15 minute read
Building successful partnerships takes constant communication between manufacturer and distributor reps
from Repertoire Jan 23
Trusted Partners
Building successful partnerships takes constant communication between manufacturer and distributor reps.
What are the keys to success for effective manufacturer-
distributor relationships? Repertoire asked several leading manufacturer reps to provide their insights into the roles, collaborative efforts with distributors, and trends they are seeing affect customers across the healthcare continuum of care.
Amy Empric
Amy Empric is the Gulf Coast Enterprise Manager for MedPro Associates. She started with MedPro in 2018 and currently manages a team that oversees five states in the southern region. Her team works with hospitals, physician offices, ASCs, skilled nursing facilities, and home health agencies representing multiple manufacturers. Empric’s personal territory is Georgia and North Florida for the non-acute space.
How do you measure a successful interaction with a customer?
I would measure a successful interaction with a customer by the depth of the conversation, information gathered, transparency of their struggles, and being able to offer a realistic solution for the provider and staff. A successful interaction should be organic and easy; this usually happens if I listen more than I speak and follow up in a timely manner.
MedPro’s model is to work with distribution partners and offer sales solutions including better patient care, accuracy, streamline workflows, and state-of-the-art technology. The relationships with distribution partners are equally important to the sales responsibility. Every day is different, and I learn something new. My favorite part of the job is to make sure our customers are happy with the
solutions purchased and train the staff thoroughly. This allows me to put a bow on the end of the sale and personalize the experience.
What’s keeping your customers up at night?
I believe customers are staying up at night due to the shortage of materials, irate conversations over things they can’t control, staffing shortages, and the inability to truly help patients. It makes their lives difficult if they can’t access supplies needed and are constantly adjusting schedules due to staffing shortages. It has been truly enlightening going through the pandemic and seeing the strain on our healthcare professionals. I have recently learned about a program called the Lavender project. This project creates soothing spaces for healthcare professionals on site to recharge or process difficult situations. I’m glad there are solutions offered and an awareness of the need.
What are some best practices of developing, and maintaining, effective partnerships with distributor reps?
I could not be successful without my distribution partners. There are many best practices to keep these relationships healthy, but respect is first and foremost. I’ve listed a few other qualities that come to mind. The funny thing is most of these aren’t difficult: ʯ Show up ʯ Return calls/emails/texts in a timely manner ʯ Always ask the account who their preferred distribution partner is – respect those relationships ʯ Communicate clearly and copy all parties involved ʯ Be thankful for the opportunities and acknowledge the wins ʯ Know your products – include product specialists when needed – we will never know everything ʯ Most important, get to know your partners – the professional and personal relationships go hand in hand.
During the pandemic, many interactions with customers had to go virtual. What’s it like now?
My pandemic experience was a little different due to projects scheduled and the type of specialty practices. I work with many cardiology clinics, and the patient volume was high due to the side effects of COVID. There were many offices that did not want any reps to come on site. I always followed the preferences for each practice, but also took care of any installations necessary with the right precautions. I would say things are back to normal. Masks are still required occasionally, but meeting in person is fully acceptable. for verbal and non-verbal communication. Through the pandemic everyone sharpened their virtual skills; not only was this entertaining but it filled the gap. Virtual still has a space and is more acceptable especially if travel is extensive. I offer both to respect comfort levels.
Do customers prefer in-person meetings, or has there been a switch to more virtual meetings?
As of today, customers do prefer in-person meetings. The interaction is uplifting after social limitations. In-person meetings are always more productive and allow
How do you try to continue to grow in your skillset?
I am a student in life and I’m always striving for improvement. I am fortunate to work for a company that invests in my development. MedPro as a company recently supported HIDA, AMS training and a membership with Professional Women of Healthcare (PWH). HIDA training modules were challenging and encompassing; I am officially AMS certified. Better yet our company is officially AMS certified!
With PWH I participate in the mentorship program, focus groups, and attend the annual meetings. I really enjoy being part of this group. It is truly a celebration and so well done. Our next meeting is in San Antonio, May 2023, I plan on attending with one of my colleagues.
Reading books is another one of my passions. I also have a subscription to several magazines including Repertoire, OR Today, and Veterinary Advantage, etc. On a personal note, I am working on a yoga teaching certification. It is important to feed my mind, body, and soul.
Justin Goodman
Value Based Sales Executive, Central/ SW Florida, Med Tech / Med Care
Justin Goodman is primarily responsible for the primary care and ASC accounts for MTMC in Central and Western Florida. He is also the team lead for Florida.
