Simply the Best
Sorting through the mix of products to find what your customers want.
Mary Yakas
Editor’s Note: A day does not go by without our phone ringing or an e-mail popping up from a customer asking for the "best." As a dental publication that was designed after Consumer Reports, over the past 25 years we have learned one thing – the best changes from day to day. Providing relevant and timely information to customers is something we strive for. This series of columns will focus on how dental sales professionals can sort through the hype, learn more about what makes a product stand out, and most importantly, learn to educate their customer.
I recently asked two seasoned dental sales professionals what they found to be most helpful in assisting their customers. With all of the information on products, equipment, and technology constantly put in front of them, the answer was still easy. They said, "We want to provide them the best."
Ah, the best.
Selecting the best of a product category is not an easy task. Sales reps always hear about the worst products from their customers when problems occur. Those are the products piled in your trunk for returns. However, what about the products that are terrific, save time, and keep your customer happy?
Customer satisfaction is related to whether or not a dentist will ask for a credit, complain to you, or simply change distributors because they feel they were not provided with correct information on a product. For this reason alone, it is an advantage for sales reps to monitor product performance and anticipate potential complaints. Good products equal happy customers.
Attributes of a good product
There are many good products on the market, but the exceptional ones have the following characteristics:
- Excellent, thorough instructions
- Good handling characteristics
- Easy to implement into daily routine
- Save time or require less steps
- Provide a level above the current competition in terms of innovation
- Unique and different
- Good data and research to support product claims
- Practical clinical evaluations from practicing dentists
- If applicable, long-term clinical performance data.
When a product meets the above criteria, sales will naturally increase. It is information on the plethora of new products on the market that most in the dental industry are looking for. We receive questions on www.dentaladvisor.com almost daily for our editorial team regarding technique, products, or recommended characteristics.
When sales reps are looking for information on the newest products, typically they will travel with a manufacturer rep to learn more about those products. In addition, a presentation may be given at a national or local sales meeting. However, these presentations are usually manufacturer specific and do not always address ideal characteristics of certain product categories. There is tremendous value for sales reps to provide information to their customers that speaks to their daily clinical challenges. The best way for sales reps to speak intelligently is to learn ideal features of a particular product category, why they are important in a clinical setting, and how different products meet and exceed the needs of their dentist customers.
In future columns, we will review specific product categories and identify ideal features to assist you in sorting through the many products available today. We will also discuss trends in certain areas. We welcome sales reps reading First Impressions to subscribe or utilize our free basic subscription at www.dentaladvisor.com, just enter the promo code FIRSTIMP.
Mary Yakas is executive director of The Dental Advisor. She has been working in the dental industry since 1987 and has been involved in every area of the dental practice: dental assisting, laboratory, hygiene assisting, recare, scheduling, financial coordination, accounts payable, and office management. She has had experience in working with all types of dental practices, and has served over 275 individual offices in a consultative capacity.
|
|
|
