It not always necessary to have some background in the sciences to get a job in medical sales, laboratory sales, medical supplies sales, hospital equipment sales, clinical diagnostics sales, pharmaceutical sales, imaging sales, pathology sales, cellular and molecular sales, and biotechnology sales.  But if you’ve got it, it helps.

For more information about technology sheets and other secrets to success in getting a medical sales job, see How to Get Into Medical Sales – Volume I:  The Documents.  It’s full of samples and templates of resumes, cover letters, technology sheets, brag books, 30/60/90-day sales plans, thank you notes, and more–it also includes over an hour of audio coaching from the Sales Recruiter to show you how to use these documents to your greatest advantage in your job search and interviews!

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There are a couple of ways to answer this question, so here goes: 

First of all, my opinion is that no certificate program is an adequate substitute for a 4-year degree.  There’s just no substitute available for a solid science background if you’re going into medical sales.  Remember–the customers in this area DO have science degrees.  If you don’t, it will be apparent that you don’t.  My top candidates all have 4-year science degrees AND some kind of sales/business experience.

Second, all of the areas of medical sales (laboratory sales, clinical diagnostics sales, biotech sales, DNA products sales, cellular products sales, molecular sales, hospital equipment sales, imaging sales, surgical supplies sales, medical device sales, pathology sales, histology, medical software sales), pharmaceutical sales is the most volatile and the least respected –partly because pharmaceutical sales reps as a whole (though there are exceptions) bring the least value.  The effectiveness of the pharmaceutical sales force is declining–and layoffs are everywhere.

Reading job descriptions and requirements will give you a much better idea of where to focus your prep time to get into medical sales.  Go to my website (www.phcconsulting.com) for job listings.

To find out how to make the most of the experience you do have, see How to Get Into Medical Sales, Volume One:  The Documents.  It will let you know what employers are looking for, teach you how to effectively market yourself, and show you how to create and use everything you’ll need for a successful interview.

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But, even with flexibility from employers on background, there’s still a lot of different ways people can shoot themselves in the foot in the interview process—and I ran into a few this week. (These are not unusual, either…I get responses like this with disappointing frequency.) For example, after one person had described her background and experience, she summed up her desire to be in medical sales as “medical terminology makes me happy.” As a recruiter, that kind of statement makes me want to run in the other direction (laughing, but still running). You could say that that’s not such a big deal, but it sounds a little goofy, it doesn’t show a lot of maturity, it doesn’t show a lot of thought, and it’s an additional thing she just said to fill space. So, if you’re trying to get a medical sales job, DON’T FILL SPACE. Usually, you’re going to fill it with something that’s going to hurt you.

Another guy with a very strong lab background wanted to get into pharmaceutical sales but complained that “they just want so much sales experience.” If you’ve read my blog for very long, you know that I don’t think that pharmaceutical sales requires reps to be all that skilled in sales: they don’t ask for a close, they don’t place orders, they have no power over pricing, and they have no power in the relationship…so, when he said that to me, it made me think he hadn’t done his research about the different types of sales jobs, or really put that much thought into it at all. When I told him that with his background, he should think about laboratory sales, or field applications, he said to me, “All I want to do is get off the bench.” Well, a lot of scientists will say that, and I can appreciate that… but as a recruiter, I don’t want to hear it. When you’re interviewing for a medical sales position, I want to know that you’re running to something, not running from something. I’ve had managers comment to me about that to me, too: “I’m not sure they wanted THIS job…I think they just didn’t want the job they have.” So, when you’re in the interview process, be running TO something. It may not sound like a big deal, but it is to hiring managers. (Really, all hiring managers want to know that you’ll be enthusiastic about the job they need you to do.) They’re going to spend somewhere between $25,000-$50,000 training you in the first 6 months, and they don’t want any questions about whether you’ll be successful.

Which leads me to the next point: Don’t ask your recruiter if she thinks you’ll be successful in medical sales. If you’re not confident, I won’t be confident, and my hiring manager won’t be confident… and I won’t present you for the job.

These are just some things that you want to think about as an entry-level person in the medical sales field and what you need to do. The top things you can do: be flexible, be available, be honest, and DO YOUR HOMEWORK. So when I ask you, “What have you done to prepare for a sales job?” don’t say what one person said to me this week: “Why, nothing. I don’t have a sales job yet, so how would I prepare?” That’s not what I want to hear. I want to hear someone who’s creative in their thought process, has looked on You Tube for instructional videos, has read some books, and has done a ride-along or a job shadowing. I want to see someone who knows why he wants a job in medical sales, laboratory sales, biotech sales, medical device sales, or pharmaceutical sales. I want to see someone with energy, drive, passion, and a desire to do something more, and different, and to make themselves better, more and different.

(And if you’re really serious, consider downloading my audio coaching products that will teach you not only why medical sales is a great field to get into, but also exactly what kinds of documents you need to make a great impression on a hiring manager, how to create them, and how to use them in a job interview.)

Good luck,

Peggy McKee

The Medical Sales Recruiter

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On the one hand, I think that all training is valuable, and many people do it. I’ve had a candidate who invested $5000 of her own money for training. I personally don’t think anyone needs to invest that much, though. You do need to invest a lot of time and energy—read a lot (sales books, on motivation and technique), listen, ride along, work with some folks who have had that experience. But– is the training valuable? Yes. Does it show initiative? Yes. Does it show commitment? Yes. I like all those things.

On the other side, it doesn’t really differentiate you from another candidate if, when you get on the phone or get to the interview, you’re not as strong as the other candidate. So, you might want to think about doing those things that will make you stronger than the other candidate when you interview. Polish your interview skills. Practice phone interviews. Have a 30/60/90-day sales plan.

I do provide custom consulting services as a sales recruiter, so that you can see what YOU need to shore up in your own situation to make the cut. Just this week, I helped someone who wants to be promoted to Regional Sales Manager within his company. He contacted me and purchased a little of my time this week for me to help him look at his resume and his 30-60-90 day sales plan and also to talk to him about how to handle certain interview questions. So, you might want to think about investing some time and money in that way, because an hour with someone like myself who can talk you through the interview process, who can role play with you, might be more beneficial than that training sticker is.

Because, when the rubber meets the road on the first phone interview with the recruiter, and the first phone interview with the company, if you don’t do well with those two things… it doesn’t really matter how well-trained you are.

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Have any of you tried this?  Has it helped?

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