How do you measure a successful interaction with a customer?
To me a successful interaction with a customer is first learning as much about their practice/ organization needs, and then providing the best solution for them. Sometimes the issue is a quick fix, i.e., something is broken and needs attention, or they are looking to bring in a new piece of diagnostic equipment. Sometimes it’s more complicated, like opening a new office. Either way, taking the time to fully understand that customer’s needs leads to a more successful interaction.
What’s keeping your customers up at night?
Continued supply chain issues and staff shortages.
What are some best practices of developing, and maintaining, effective partnerships with distributor reps?
I have always prioritized distributor requests as they come in and try to
get back to them as soon as humanly possible. The way I figure it, if a distributor is taking time out of their busy schedule to call, email or text me, they are looking for my help. The quicker I can help them, the more likely they are to come back to me the next time they have an opportunity.
I started in this industry as a distributor rep. I had some manufacturers who would get back to me very quickly, even though I was a rookie and (in my mind) bringing them small opportunities. I also had some who would take days to return my calls or emails. The ones that I knew I could count on were the ones who got my business. This is how I have developed relationships.
Being with MTMC puts me in a pretty unique situation where I represent multiple manufacturers that have products for practically every specialty. I tell my distributor partners all the time, if you don’t know who has a particular product, give me a call. I either have something, or will have a pretty good idea where to send them. I also will not hesitate to recommend a competitor’s product if I feel it is the best solution for the end user. I feel that this way of working with the distributor reps has helped me maintain these relationships over the years.
During the pandemic, many interactions with customers had to go virtual. What’s it like now? Do customers prefer in-person meetings, or has there been a switch to more virtual meetings?
I live in Florida, so while things in the primary care space went virtual for a period of time, physicians have welcomed us back into the office. One benefit that I have seen is when it comes to staff training and retraining, offices are more willing to take a virtual meeting or even take video demonstrations versus requiring everything to be in person.
How do you try to continue to grow in your skillset?
MTMC as an organization does a great job of continued education through our trainings of the month. This allows us as a team to learn (and often relearn) the products we represent. We also have a lot of reps who are excellent at what they do. I stay in touch constantly with them to see what they are working on and where they are having success, and I try to emulate it. I also try to absorb as much content online from people who are successful. From podcasts to YouTube VLOGs there is virtually limitless content available.
Ryan Hahn
Territory Portfolio Manager, Midmark Corporation
As a territory portfolio manager, Ryan Hahn’s role is to increase demand for the Midmark medical portfolio of equipment, products and services. One of his main responsibilities is to make conducting business with Midmark as easy as possible for end-user customers and distribution partners. Hahn consults with and educates healthcare customers about unique Midmark solutions in an effort to solve key business problems. Additionally, territory portfolio managers support decision-makers and buying committees to help simplify and enable their buying journey.
How do you measure a successful interaction with a customer?
At the conclusion of the sales process, the end-user customer should come away with specific solutions to problems they had identified and others they may not have realized existed. If successful, our customers will find value in our consultation and make meaningful changes in their exam room environment specifications with the goal of improving patient outcomes and patient/staff satisfaction while reducing cost and waste. This process should result in customers purchasing more components of the Midmark connected ecosystem of products and services which is a mutual benefit for Midmark and our distributors to better support our customers.
What’s keeping your customers up at night?
Our customers are challenged with scaling their businesses to accommodate increasing patient demand and compensate for labor shortages. Today’s healthcare consumers are seeking a better customer experience and are increasingly unwilling to wait for care. Midmark territory portfolio managers and
distribution reps can work together to help end-users overcome their challenges to improve efficiency and the overall healthcare experience, see more patients, and improve (or maintain) the fiscal health of their organization.
What are some best practices of developing, and maintaining, effective partnerships with distributor reps?
To be an effective partner I must be reliable, available and able to communicate productively. Building a solid business relationship requires me to establish effective relationships with distribution reps based on trust and open communication. Together, we must also ensure that we are always on the same page strategically off stage and in front of the customer.
During the pandemic, many interactions with customers had to go virtual. What’s it like now? Do customers prefer in-person meetings, or has there been a switch to more virtual meetings?
