The Profit Pocket © - Jim McLean

The next time you see an English barrister on a TV newscast or fictional program look carefully at the back of the robe. You may see a pocket. The purpose of this pocket in days gone by was to receive payment from clients. It was located on the back of the robe so that the barrister would not debase his professional ethic by seeing or touching money. An assistant would remove the cash for him. The reality of legal payment has changed, but the anachronistic pocket still remains.

As sales and marketing professionals in the healthcare industry we are living in too competitive a world to carry anachronisms on our back or in the way we interact with prospects and customers. Yet, much like today�s barristers in yesterday�s robes, if we look objectively at the way we do business, we may be doing just that.

Our industry grew with the honorable ethic of providing the physician with clinically safe and efficacious products. Money was an ugly topic which was avoided as our selling conversations focused on the physician as key decision maker and clinical results as the sole judgment criteria.

It is obvious that there is no corner of the global healthcare market where cost considerations and outcome justification has left the decision process unchanged. The healthcare provision system is still driven by the commitment to the welfare of the patient, but that welfare is factored against prudent use of economic resources. Physician input is only a part of the process in purchasing decisions. Government agencies, private insurers, buying groups, hospital financial, risk management and marketing functions are now holding a wielding significant power that can dramatically effect our own organizations� level of success.

There are two questions each of us should ask as we face the physician and explain the clinical advantages of our products. Are we turning our backs on the people whose realities we must address if we are to meet our commercial objectives? If we are, can we expect them to place their organizations limited resources in our cash pocket without understanding the economic outcomes of the use of our technologies?

If the answers are yes, there are other questions to ask.

1. Have we identified those organizations and hospital functions which can effect the decision to buy our products?

2. Do we understand their priorities, objectives and benchmarks for success?

3. Are we going out and listening to them?

4. Can we define our product in relation to their priorities and objectives?

5. Have we created a coherent message to each organization and function and trained our sales team to deliver it?

6. Are we allocating marketing and sales resources to non-clinical players in the decision process?

7. Are we avoiding non-traditional call points out of the fear of the unknown and lack of confidence in our ability to hold discussions within strategic and financial contexts?

8. Can we quantify the costs to the customer that they incur should they not buy our product?

9. Do we allow the customer to base their determination of our value on the pricing of our competitors or upon the economic utility of the solutions we provide them?

It is OK to touch money. If you don�t believe me, just ask your boss. He or she may even add that more is better.

Turn and address the financial decision makers. We need to become proficient in discussing financial realities. If we don�t, we may just find that we need a smaller pocket on the back of our comfortable but outdated robes.

Jim McLean
Consultant
Resource Management International, Inc.
Dallas Office:
5808 McKinley Lane
Richardson, Texas 75082
USA
Tel.: 972-918-0763
E-mail: jmcldal@aol.com
Website: www.4rmi.com

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�Copyright Resource Management International, Inc. 2005