I’ve had enough.

I’m tired of hearing everyone talk about how all drug companies do is hire beautiful women implying that their “powers of seduction” will result in a few more prescriptions. I’m not tired of the claims because they’re completely false, I’m tired of hearing about them because of the hyperbole that accompanies every-single-story. “Why now” you ask? I’m not really sure. All I know is that there was one post that put me over the edge. It wasn’t particularly demeaning or harmful to the industry (the industry tends to do that to itself), but the two posts it referred to were certainly filled with the afformentioned exaggeration that stories like these are overflowing with.

The article that sent me over the edge was titled and it starts like this…

The eDrugSearch blog has that Mia Heaston, the current Miss Illinois and one of the 2007 Miss USA hopefuls, is also a pharmaceutical industry representative.

If this link seems a bit too tenuous to be newsworthy, the blog also identifies two of last year’s Miss USA contestants who were drug reps and no less than 16 professional cheerleaders who also work as reps for the pharmaceutical industry.

Sixteen. Seriously. Sixteen. Okay, before I make this point, I’ll concede to the fact that they did say…

One caveat to our list: the All-Pharma Cheerleading Squad likely includes only a minority of those pro cheerleaders who also cheer for pharma, as many team Web sites do not include occupational info on their cheerleaders.

high quality eat pray love movie

Let’s say that half of the 32 teams in the NFL posted the occupations of their cheerleaders. This simple doubling would also result in an additional 16 NFL cheerleaders who are also pharmaceutical sales reps. Thirty-two. Seriously. Thirty-two.

There are about pharmaceutical sales representatives in the U.S. Stop the presses! Thirty-two of 100,000 pharma reps are also NFL cheerleaders (0.032%). Big freaking deal. From a different angle, each NFL team has a cheerleading squad of around 40 women (32 x 40 = 1,280).

Is it not reasonable to assume that some of what it takes to be a successful cheerleader is congruent with what it takes to be a successful salesperson? Things like self-confidence, hard work, energy, persistence, and the ability to get someone excited come to mind off hand.

It also annoys me to no end that the articles do nothing to combat the stereotypes that stick to cheerleaders by default. Maybe was hired because the territory needed someone with a strong technical background. After all, she did graduate from N.C. State with degrees in Chemistry and Biology. And guess what else, has two degrees (not just two majors) – one in Biology and another in Nursing. Is she qualified to be a drug rep. You bet. More qualified than you? Probably.

Want another example of exaggeration from the articles cited above? isn’t even a pharma rep. She just wants to be.

What’s my point? Everyone in the pharma industry is not a supermodel or a cheerleader. I would even go so far as to say that most are normal looking folks who do a damn good job of taking care of themselves and pay close attention to their image – because they understand that image plays a role in sales. It’s my opinion that 99.9% of sales managers don’t make hiring decisions based on beauty and even fewer encourage reps to use their attractiveness to increase sales.

The bottom line is, if you’re using the “I’m not good looking enough” excuse as a reason that you can’t get into pharma sales, you should either…

• Look for a position that requires lower self esteem because if you ever get hired as a pharmaceutical representative with that mindset (unlikely), your fragile ego will not be able to take the beating that will ensue in your first 12 months in the field.
• OR, change your thoughts. If you meet the minimum requirements and you want to be a drug rep, don’t let your poor self-esteem get in the way. Fix it. Even if you decide you don’t want to be a pharma rep in the process, you’ll move into whatever role you choose a better person.

If you want to read a bit more on the subject, take a look at these two articles – and feel free to post related links in the comments.

from the New York Times

by Penelope Trunk

Always be thinking about ways that you can be of service and support. By doing so you’ll establish a natural and open relationship and others will be much more likely to help you when you’re helping them.

Whether you are graduating from college, returning to the work force, or contemplating a career change, career fairs have lots to offer a job seeker. Following a few basic guidelines can help you make the most of the experience and maximize some great networking opportunities.

Dress as you would for a job interview. The interactions you have with prospective employers at a job fair are likely to be brief, and first impressions count. Put your best foot forward with proper attire, a smile, and a confident hand shake. Also remember your own promotional materials, and a professional looking case to hold them as well as the information you collect.

