How to Optimize Your Medical Device Sales Process [Free Template]

Constant advances in medicine and technology drive the medical device industry to be one of the world's most innovative. The industry is expected to grow 6.4% a year through 2017, and standing out in a crowd of 6500 companies vying for a slice of that market is no walk in the park.

To hit your organization's sales goals in 2017, you'll have to make sure your selling strategy is carefully planned and executed so you can turn every account into a profit-making machine. Here's how you can optimize your sales process to sell more in 2017. 

Look in The Mirror

Before you pour your time and energy into optimizing your sales process, make sure your team is ready to jump into high gear and make the most of every improvement you put in place. Here's what you can do to crush your sales goals in 2017: 

Ready to formalize your sales process? Click here to download our Medical Sales Process Template for free.

Commit to Expertise

The better employees are trained on a product, the more likely they are to convince a customer to buy. Seventy-three percent of consumers are looking for product knowledge, Experticity reported. Your reps should be able to educate customers on the product and customize the product to each customer's goals and needs. Arm your employees with up-to-date knowledge and skills, so they can reach customers with more success and confidence.

Create a Territory Management Strategy

Knowing the territory your sales reps are covering is a must. Having strong territory coverage means that there are enough reps evenly distributed throughout the field, that they are busy but not overworked, and are making meaningful interactions. When it comes to designing your sales territories, don't leave it up to guesswork. Try integrating your territory management strategy with a data collection process so you can make educated decisions about where and how your reps visit clients. 

Manage Your R&D Process

Laws and regulations are in constant flux. Staying up to date on the latest requirements for your products will keep your sales strategy clear of any roadblocks with hospitals concerned about compliance. Plus, staying on the right side of the rules could save your company serious cash. The U.S. Department of Justice collected more than $350 million in fines and penalties from pharmaceutical and medical device companies for presenting out-of-date content, according to Gibson Dunn.

As much as you might wish you could, you can't control progress on product development. What you can do, however, is make sure your team conveys accurate information to your customers throughout the regulation process. The FDA now takes as much as 140 days to process medical device marketing submissions, according to USDM Life Services Make sure you plan this time into your selling strategy to prevent buffers in the flow of sales.

Think Ahead

The only thing changing as rapidly as the regulatory landscape is technology. The medical device industry is one of the most fast moving and inventive fields - products have an average life cycle of just 18 months before they're replaced by something even better, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Think ahead about upcoming products so you can shift your selling strategy to accommodate future releases. Educating customers about forthcoming updates can help your reps upsell accounts as well, so make sure they stay in tune with what's coming up on the horizon.  

Dive Into Data

Detailed data about your customers and your reps' activity can shed new light on your sales process, helping you not only organize your business and track goals, but also improve your reps' effectiveness at the point of sale. Here's how you can use data to optimize your medical device sales process:

Collect Quality Data

"Data" has become such a buzzword lately, it gets applied to just about any piece of information. However, not all information is useful. Only quality data will allow you to find gaps or strong points in your sales process. 

Sales content is key to locking down deals, and collecting quality data is the first step toward more effective sales content. Twenty- five percent of marketing budgets each year are allocated towards producing sales-boosting content, reported Showpad. Using better data allows companies to see the best way to produce this content and gear it toward the market in a visual way. Better data means improved content and more targeted, successful sales strategies.

Track Inventory

One useful metric to keep tabs on is your company's' product turnover compared to the rest of the industry. Having a general idea of a product’s lifespan and knowing the trends in the market’s movement will help you optimize your sales process in terms of timing visits and predicting orders. Plus, monitoring inventory can highlight specific areas where products do well and where territories have and haven’t be saturated. 

Use Mobile CRM Software

Customer relationship management software helps sales teams collect, maintain, and organize data about their customers and products. Over the past two years, the use of mobile technology by the medtech industry more than doubled, according to ZS Associates. Now 75% of companies use such systems! A CRM is critical to maintaining efficient operations, especially as technology in the industry advances. Mobile CRM software standardizes data collection and improves consistency, helping managers formulate an outlook to guide future adjustments to the sales process. 

Prioritize Your Customers

When optimizing your medical device sales process, be sure not to lose sight of your customers - they should always remain the driving force of your business. No matter what changes you might make to streamline your operations, never let efficiency encroach on the customer experience.  

Assess the Economic and Demographic Impact

Medical device sales depend on the state of the economy and the market. In a thriving economy, sales might be booming. However, outside forces such as the 2.3% medical tax imposed in 2012 could hurt sales. No matter what your sales process, it's critical you remain flexible enough to tailor your selling strategy to the state of the market.

Even in a static market, you may have to adjust to demographic differences in the populations different hospitals and medical facilities serve. For example, individuals 65 and up now account for 14.5% of the population and will reach 21.7% of the population by 2040, according to the Administration on Aging. Facilities that treat these patients will have demand for different products and services than other locations. Always keep an eye on how each hospital's demographic makeup changes over time as well, so you can anticipate order changes before your reps ever arrive. 

Develop a Strategic Selling Process

Consistency and persistence is the goal as you sell medical devices. Eighty percent of sales require five follow-ups, Hubspot reported. When formulating your team’s selling process, create a clear vision of your product and how it stands out from other medical devices.

When doing consultations and building customer relationships, be sure to feature products in a hands-on or creative way so that customers can fully experience what they are anticipating to buy. Medical devices can be complex and tricky to understand, so it’s important to have a clear explanation of your product. Customers should walk away feeling like they will be missing out if they don’t purchase your device.

Get to Know Decision-Makers 

One of the challenges of selling devices in the medical industry is figuring out who is in charge of decision making and purchasing. Often times, field reps have to consult with surgeons, doctors, or other medical professionals who are extremely busy. This means reps need to be convincing from the start so practitioners don’t think that their time is being wasted.

A recent hurdle for medical device companies is group purchasing organizations, or GPOs. GPOs work to find the lowest prices for hospitals and health care providers, and work as middle men between medical devices and medical sites. They play a large role in negotiating contracts and purchasing medical equipment. Although GPOs may take more navigating and an adapted approach, your selling strategy should still convey why your product is better than the competition’s and why they need it.  

Following these 10 keys will optimize any sales process! Selling can be a breeze with a well executed strategy and a dedicated team. Analyzing the factors that weigh on product sales and taking the time to plan a sales process that fits your team can clarify goals and perfect the current approach to sales.