Sales representative

Briefly explain what you do for a living.

I work as a contact person between pharmacies and Orion. I provide customers with up-to-date information about our products and current issues. I manage Orion's customer accounts comprehensively and build long-term customer relationships. I also sell and market over-the-counter medicines and free trade products. In addition, I organise training events for pharmacy staff and public health nurses.

How have you ended up in the profession of your choice?

I was supposed to become a service dog trainer, but my knees wouldn't have tolerated that job. An orthopaedist urged me to find a clean indoor job. After that, I developed a keen interest in pharmacy. During my pharmacy studies, various professionals came to visit us and introduce themselves, including pharmacy representatives. Their job description sounded interesting. Soon after graduation, I applied to complete a further vocational qualification in sales tailored for the pharmacy sector. I’m still on the same road.

Describe your typical working day or week.

I have scheduled my working week in such a way that it includes four days of customer meetings and one day at the office. In the field, the latter is also known as the paperwork day. For customer days, I have arranged meetings with customers in advance and planned detailed schedules, potential driving routes and breaks for each day in my calendar. Today, customer meetings can also be arranged remotely. In this case, I don’t need to drive, but the importance of planning the day, scheduling it and taking breaks becomes emphasised. On my office days, I go through the non-urgent e-mails accumulated during the week, plan future sales rounds, make potential travel claims and tend to other matters that need to be taken care of.

What kind of work environment or working hours do you have?

I work in a locality where we don’t have a company factory or premises. So, I take care of the office days and remote meetings at my own office. However, for the most part, the work of a sales representative is highly mobile. Therefore, you spend a lot of time in a car when moving from one pharmacy to another. I try to work mainly on weekdays between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. However, sometimes evening training sessions require longer working hours, and then I need to be flexible.

What kind of competence or qualities are required in the profession?

A sales representative's work consists of independent work and good interpersonal and customer service skills. I feel that everything is built around meetings with customer. I must also like my own company because I don’t have a traditional work community where the day starts with saying hello to colleagues when arriving at the workplace. Good self-managing skills are also necessary. Without them there is a risk of exhausting yourself or failing to complete your work tasks.

What is the best thing about your profession?

Definitely customer encounters with both pharmacy staff and customers. I enjoy customer service and successful sales situations. I feel comfortable with the kind of entrepreneurial approach the work requires. It entails suitable amounts of responsibility and freedom that allow me to build a work schedule that suits me. The job offers me the opportunity to experience and see new places, so I won't get bored. I’m curious by nature, and I’m interested in new ideas, products and research data. I feel lucky to be able to pass on new information to pharmacy employees.

What are the downsides of the profession or what seems challenging?

In my work, I must be able to manage large amounts of information and organise things. Good pressure tolerance is also necessary. The weather conditions are sometimes difficult, and the deteriorating condition of Finnish roads poses its own challenges to mobile work.

What would you tell a person considering the profession of a sales representative?

The work is variable and offers me all kinds of encounters with people. However, the salesperson is always a salesperson. I may have a bad day, but with customers I must always be in a good mood. Travelling and overnight stays, long working hours and dark nights are part of the job description. I meet customers irrespective of the weather conditions or the season.

At the beginning of my career, someone gave me a piece of good advice. It is important to hold on to your own life, hobbies and close relationships. Sometimes, you may be working in such a flow that it would be easy to start living through work alone. I personally feel that there is no better profession, and I’m currently in my dream job.

How do you see the future of your profession?

I want to believe that sales representatives will also be needed in the future to build and maintain good customer relationships, even though many things are now dealt with electronically.