Come prepared. Bring copies of your up-to-date resume, and be ready to talk about yourself. What kind of positions are you interested in? How does your previous experience relate? Decide ahead of time what skills you are going to promote, and have the evidence to back them up.

Do your homework. Spend some time browsing company websites ahead of time to get a better feel for their organizations, what they have to offer, and what they are looking for. Having a good basic understanding of a company will enable you to get right to the point when you have the opportunity to ask questions in person. This will allow you to ask more useful questions, as well as make a better impression than a person who has not prepared ahead.

Figure out your target. When you arrive at the job fair, take a moment to figure out where your target employers are located and have a plan for organizing your time. Too much aimless wandering will decrease your energy and make it difficult to stay focused.

Network, network and network. Take advantage of opportunities to network not just with potential employers, but with other job seekers. They may be able to offer valuable information that could save you time, or open you up to possibilities you hadn’t already considered.

Follow up. Once you have met with an employer, get their contact information, and take some notes to remind you of points you want to follow up on, additional questions you may have thought of, and any specific recommended action. Follow up with a thank you note or email to express your appreciation and solidify your good impression.

Remember, even if you do not receive a job offer immediately following your attendance at a job fair, networking is a huge and very valuable aspect of any job hunt. Take business cards to exchange with others in the interest of helping one another and broadening your contact list. A job fair is also good for keeping you in practice, refreshing your interview skills, staying on top of job trends, and more. Make the most of your opportunity to meet others, exchange information, give a positive impression of yourself, and remain open to future possibilities.

Your cover letter, in combination with a winning resume, is your primary self-promotional tool and should reflect your main strengths as they apply specifically to the position you are interested in. The following are 15 ways to ensure that your application gets noticed!

1. Be concise. Cover letters should be reasonably short and to-the-point. Generally 3 to 4 paragraphs will do to introduce yourself, state what position you are applying for, and why they should choose you. Recruiters almost always have a ton of applications to go through and do not have time to process long documents.
2. Be creative. You would like to make an impression, without getting off topic. What makes you uniquely qualified for the job? Describe your skills in a way that brings them to life.
3. Sell yourself. Show what you have to offer. Give clear examples of your past performance and what you are capable of at this point in your career.
4. Do your homework. Find out as much as you can about the company, the position and the person they hope to hire, then explain exactly how you intend to benefit their organization using their own criteria. Show that you care enough to do this kind of investigating ahead of time.
5. Use examples. Demonstrate how past experience and accomplishments could specifically benefit their organization.
6. Show a little personality. You are giving a prospective employer a glimpse of the person behind the paper; try to give an accurate sense of who you are. How well do you fit into their corporate culture?
7. Personalize. Try to address your letter to a real person; find out who is in charge of hiring, and/or their title. Once again, this kind of attention to detail will set you apart.
8. Be professional. Maintain an appropriately formal format and tone.
9. Use a writing style that is appropriate, yet distinctive. Do not be afraid to use humor in small doses if this reflects who you are, or if you have a particularly relevant anecdote.
10. Customize. Write a different letter for each position, or at least modify the details to maximize your use of pertinent information.
11. Attention to detail. Don’t skip important steps such as proof-reading, spell-checking, and including the date, position title, and your up-to-date contact information.
12. Show some enthusiasm. Employers want to attract employees who will contribute positive energy to their work environments.
13. Pay attention to the flow of your letter. Try to avoid beginning each paragraph with “I.” And keep paragraphs short.
14. Show sincere interest, without excessive embellishment. Qualify your claims, showing how past experience demonstrates your dedication to a shared cause, etc.
15. Be honest about your experience, not overly humble or exaggerating. You want to get the interview, but not only to have them discover that you are not who you claimed to be.

