Are you a student or new hire in the field of pharmaceutical sales? Are you looking to figure out the salary range and average salary for pharmaceutical sales reps like yourself?
The average salary for a pharmaceutical sales rep is $61,000 per year.
Average salary for a pharmaceutical sales rep
Pharmaceutical sales reps are a type of medical and health services manager, who have the job of selling prescription medications and other medical products to physicians’ offices, hospitals, and healthcare facilities. They’re responsible for conducting research to understand the market for their company’s products. They also explain how these products work, as well as educate customers on proper usage. A pharmaceutical sales representative may be an entry-level position, but it is still a good fit for those who want to pursue a career in sales or marketing.
What you’ll do
The pharmaceutical sales rep’s day-to-day tasks include:
- Researching and analyzing the pharmaceutical markets.
- Identifying potential customers.
- Measuring customer needs, establishing rapport with potential customers, and learning about their concerns.
- Developing and delivering sales presentations to potential customers that include information about your company’s products or services; reviewing product literature; answering questions; negotiating contracts; following up with customers after the presentation is over; developing plans for future marketing efforts based on what you learned while meeting with clients; keeping track of leads generated by your presentations/meetings so you can follow up as needed (this task will likely be done using online tools).
What you’ll make
To get a general idea of the salary range for pharmaceutical sales reps, you can look at the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2016 average annual wages data. According to this study, the average salary for a pharmaceutical sales rep was $79,000 per year. However, there are many different factors that affect how much you’ll make as a pharmaceutical sales rep—things like where you live and what type of company you work for will all impact your paycheck. Using data collected by Indeed’s Salary Estimate tool (which pulls its information from job postings), we’ve compiled some useful data points on what to expect in terms of compensation if you want to go into this field:
- The average annual wage earned by those who work in California is $85,000 per year; in New York City it’s $90K; while nationally it’s $78K
- If you’re looking specifically at people who have been working as pharmaceutical sales representatives for less than five years (and therefore not reached their peak earning potential yet), then these numbers jump up significantly to about 10% more than our original national average: $84K/year!
How to advance
Advancement in pharmaceutical sales involves a lot of hard work. You need to be a good listener, communicator, problem solver, negotiator and leader. The best way to advance is by working with a mentor who can help you understand what it takes to succeed at each level of the company.
Pharmaceutical sales jobs provide a high salary, but getting into this field can be difficult.
If you’re thinking about becoming a pharmaceutical sales rep, it’s important to know what you are getting into. Pharmaceutical sales jobs can be both lucrative and challenging.
Pharmaceutical companies hire for these positions because they need help selling their drugs to doctors across the country. These companies offer incentives such as bonuses, commissions and higher salaries than other industries do. A lot of people want this job because of its high salary potential, but competition is fierce and only those who are willing to work hard will succeed in this field.
Pharmaceutical sales reps must possess some specific skills if they want to succeed:
Conclusion
If you’re interested in a pharmaceutical sales job, keep in mind that it can be difficult to break into this field. You’ll need to have a strong knowledge of science and possess good sales skills. Having connections is also helpful for advancing your career. That being said, this industry pays well and offers many opportunities for advancement. If you’re looking for a sales job with a high salary and great benefits, then pharmaceuticals might be right for you
