You may have a one-city block territory in a large city. But there are other reps that have territories larger than a few other states. A lot of wind shield time. I agree with you about putting a stop to micromanagement. Marketing serves a purpose by letting us know about the whole picture without having to be that rigid or intrusive.
You may be one of the Merck Wonder Star reps. Realistically, for those of us mere mortals, there can only be so many products in your bag before you cannot cover your customers adequately.
I was in a territory that have pockets of physicians may be 50-100 miles apart. Each pocket, in a city setting, is as many as a large clinic. You cannot go back and forth as easily to track down targeted customers. Imagine when they told us to increase the frequency from once to twice a month. I lived in my territory. Yet sometimes I would drive 2 hours to set up a hospital display at the far end.
At the next national meeting, talk to one of those reps in Alaska, North or South Dakota and see if you can realistically do it. May be you are a Star Genius that can talk sepsis with a ID doc, then anklosing spondylitis with a rheumatologist, then FEV1 with an allergist, then BMD with an endocrinologist, then elevated IOP with an ophthalmologist, back to hepatitis with another ID guy, diabetes with a diabetologist, PT, OT, diabetic educator, ORS, CD, clinical pharmacist, plus of course primary care customers with subspecialties.
May be Merck should fire us all and hire you?
Marketing makes marketing. Sales makes sales. Two different areas. Keep it that way. Reps know who needs to be covered and when and how. True about the MBAs.....a lttle knowledge can often a lot of harm......experience trumps any new MBA project to fulfill the semester school project.
Yeah, maybe they should. You answered your own question when you pointed out that MARKETING told you to INCREASE FREQUENCY. YOU should be making the decision how often to see which customers, not some idiot working on his MBA.
I don't disagree that when you have as many products as we do, you need additional headcount. But don't try to tell me that marketing has helped anything by "share of voice", reach and frequency, or any of their other BS ideas from a classroom.
Yeah, too bad they don't trust us. They've gone so far down the road of hiring and making robots, and set the bar so low, that they have to tell us when, how much, where, and what to say. Genius!
One manager was so good at it that he would, during a field visit, tell the rep whether to report a particular call based on all the metrics. When we are so worried about how reporting a call can affect the metrics of the rep, the manager, and the region we have gone insane. One of my managers would tell me, during a field visit, to ignore which doctor during a lunch. Yes, I should talk to the key docs. But to ignore a doc walking in and want to talk products is extreme especially when the staff can sense it.
the business model really sucks in that it is defines the world according to self serving interest and not about the patient or the customer. all attempts have failed because we have poor insights and leadership focus on ROI. To think if we could get it right we could meet both objectives and be winners.
the business model really sucks in that it is defines the world according to self serving interest and not about the patient or the customer. all attempts have failed because we have poor insights and leadership focus on ROI. To think if we could get it right we could meet both objectives and be winners.
Had ignorant infamous manager tell me not to call on new doc in office in that he was only c rated and the other two older experienced docs were A rated...one older doc dies of a heart attack...#2 gets scared and cuts back...new cat gets all the patients has to recruit 2 new docs and all of the sudden he's A rated and new manager chews my partner out for not calling on him! She was just following the rules but they can change in a heartbeat and now the others will not see her becasue she was ignoring #3 for the majority of 3 years! Be careful where you 'shit' you might have to have lunch there tomorrow!One manager was so good at it that he would, during a field visit, tell the rep whether to report a particular call based on all the metrics. When we are so worried about how reporting a call can affect the metrics of the rep, the manager, and the region we have gone insane. One of my managers would tell me, during a field visit, to ignore which doctor during a lunch. Yes, I should talk to the key docs. But to ignore a doc walking in and want to talk products is extreme especially when the staff can sense it.
Be careful where you 'shit' you might have to have lunch there tomorrow!
I suppose there is some merit to this advice, but I contend when the place you're working is a shithole to begin with, does it really make that much difference?
Check out who the real winners are in this sad dramedy, called Merck below. It's absurd.
http://finance.yahoo.com/q/it?s=MRK+Insider+Transactions
Was at a mandated national televised symposium a few years back. No doc wanted to come. Eventually we rounded up some near-comatose docs to be there. There were more Merck reps than physicians. Managers instructed us to stand in line on both sides to greet the docs as royalty (no shit!). We had food ordered for 50 people with, counting Merck reps and managers, may be 10-12. During the Q&A phone in session managers were making up questions or planting questions with the docs at the program. A month later we read about the "tremendous success" of that program and all the congratulations. One manager became a director in managed care. One became an executive DM. One became a senior DM. It was indeed a happy time and a great success.
I don't agree, I work for Pfizer, and although Merck may have started the trend with several reps calling on the same docs, Merck always kept it clinical. My company on the other hand has done more damage to this industry, and it seems to keep continuing. I remember all I heard from 1997-2001 was beat Merck by 2001, I got sick of hearing it we heard it so often.
Check out who the real winners are in this sad dramedy, called Merck below. It's absurd.
http://finance.yahoo.com/q/it?s=MRK+Insider+Transactions
How true! If you are not a member of the elite, you are going nowhere....whether that be private sector or government.