Pharmaceutical companies always look for exceptional sales people to represent them. A college degree, a strong work ethic, and good communication skills, both verbal and written, are some of the pre-requisites for a pharmaceutical sales representative. There are around 85,000 pharmaceutical sales reps in the United States. In this brief article, we’ll discuss how you can achieve a position as a sales representative and tap into this great market

• Word of mouth – The best way to fill an opening is through a word of mouth recommendation. By keeping your eyes and ears open, you might find an opportunity where you least expect it. For instance, one representative learned about an unadvertised position from her physician.
• Hire executive recruiters – You can get a good job by coming through a recruitment agency. Many recruitment agents specialize in pharmaceutical sales and they know about the positions before they’re even advertised.
• Answer newspaper ads – Make sure that you check out your local newspapers. Although a great many positions aren’t advertised, companies will occasionally need to hire someone quickly and will go the newspaper route. If you’re on the lookout for these advertised positions, you won’t miss out on these great opportunities.
• Network with sales reps – Take some time to network with current representatives. Take some time to get to meet some sales people and they will not only provide you with valuable information but might steer you toward advertised and unadvertised career opportunities.
• Go online – There are literally hundreds of job search boards that are available. Some, like Phamboard.com, specialize in matching employers with qualified companies. Make sure that you visit these on a regular basis and be prepared to submit your resume.

In conclusion, you can obtain the pharmaceutical sales position of your choice. By going online, networking with sales reps, answering newspaper ads, hiring executive recruiters, and utilizing word of mouth advertising.

So you’re seeking a pharmaceutical sales position, well, that is wonderful. Pharmaceutical sales is a great field and is wide open to outstanding sales people like you. However, you must keep in mind that competition is fierce but if you have what it takes you can and will succeed. The key to succeeding however is getting hired and in order to get hired, you’ve got to stand out from the other applicants. A great sales cover letter will help you do just that.

After all, a cover letter is the first thing your potential employer will see. In fact, potential employers often review it before they even see your résumé. Many times they’ll simply review the cover and if it is lacking, they’ll simply trash it along with your resume. So, to keep this from happening, you need to create a great cover letter that avoids the trash and gets you noticed.

If you’re like most applicants however, you have no idea how to go about creating a great sales cover letter. Well, we can help. You see, we know all about creating great cover letters and will help you succeed in your cover letter writing quest. In this article, we’ll help you avoid the general mistakes that novice (and unemployed) cover letter writer make. We’ll teach you how to create an outstanding cover letter that gets you noticed!

Here are some tips that you must follow:

1. Don’t brag. First of all, you must keep in mind that there is a definite line between bragging and highlighting your accomplishments. Although it is always a great idea to accentuate the positive, bragging is an absolute no no and so is lying. Therefore, be honest and open and don’t brag.
2. Sell yourself. Second, focus on selling yourself. A cover letter is a place where you focus on how you would meet the requirements of your potential employer. In the cover letter, you must sell yourself and your qualifications. Talk about what you can do for XYZ Company not what they can do for you.
   • Keep it brief. Highlight the most important qualifications in your resume and keep in short sweetie. Nobody is interested in your life story. Only include relevant points that will add to your qualification and help you stand out from the crowd. Never make your cover letter too long. Instead focus on why you’re the most qualified and what you have to offer the employer.
   • Do not be repetitive. A cover letter should build on what is in your résumé. Do not make a mistake of repeating all that you have said in it, at least not word for word
   • Address it correctly. Never address a cover letter to “Whom It May Concern”. This is the shortest route to the dustbin. If you do not know the name of the person concerned, you can start with, “Dear Mr. HRD Manager,” or “Dear Mr. Hiring Manager”

In conclusion, you can create a great cover letter that gets you noticed. One that doesn’t get thrown in the trash and gets your résumé read. Simply follow the above mentioned tips and you’ll be on your way to getting hired for yoru dream pharmaceutical job.

Trust me, you need all the help you can get to get employers excited about you. Its not that you aren’t qualified or that you don’t deserve to get that pharmaceutical job of your dreams, its just that competition is fierce out there and you’ve got to use ingenuity and a whole lot of creativity to get noticed. In this brief article, we will tell you 5 ways that you can get noticed by potential employers.

