product
that satisfy that need. If the doctor agrees or is satisfied with the feature
or benefit of your product, you may then close the call by paraphrasing or
reviewing the agreed benefits and then ask the doctor if he may prescribe
the product to the appropriate patients.
Example of a Closing Strategy
PMR: Doctor, since we have agreed that Tucox will provide your patient
with fast and long lasting action that will give your patients Freedom
from Pain, would you prescribe Tucox to your next patient suffering from
acute pain?
MD: Yes...
Once the call concluded and have left the doctors clinic, a review of
what has transpired should take place. Ask then yourself if you have
elicited the expected response planned in your pre-call objective? If not,
what would you do differently next time? The result of your post-call
analysis will be the basis for your pre-call on your next visit to the
doctor.