5 Types of Training Every Pharmaceutical Sales Representative Needs

It is well-known that selling is a dynamic profession, and you need to upgrade your knowledge about your products and services constantly to be a successful salesman. But, the task of salesmen in the pharmaceutical sector is tougher when compared to their counterparts in other industries. Here, the prospect (I mean the doctor) has more knowledge about medicines and diseases than the salesman. How does the pharmaceutical representative make an impact on the doctor and how does he help introduce his company’s medicines? The answer – he needs to be as knowledgeable as the doctor himself.

When sales representatives join pharmaceutical companies, they undergo intensive one-month pharmaceutical sales classroom training sessions, where they are trained aggressively by doctors and medical sales managers. This is usually a full time certification course. Once this sales training is complete, they go out to the market and work in the field.

Here are the five types of training that are covered in the exhaustive sales training curriculum.

1. Anatomy & Physiology 

The Normal and Abnormal: This includes a thorough training on the human anatomy and physiology – the functions of the various organs, the different parts of the organs, and what happens if they function abnormally. This training is usually conducted by doctors.

2. Diseases

What are the various diseases for which the company offers medicines? What are their symptoms? What is the future?

3. Drugs

What are the drugs available for a particular disease? How does the drug help cure the disease, and what are its indications and contraindications? This training is given by a pharmaceutical specialist.

4. Sales Process

Once sales representatives complete their medical training, the next step would be a through process training on how to work with doctors, how to break the ice and open the conversation, how to introduce the drugs, and how to promote the drug and company. This sales process is critical for effective communication with the doctor. This training usually covers soft skills needed to make a sale and is delivered by a senior sales trainer.

5. Handling Objections

Finally, sales representatives are trained on how to handle the doctors’ objections. How to reply in a dignified way without being harsh with the prospect.

Once a sales representative completes this training, he is ready to work with doctors and promote your company’s drugs. This extensive training of one month should be supported by continuous reinforcement, so that the sales representatives are always productive.  How can this be done? With technology, learning can be imparted on-the -go with just a click.

Byte size eLearning for sales representatives for quick reinforcement on the go!

You can have byte-sized learning nuggets for your sales representatives on the various aspects discussed above, which can be accessed anytime, anywhere, on any device – PC or iPad, and can be used as ready reckoners before meeting a doctor.

Develop 10 minute microlearning modules on the 5 aspects of medical and sales training.

Use Explore &Learn, animations, and scenario-based learning strategies to make learning fun and engaging.

Though pharmaceutical sales is very tough, it can be made easy if we give the sales team the edge of accessing training on the go!

One-time training won’t do your sales representatives any good, you need to provide them constant information and updates from the pharmaceutical world. Do you want to know how you can leverage byte size eLearning for your sales representatives? Check out this E-book Microlearning – The Mega Advantage to Your On-the-Move Sales Team to help your pharmaceutical sales representatives do better in the field.