The customer’s buying journey has become more dynamic and complex. Post pandemic, Midmark and medical distribution are being seen as essential business partners. This is affording us the benefits of meeting in-person, which is preferred by many customers and effective for both Midmark and distribution. It does remain important moving forward for sales professionals to be able to discern when it’s appropriate to request in-person meetings versus virtual. All of our customers have differing preferences and buying journeys. We need to keep the customer perspective in mind and remain flexible, knowing when to leverage virtual, in-person and/or hybrid engagements to effectively meet customer needs.
How do you try to continue to grow in your skillsets?
For me, it starts with studying the constantly changing marketplace. Preparing off-stage and pre-planning every sales interaction is something I truly believe helps sharpen my skillset. Once on stage, I want the interaction to feel natural and effortless. In 2023, my goal is to improve my ability to deliver market insights to help customers better identify their needs while creating a sense of urgency to obtain effective solutions and inspire them to make meaningful improvements to patient care and the overall healthcare experience for patients and staff.
Steven Rodriguez
Territory Manager, Arizona/New Mexico, Primary Care, Baxter
As a Primary Care Territory Manager for the Front Line Care business at Baxter, Rodriguez’s responsibilities include partnering with both distribution reps and clinical end users in Arizona and New Mexico to present Welch Allyn products in managing disease states such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and vision loss.
How do you measure a successful interaction with a customer?
Customers have access to more information than ever before, and often an initial conversation with an end user might start with a basic need, such as a new ECG.
One of the ways I measure success is if – during that initial conversation – I’m able to identify an unconsidered need or an improved way of doing something the customer may not have thought of. In some cases, the needs are basic and relative to their clinical setting.
In other cases, it might mean an improved workflow that helped staff reduce time on sorting, reviewing, charting, and scanning ECG studies. Customers will always know more about the intricacies of their daily workflows, and sometimes it’s just a matter of working with them to uncover and address these needs in a way that helps them provide the best possible patient care.
What’s keeping your customers up at night?
Given the current economic climate around global supply chain and logistics, I would anticipate this will still be at the forefront of restless nights for the foreseeable future. Aside from these challenges, I believe primary care physicians are continually striving for more ways to create efficiency within their clinics. This might mean connecting to an EMR to capture patient results, reducing manual data entry and transcription errors, or automating areas of their business where they’ve traditionally done things manually, such as blood pressures. The key driving point will be finding more ways to create additional time spent with patients during the day. A focal point part of my role is helping customers identify what they might need to do differently versus what they are doing today to accomplish their desired outcome.
What are some best practices of developing, and maintaining, effective partnerships with distributor reps?
As a manufacturer partner to their business, one of my primary responsibilities is to educate distributor reps on key areas that tie our product offering to a particular disease state.
For example, as they’re in the field addressing ways to manage hypertensive patients with their customers, hopefully they’re thinking about how Welch Allyn’s blood pressure averaging feature on our vitals devices can navigate through patients experiencing white coat hypertension versus true baseline blood pressure readings.
Primary care providers often rely on their distributor reps as the lead source of education and information to assist with a business issue and if I can help educate my distributor reps on ways to match a business issue with a potential solution then it creates mutual credibility and leads to an effective partnership.
Additionally, I view myself as an extension of their business and developing trust is something you earn over time with your distributor reps. I’ve learned trust can be built in many ways including communication, accountability, and humility to name a few. But I’ve also found that being yourself and trusting the character traits that make up who you are generally translate to good things in building trust over time. We’re all unique in our own ways and it’s up to us to learn together with our distributor partners to bring out the best in one another.
During the pandemic, many interactions with customers had to go virtual. What’s it like now? Do customers prefer in-person meetings, or has there been a switch to more virtual meetings?
The height of the pandemic created a lot of uncertainty in how customer interactions would look moving forward. Today, I’m finding more customers have regained their comfort levels with holding in-person meetings, which I’m grateful for. There’s so much more you can learn from meeting customers at their office, as it allows you to get a better feel for their clinical environment.
I do, however, believe virtual meetings will continue to provide a means to interact with customers and they can be time-savers under the right situations. Although I think moving forward, we’ll see fewer customers taking a virtual call from their own bedroom or kitchen!
How do you try to continue to grow your skillsets?
I’m fortunate to work with so many wonderful teammates and distributor reps with years of experience and knowledge in our industry. It’s amazing what I might learn on a joint call in the field, or by listening in on a marketing presentation about ways the primary care market is evolving and how we can better position our products to meet changing customer needs. Baxter provides a countless number of resources to allow me to continue to develop my sales skillsets, but I have found it’s been my fellow teammates around me that help me learn and facilitate my continued growth the most.
