Medical sales representative

The representative provides product information and presents a product's features to doctors, pharmacists and hospital staff: what it does, how it differs from what is already in use, and what the documentation says about it. Advising on medical devices requires knowing the device well enough to answer a clinical question, and knowledge of medication classification is needed to place a pharmaceutical product correctly in a conversation with a prescriber. The representative negotiates and concludes sales contracts, and gives customers information about their orders, from delivery dates to what to do with a product that arrived damaged.

The role also covers developing sales across a territory. Representatives prospect for new customers, work with sales techniques appropriate to a professional audience, and supervise sales activities across the accounts they hold. They perform sales analysis, comparing what sold where, and use it to decide which visits are worth making.

Formal requirements are set by the employer and by national rules on the promotion of medicines.