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Salespeople are called upon to perform many duties, from customer training to market analysis. But we must never forget the primary value we bring to

According to USFDA, a combination product is one composed of any combination of a drug and device; biological product and device; drug and biological product

our organizations, the real reason we remain on the payroll: We are excellent at gaining commitment from paying customers. Or, at least, we're suppose

; or drug, device, and biological product and fixed dose combination would include two or more combinations of drug.

Examples of combination products may in

to be.

Why don't customers commit? Because salespeople don't ask them to!

Yet incredibly, four out of six sales calls end without the salesperson as

lude drug-coated devices, drugs packaged with delivery devices in medical kits, and drugs and devices packaged separately but intended to be used together.

ing the client to commit to any action that will move the process forward toward a sale. The salesperson presents some product information, maybe leav

here is enormous increase in the number of combination products entering the market in the recent years. Combination products have proven advantages but fixe

es some brochures and then walks away.

That is a travesty. Here's how to prevent that from happening.

1. Always set a Commitment Objective before ev

d dose combinations are still in the process of convincing regulatory authority on their advantages over the single ingredient formulations.

Combination pro

ry call. You may have any number of valid goals for a sales call, but a Commitment Objective is a particular type of goal. It is an agreement you see

ucts have become life saving products for the pharmaceutical companies who doesn’t have many innovative molecules in their product pipeline and have been inc

from the customer to do something that will move the sales process forward.

Your Commitment Objective is not always to get an order. It might be to

easingly used in the product life cycle management. Even the companies having product patents are trying to extend their product life cycle through the combi

get a referral to the real decision-maker, or to schedule another meeting with all decision-makers present, or to gain primary-supplier status.

Before

nation products and maximize the revenues. But the companies involved in this practice are overlooking that they are burdening the patients both economically

every call, ask yourself: What commitment will I try to gain from this customer during the call? How will this commitment move the sales process forwa

and physically. They need to rightly judge the benefits of the combination products and they have to even look at the risks involved when combining the produ

d?

2. Look and listen for buying signals. These may take the form of questions, statements or body language. "How much is it?" "How soon can you de

ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi

iver?" "I like what you're saying." All of those are signals that it is time for you to ask for commitment.

3. Ask for commitment in a straightforwa

ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a

rd and non-manipulative way.

a) Summarize your product's features and benefits, and quote price.
b) Ask, "What is your opinion of this?"
c)

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod

sk, "Would you like to go ahead with it?"

Whenever you quote price, always ask for commitment. To put this another way, never quote price without ask

cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin

ng for commitment immediately.

Once more, gaining commitment is the principal mission of every salesperson. But you won't get it if you don't ask. B

tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen

egin your planning of every sales call by determining the commitment you want and how you're going to ask for it.

In The Field:

Since 1990, when Patt

t?

As combination products don't fit into the traditional categories of drugs, medical devices, or biological products, the USFDA is in the process of devel

rson Dental (PDCO) began training its North American sales force with Action Selling sales training, the company has become the largest distributor of

ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

ental supplies and equipment in the United States and Canada.

Jim Violette, branch manager for the Spokane, Wash., facility, credits Action Selling fo

y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products

r a dramatic turnaround at his branch. "My sales force acts like an entirely different team since we implemented the Action Selling approach," Violett

.

As there is an increasing trend of the combination products companies manufacturing such products should be able to tackle the problems involved in the de

said. "Our skills at Gaining Commitment have dramatically improved."

That's an understatement, both for the Spokane branch and for the company as a

elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

hole. At nearly $1.6 billion in sales, Patterson has grown by 17 percent per year and increased its market share by 32 percent over the past five years

tion in industry events and feedback to regulatory authorities would be able to face the challenges and will be successful in developing combination products

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With internet taking over the whole business transactions, the focus of advertising re-shifts to the power of words. Local classifieds used to have a stigma as being read by only people in the lower income strata. The runaway success of real estate classifieds in real estate magazines, auto classifieds in auto classifieds section of newspapers and auto magazines prove this stigma categorically wrong.

You work extremely hard to attract customers for your business. Once you have them, managing your customer contacts can help you keep them from jumping to competitors.

In today's competitive, unpredictable job market, where lay-offs and downsizing are becoming the norm. More and more people are opting to parlay their experience and know-how into their own consulting business. It sounds fun and exciting, but it's not so easy. You have to do it the right way to be successful.

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