Trying to break into Medical Sales. Any advice?

Hello,

I'm a 27 year old male with a BSBA from an accredited business school. I have 5 years of successful Account Executive/B2B sales experience. I have been trying to crack into the medical sales industry and have not heard back from a soul. I was in the wholesale lending business for firms such JPMorgan Chase where I generated multi million dollar pipelines and constantly increased revenue while growing my territory. The problem is that industry died and all the companies were either tanking or having massive layoffs. I think that hurt my resume and made it look like I was job hopping. Either way, I have a proven sales track record and know how to manage a territory, develope relationships and grow revenue. What do I need to do to get a returned phone call? Please help.

Thanks,

Ricky

Don't give up, but I have heard from hiring managers that would not go on the record that they will not consider mortgage folks, especially us slimy and low-down wholesale AE's (I was one for a long time). Here are the reasons why:

1. We just bought our business by offering kickbacks and giving perks. Well, I am sure that no pharm rep has ever taken docs to happy hour or golfing or dinner to entice business. NOOOOOO! Many reps in many business do this, but cliens keep their business for the long haul with reps and companies who they know will come through for them and for the end user.

2. We made easy money while the money was easy. Well, it was a booming industry in mortgage from 2002 through early 2007, but it was also an extremely competitive market, and if you were successful it was because you were doing things right and knew your product and industry like it was your name!

3. We are all just going to leave and go back to mortgage when the easy money comes back. First of all, employees leave companies for better opportunities all the time, and it is called capitalism. Maintain your status as a great place to work and treat people well and you should not have to worry about it! Furthermore, it is not coming back anywhere close to where it was, nor should it.

Ricky, use networking to get to know people in the business. It may take a while, and even that may not be easy. My uncle is a distric manager for a large pharma company and even he could not get me an interview. They were concerned over my background. I guess my background of covering a multi state territory and being in the top 3% in production for what was at the time the largest mortgage lender in the country just did not cut it!

Keep plugging away. That's all any of us can do. Use it as motivation. I am trying to get a job as an admissions director in a healthcare facility and it is going well. I can't wait until the first time a pharma rep comes into my facility!

healthcare pro in Columbus, Ohio said: Don't give up, but I have heard from hiring managers that would not go on the record that they will not consider mortgage folks, especially us slimy and low-down wholesale AE's (I was one for a long time). Here are the reasons why:

1. We just bought our business by offering kickbacks and giving perks. Well, I am sure that no pharm rep has ever taken docs to happy hour or golfing or dinner to entice business. NOOOOOO! Many reps in many business do this, but cliens keep their business for the long haul with reps and companies who they know will come through for them and for the end user.

2. We made easy money while the money was easy. Well, it was a booming industry in mortgage from 2002 through early 2007, but it was also an extremely competitive market, and if you were successful it was because you were doing things right and knew your product and industry like it was your name!

3. We are all just going to leave and go back to mortgage when the easy money comes back. First of all, employees leave companies for better opportunities all the time, and it is called capitalism. Maintain your status as a great place to work and treat people well and you should not have to worry about it! Furthermore, it is not coming back anywhere close to where it was, nor should it.

Ricky, use networking to get to know people in the business. It may take a while, and even that may not be easy. My uncle is a distric manager for a large pharma company and even he could not get me an interview. They were concerned over my background. I guess my background of covering a multi state territory and being in the top 3% in production for what was at the time the largest mortgage lender in the country just did not cut it!

Keep plugging away. That's all any of us can do. Use it as motivation. I am trying to get a job as an admissions director in a healthcare facility and it is going well. I can't wait until the first time a pharma rep co

Healthcare Pro,

I appreciate your insight and I completely agree with you. I actually had an opportunity to meet with the top orthopedic medical device rep in my region through a contact I know. He has been a rep in the area for over 20 years and works with Smith & Nephew. Again, it always goes back to the basics. Good ole networking.

During my 2 hour dicussion he made it very clear to me that he would NEVER consider a pharmceutical sales rep because he said they are order takers. No sales skills or intelligence is required to perform that position. He was aware of the fact that I was in the mortgage industry but he liked that fact that I was currently an Account Executive for a HealthCare company. He did say when he hires someone he doesnt really concentrate on someones background. He said he has a good judge of character and can determine if someone is cut out for the business or not. He definitely liked me and is going to contact me in 4 months time. He has 2 other positions to fill locally yet it wasn't even posted on the Smith & Nephew website because it's at his discretion.

I think I have a great opportunity since I already got my foot in the door. The only way someone like me can overcome my disadvantage is to simply network with who you know who knows someone in the business.

Good luck with pursuing your admissions director position. I hope you get it and do run into your first pharma rep.

Take Care

Hi guys,

I was also an AE on the wholesale lending side . I was with Wachovia for the last 6 years and recently got laid off. I am also looking to get into Medical Sales ( not pharma) and i am getting zero response. I think the only way to get in is through someone, that is if you don't have a medical background. There is a RMSR training course that i've been reading about online but i don't want to committ to a class if i'm not certain its going to get me in the medical sales field. I hope something comes around soon. I love being a wholesale AE, it was such a great job, not just the money but the mangeing of accounts, the presenations and the knowledge i had on our product line that gave me the oppurtunity to train and educate my accounts. good luck to you all!!!

There are some great resources here. Don't forget to look at the blog - articles and videos on how to make the transition.
Good Luck.

I just got into medical device sales with Owens & Minor and I found the job through the NAMSR Employment Center. I just started but I love my job so far. You might want to look into the medical sales program offered by the NAMSR, it helped me. Go to www.medicalsalescareer.com

www.MedReps.com is the best place to go. Lots of listings along with recruiters who will do the searching for you as long as you meet the criteria. That is where I got my current position in the medical device field, and I've been with the same company for 3 years now.
Ideally you want to get into the medical or surgical device field instead of the pharmaceutical side. The gentleman above is correct in that the med. device managers do not like hiring from the pharma or banking side. They are not looking for "order takers". They are looking for the heavy B2B experienced people who succeeded in a highly competitive market through cold calling, appointment setting, and customer management, while achieving all goals.
If you do not have that background, I'd suggest getting a B2B position with a highly respected company that has a well known sales training program (i.e. Cintas, ADP, Paychex, Xerox, Aramark, etc). I know that's not the immediate result you're looking for, but it may be the only way. Kick butt for 2 years, and you can basically pick and choose your desired medical position.