1. First of all, make sure that résumé and cover letter are the best that they can be and help you stand out from the crowd. After all, you only have a few short moments to make a great first impression. In addition, your cover letter and résumé are a direct reflection of your uniqueness and abilities so you need to make sure that they are absolutely powerful documents. To really help you stand out from the crowd, you might consider using a fancy brochure-style résumés or one that includes a professional photograph. Cleverly accentuate your exceptional accomplishments, unique educational background, savvy sales skills, etc.
2. Second, use fonts and headlines to your advantage. Don’t be afraid to use color and fancy fonts (but don’t go overboard). Instead us a dash of color and ingenuity to accent the positive. For instance, if you have over 20+ years of sales experience, highlight this in the Summary of Qualifications section and make sure that you put it in bold.
3. Third, figure out how to network with someone influential at the company that you’re interested in. One great suggestion is to ask for an informational interview where you can find out in-depth information about the position that you’re interested in. For example, if you’re seeking a pharmaceutical sales job, see if you can meet with one of the key salespeople at the company and then you can casually mention that you’re interested in working there. They’ll hopefully direct you to Human Resources or tell you about an opening. What a great way to get your foot in the door.
4. Fourth, use ingenuity when sending out your résumé package. Don’t be afraid to use a bold colored envelopes or send your resume special delivery. Also be open to using dimensional mailers including tubes, boxes and packages. By doing this, you’ll demonstrate that your mail is special and that it stands out from the crowd.
5. Fifth, instead of including a simple résumé and cover letter in your package, be a bit more creative. Include a photo calling card, a pen with your sales slogan, an airplane with the theme (hire me and watch your sales soar) or something else. The key here is to be ingenious and creative while demonstrating that you have what it takes to excel at creative sales.

In conclusion, there are many creative ways to get noticed by employers. You simply have to be willing to think outside the box and use creative measures to get your package in the right hands. Once you do, it will be smooth sailing to your dream sales position.

But, how do you create such a phenomenal resume? Well, it really isn’t that hard. Even if you’re no professional resume writer or have never created a resume in your entire life, you can still razzle and dazzle potential employers with your resume writing skills. In this article, we’ll tell you how to craft a great resume that gets you hired. So, put down the job ads and get ready to learn all about the persuasive art of writing great resumes.

1. First of all, you should know what a great resume looks like. To learn, visit your local library or book store and pick up some great resume books and peruse them. See what styles that really “tickle your fancy” and see which ones make you cringe with boredom. Figure out which ones work and which ones don’t. Buy and study them and do your best to emulate the resume writing style.

2. Second, know the difference between a functional and a chronological resume and then decide which one would serve you best. For instance, if you’re making a career change then you might craft up a functional resume that highlights your skills and qualifications. If however you’re staying in the same field, a chronological resume would work best.

3. Third, make sure that your resume reflects your accomplishments and unique personality. Not only will this help you stand out from the competition but will also create an image of professionalism in the hiring manager’s mind. Be careful to accentuate the positive and not the negative. For instance, if you’re currently a homemaker but are trying to get into the sales field, perhaps you can include your volunteer opportunities and how your girl scout troop exceeded sales goals by 100%.

4. Fourth, make sure that your resume is a true representation of you. Don’t embellish your strong points to simply make yourself sound good. Instead be honest but positive and make sure that you. It is never a good idea to misrepresent facts, exaggerate them, or lie on your resumes. Employers are like detectives and when they do background checks, they can find out about your untruths and this could be very bad indeed. Only use verifiable information.

5. Fifth, know that content and presentation is what counts the most. When you’re crafting your new resume, make sure that it looks professional and contains absolutely no typing errors whatsoever. Use quality resume writing paper and try out various styles and fonts to really make it come alive. You might even consider adding a professional photograph to the top for sales resumes.

6. Sixth, remember that grammatical errors are intolerable. They not only signal that you’re sloppy but also signify that you’ll likely do a crappy job as well. And trust me, no employer wants to hire a sloppy worker. To be on the safe side, ask someone else to proof your resume when you’re done proofing it to make sure that you don’t miss any errors.

In conclusion, you can create an outstanding resume that attracts an employer’s attention and helps you land that dream pharmaceutical job of your dreams. You simply have to put forth a little effort, some thought and let those qualifications shine through.

When I’m mentoring people who want to get hired in this industry, the first thing I always tell them is this, “You should be networking while the world is awake and researching while they sleep.” The pharmaceutical sales search is a full time job. Just ask anyone who’s done it with success. Every minute you have that can’t be spent networking can be spent researching.

Here are 4 things you can do (with relative ease) that will help you learn more about the pharmaceutical industry.

