Life Science Sales – First Day on the Job Advice From a Veteran

by Mark Herb

If you’re new to life science sales AND don’t have a technical background – Wow!  Congrats!

At last, you’ve ditched in the lab bench, the cell culture hood, and that annoying timer that beeps at the wrong times (except when you set it to go off in the middle of a boring meeting to help you escape – admit it, we’ve all done it!).

You’ve made the leap.  You’re finally in life science sales.  Now what…?

Much like me, you probably came to technical sales heavy on the “technical” and light on the “sales”.

Not to worry.   “Been there, done that” and we’re here to help.

Sure sounds simple, but there’s more to it than proclaiming, “We’ve got great products…so how many can I put you down for?”

Let’s begin your journey selling to scientists.

Life Science Sales – Are you ready to make the leap?

Being new to anything, there is always the dreaded learning curve that most wish they could skip.   In the following series, I’ll try to offer newly-minted life science sales reps pearls of wisdom that can help make this transition smooth and less painful.

Caution!  All this may seem obvious but trust me, not everyone gets it yet.  With any advice, take what you need, toss what you don’t but remember as sales professionals selling to scientists, you’ve got to be on your game and ready for anything.

Use these tips if they can help:

Be trainable!

Most newbies to sales will be shipped off to some form of sales training.  Go with it and embrace it.  Remember, everyone develops their own selling style over time but right now you don’t have a “selling style” so using formal selling instruction and skills help get you up and running.  There’s time to polish the message but build a foundation first.

I thought I was ready to sell…let’s face it, how tough could it really be…?  Turns out formal sales training was one of the best things for me.

Organize, organize!

If your lab bench was featured in an issue of Martha Stewart Living, chances are you’ve got the neat and tidy thing licked.  If, on the other hand, you had trouble even locating your lab space at times, get it together and tighten up your game.

A home office is probably in the cards so make sure you’ve got dedicated space for business.  Clean, neat, and equipped for action.  Remember this space must be fully functional and properly set up to be effective.  You’ll need to stay organized and on top of things as you’ll probably be multitasking more than ever before!

For example, I would advise against sending a sensitive email quote to the wrong customer or getting one lab confused with another and having the incorrect products shipped there…I’m not saying it was me…ok, it was me.

Get your “tech” on!

When things get tough, the tough go for comfort – we’re all human.

Early in the transition to sales, use your technical background to help ease the sting.  Continue to develop the business acumen to manage the territory but don’t fear sticking close to your comfort zone at first.

Many won’t agree with this approach but it worked for me and others I know.

Initially, you do what works for you (and hey, most scientists like to talk about their work – like the one that told me to dispense with the introductions – it was time to talk about HIM – I guess he was eager to share…).

Talking “tech” can build rapport and confidence with customers.

Next time, we’ll chat about other things that appear to be common sense yet somehow slip through the cracks when selling to scientists…see you next round.  I welcome your experiences and comments below.

Mark Herb

Mark brings a diverse background of research and commercial experience to the ZenBio team. He conducted research for Janssen Research Foundation, Johnson & Johnson PRD in Oncology focused on angiogenesis drug development and CNS projects for Alzheimer's disease and epilepsy as well as graduate work in DNA Repair and Mutagenesis. Mark has held commercial roles with Cambrex and Lonza managing the Clonetics® portfolio of primary cells and media systems in addition to the Custom Cell Isolation business and hepatocytes. With GE Healthcare, he was the Regional Marketing Manager for the High Content Analysis group working closely with Sales and Global Product Management teams to promote and support this segment of the screening business. At Invitrogen, Mark held positions in Global Marketing and Account Management focusing on the primary cells segment of the specialty cell culture business and field sales activities respectively. Mark earned his B.S. in Biology from Penn State University and M.S. in Molecular and Cell Biology in the Pathology Department at Thomas Jefferson University.

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