The transformation of healthcare professionals’ roles, affecting KAMs and medical representatives, presents new challenges for pharmaceutical companies. We are witnessing a true “redefinition” of medical promotion towards drugs that are “more technical, with very high value, but very low volumes” (2015, Pascal Le Guyader, Director of General, Industrial, and Social Affairs at Leem). Promotional forces must now specialize and develop robust expertise to perform in this evolving market context.
Having a motivated and competent team has never been more crucial to achieving the satisfaction of healthcare professionals.
How to motivate and deploy the skills of your promotional force for sales?
Develop the Expertise of Your Promotional Force
Transform your medical representatives and KAMs into challengers. They must become true references in their field of expertise and be able to engage their contacts on all subjects related to their domain: be it the molecule, regulations, market competition, or patient benefits. To ensure their performance, a medical representative must know how to debate with their client and challenge them out of their comfort zone by questioning their concerns.
There are several practical ways to achieve this:
- Micro-trainings or weekly quizzes organized by theme on digital platforms. The gamification of training and learning is encouraged because it motivates employees to effectively develop their skills through its engaging format
- The recognition of the performance and progress of medical representatives and KAMs internally, with a potential reward, to engage and motivate your teams to deploy their expertise
- Sharing articles and best practices, as well as a mentoring system, helps develop a sense of belonging and collective solidarity within a pharmaceutical company, alongside robust expertise
Develop the Professional Demeanor of Your Promotional Force
Thanks to their expertise in their sales field, medical representatives and KAMs must be seen by their clients as partners rather than salespeople. It is important to present oneself as an equal to increase legitimacy and strengthen the client relationship. As such, the primary objective of your sales force is to provide added value to healthcare professionals through “insights” (client case presentations, readings, regulatory watch…), continuously identifying and addressing their needs.
Conclusion
Robust expertise and an inspiring demeanor can only encourage clients to trust medical representatives regarding their good intentions and the added value they provide. In conclusion, to motivate your promotional force, start by training them internally.