1. Make a list of companies you would like to work for and study them daily.

Start with 5 companies and go to their websites. Notice I didn’t say “read about” these companies. You need to study them, just like you would’ve in college. Learn about the products they own and promote, learn about their history, their financial stabilty, their future, and their pipeline. Any bit of information you can find on them . . . devour it. Take it to heart.

2. Use the list from above and stay up to date on current news about those companies.

Back in the days before the internet, this was pretty tough. It meant going to the library and poring over the Wall Street Journal day after day looking for news. Today it’s as easy as going to news.google.com and searching for the company you are interested in and/or its stock ticker. If you want a really easy way, spend a few mintues teaching yourself about RSS (Really Simple Syndication) and the freshest news will be waiting for you all the time.

3. Use your local library.

While the internet has made some things easier, it still isn’t a replacement for your local library (not for free anyway). Visit the library and take a look at the S&P Reports for the 5 companies on your list. Ask the librarian to point you towards similar information that might be of use. Often times you can find jewels in these publications. As an added bonus, you can take copies of the S&P report to your interview and show the interviewer that you’ve done more to research than just point-and-click.

4. Watch Television.

It’s no secret that pharmaceutical companies love to advertise. While your spending well deserved time in front of the television, keep an pen and notepad nearby. As you see a commercial for a drug, write down its name. If the company logo appears, write it down too. If you can catch the major selling points that the commercial makes about the drug, you’ll be on your way to superstardom. I’ll bet you never thought watching TV could be considered work!

As you start doing these four things you’ll quickly find that there are numerous other habits you could form that would help you learn more about the pharmaceutical industry. Do those too. As with anything, the more you put into your search, the more you’ll get out of it. But, um, don’t forget to have a life!

Even if you have perfect credit – or at least think you do – there are a few things you should know before it’s time to interview for your next pharmaceutical sales position. In this article, credit guru Roger Sorenson outlines the basics of the credit score. Put this information to work and you could destroy one more barrier to your dream of a pharmaceutical sales job.

Have you heard what is a credit score is? Do you know if there good or bad sides to credit scoring? How is a score calculated and what is “FICO” or “Beacon”?

At the heart of the question, a credit score is a number representing the liklihood that you will repay a loan. Lenders use this number to decide how much loan you quailify for, and what your interest rate should be. Low credit scores can cause higher rates and even loan denials while a higher score can help you receive a better rate on your mortgage and even auto insurance.

Many credit granting agencies utilize computer software designed by Fair, Isaac to calculate your credit score based on criteria the lender selects. The information about you is collected from your credit application and a multitude of other sources. This collection of information is called your credit history.

Your credit history includes how well you have paid your bills, the number and type of accounts you have, late payments, collection actions, outstanding debt, age of your accounts, and other such information. Creditors using the Fair, Isaac statistical program compare this information to the credit performance of consumers with similar profiles and award points for each factor that helps predict who is most likely to repay a debt. So there is where the term “FICO Score” comes from – a credit score based on the Fair,Isaac Company (FICO) repayment predition calculations.

Credit information is weighted based upon its type and history, the more current the information, the more weighty the affect – good or bad. As an example a very old 90 day late may be less weighted than a very recent 30 day late. The type of data is also weighted:

1. Past Payment Performance (35% or at least heaviest weight)
2. Credit Utilization (30% or next heaviest)
3. Credit History (15% or third weight)
4. Types of Credit In Use (10% or least weighted)
5. Inquiries (10% or least weighted).

A FICO score is a snapshot of your credit risk picture at a given point in time and is useful to the lender in deciding what kind of credit risk you are.Fair, Isaac says: “Computers don’t make lending decisions, lenders do. Computers analyze credit information to produce a score, but individual lenders decide what scores are acceptable for different loans or credit cards.”

The general US population FICO Scores range as follows:

• Above 780 – 20%
• 740-780 – 20%
• 690 to 740 – 20%
• 620 to 690 – 20%
• Below 620 – 20%

Though you may receive a free credit report from each of the major credit burueas once a year from http://www.annualcreditreport.com you will want to know your credit score as well. Purchasing a complete report from Fair, Issac will provide you with a credit history from each of the credit burueas and your FICO Score from each buruea as well.