Tips on Approaching Healthcare Professionals

Written by Karen Kan, MD on Jan 27, 2011 7:15 pm

There are few things more annoying to me than being accosted at conferences and meetings by network marketers who are distributors for a health product. Because they see the "M.D." on my badge, they immediately assume that I would be interested in the product they have to sell. They are so enamored with their product (and there is nothing wrong with that) that they become blind to how others see their approach.

I often get:

"Oh, you're a doctor? Well, you just have to hear about this! I have the greatest blah blah blah and it will help your patients to blah blah blah" etc."

"Oh my gosh, you could make a lot of money selling this to your patients. They really need this."

I have not found ONE network marketer who has asked me what I was interested in and how they could most help me. Make friends first. Sell later...a lot later.

Here are some tips for you if you're ever at a conference/meeting and you see a healthcare provider that you'd like to hit up for your product or service:

1. Don't vomit information all over them that they didn't ask for. Instead ask questions. In fact if you ask more questions about them than vice versa, you're doing great!

2. Don't assume that they want what you have no matter how great it is. Get to know what they do and their philosphy to see if they are even remotely the "type" of doctor that would be open to what you have.

3. Don't push tons of information. Realize that doctors are inundated with information and can barely keep up. Sometimes I get handed a stack of CDs, DVD's brochures...and I take them, just to get rid of the person! Sometimes they offer samples. I remember my partner taking them and when I read the ingredients on the back, I threw it away in the garbage. Don't waste your valuable marketing materials on someone who isn't that interested.

4. Read, devour and memorize the scripts from Kim Klaver's orange book "If my Product's So Great, How come I can't sell it?" on how to approach healthcare professionals. I have not studied a more simple method to approaching healthcare people.

Dr. Karen Kan

www.MLMBusinessLeaders.com
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