Stop Being a One-Trick Rep

What if the biggest opportunity in your account has nothing to do with the procedure you're selling? The reps who build real careers in medical device don't just know their product — they know their surgeon's world inside and out.

In this episode, Lisa and Cindy break down what it actually means to sell to a practice, not just a procedure. From understanding RVUs and clinic days to knowing which committees your physician sits on — the details most reps overlook are the ones that set you apart.

The challenge: pick your top three customers. What's one thing you can learn about their practice that goes beyond your device?

Must-Hear Insights and Key Moments

• Sell the Practice, Not Just the Procedure — The reps who make a career out of medical device sales think bigger than their product. Lisa and Cindy break down why understanding your surgeon's full world is the move that separates good reps from great ones.
• Know Their Hot Buttons — Every surgeon has a specialty within their specialty. The rep who knows what makes their physician tick — whether it's research, referrals, or a specific procedure — always has an edge in the room.
• How to Research Your Surgeon — Google, ChatGPT, practice websites, nurses, techs, other reps — Lisa and Cindy walk through exactly how to build a full picture of your physician before you ever walk into the account.
• Clinic Day vs. OR Day Changes Everything — Timing your outreach around clinic days isn't a small detail — it's the difference between getting a response and getting ignored. Lisa shares exactly when she sends texts and why it works.
• Bring Value, Not Just a Pitch — When a surgeon starts to associate your visit with something useful — a paper, a clinical trial, a conversation — the door stays open. Lisa and Cindy explain what that actually looks like in practice.
• Know Their Economics — Understanding how your physician gets paid, what drives their RVUs, and how your product fits into that picture makes you invaluable. The rep who gets this becomes the one they call.
• Take the Blinders Off — Too many reps are locked in on their product and missing the full opportunity in front of them. Lisa and Cindy close with a challenge: learn one more thing about each of your top three accounts that has nothing to do with your device.

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Transcript

Note: We use AI transcription so there may be some inaccuracies

Cynthia Ficara: What if the biggest opportunity in your account has nothing to do with the procedure you're selling? 

Anneliese Rhodes: Why do some reps consistently earn trust while others are treated like just another vendor? 

Cynthia Ficara: If all you know about your customer is the procedure they perform, you're missing the bigger picture.

Tune in as we reveal how to discover what that is 

Anneliese Rhodes: Welcome everyone to another episode of Secrets in Medical Device Sales, brought to you by the girls of grit, Cynthia Fakhra and Alisa Rhodes here. We are bringing you guys another fun episode. This one is a really good one because I think this will make you guys think a little bit, maybe rock you back on your heels a tad, and make you look at your business again and make sure that you're doing all the things that you should be doing as that rockstar salesperson. So I'm glad we are talking about this today. 

Cynthia Ficara: I think you just brought up something that in medical device sales You have to realize that every day you're still learning, every day you're checking in where you are.  Just because maybe you've been successful or you've had a great sale, you have this awesome quarter and you're number one, you know what?

You've got a lot of check the boxes as you go. You've got a lot of things to take a really good hard look at your business, because those that actually look at their business through a microscope are the ones that- catch things when they fall, see things differently, and really can push things forward. 

And- 

Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah ... 

Cynthia Ficara: so the topic that we're gonna talk about today really kind of, does bring that to light. I mean- Yeah ... Do you agree, Lisa? 

Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah. 

Thinking bigger picture, It's never about one thing. I think we did an episode, I don't know when that episode was, I'd have to look really quickly, when you get, bad news, right? When your surgeon's like, "Hey, really sorry, but the case canceled," or, "Really sorry, patient has to reschedule," or, "Really sorry, we're not gonna use you on this case anymore." And it's really easy for you to get caught up in your own world, right?

It's easy for you to be like, "Oh, woe is me. Poor me. My case isn't going, so therefore I'm not gonna hit my number," and  What's wrong with me? What's wrong with my product?" When In reality, sometimes it has nothing to do with you, right? Mm-hmm. And so and it's not all about you. It's about the patient.

It's about the surgeon. It's about all the things but you. And so today is another kind of same thought process with that in terms of thinking bigger than just your product, just your sales pitch, just that one little niche that you feel like you need to just hammer home to the surgeon, and thinking broader picture. 

Cynthia Ficara: And everything you just said defines their practice and their space, so what is the specialty? But I loved when you just said it's not even just all about your product, because let's face it, our world is our product. That's because every day that's what we're getting emails about.

That's what we're talking about. But then we have to go into a completely different environment and realize their world is not the same. We're just a tiny piece of it. So like, how do you put yourself into their world to make this an awesome partnership? 

Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah, 100%. So we're talking about that today. And it just, that, right?

 it is Basically wanting to know everything about them and their practice.  let's just take orthopedics for example, right? Yeah. So there's so many different orthopedics, right? You got medicine, you got spine, And then you have neuro guys that do spine, and you've got, trauma, and you've got guys that just do shoulders.

You have guys that just do knees. You've got guys that just do hips. Then you've got guys that do all of that stuff, and they do it all really well. Head, 

Cynthia Ficara: shoulders, knees, and toes. 

Anneliese Rhodes: Right? what's interesting that I have found, at least in my years of doing this, and I'm sure you as well, Cindy, is like even though they do all of these things, one or two are really their hot buttons, right?

Mm-hmm. Like, it's like, "Yeah, I'm a vascular surgeon and I do fem-pop bypasses, but I love doing aortas," Yeah, I'm a cardiothoracic surgeon I can do all this cool crazy stuff, but I really just like doing CABGs." So It's interesting because when you're selling a product that may not be their hotspot, but is just another procedure in their toolbox, you gotta learn how to still make it their hotspot, but also, like, understand that you're not gonna be the center of attention all the time.

 I think it's really key to understand your surgeon, to understand their practice, and to know what does make them tick and what doesn't 

Cynthia Ficara: Well, I love that. And, I think that, just to take it a step further, I think everybody out there listening can think about that. that their product is just a part of the day.

So maybe today when you're driving into your account, why don't you think about, like, what else do your surgeons do? For instance, I just had a surgeon come to mind. I know he is the head leader of research. He's on multiple studies. He can probably spit out any data. I mean, honestly, he truly has a, photographic memory, but the way he can spit out data and everything's driven for data.

 think, "Okay, so that's what's special about him." But then also, you're in there selling a product. Do you know is your physician part of the value analysis committee? Or what other committees are they on? Are they on a leadership committee? Are they on the building the new, tower committee?

sometimes you're adding on to the hospital. Are they on an admin role? So, like, the amazing thing is we have the privilege, and we've said this before, this job is a privilege. We have the privilege of going in and speaking to our surgeons. We might be moving our product, but when we support their practice at the same time, it makes a difference.

So I think you really need to remember that the product is a portion of their day, and ask yourself, " What more do I know about my physician and their practice?" 

Anneliese Rhodes: So let me ask you then, how do you do that, right? Ooh. Like, let's just say you're a new rep or a newer rep, and, you kind of getting into a new space and you're selling this product and you don't really know everything that your surgeons do and their specialty.

How do you figure it out? How do you find out what their hot buttons are? How do you just find out what other procedures they're doing so you can have a knowledgeable conversation with them about, I don't know, if it's, cardiac surgery and you want to talk to them about a cabbage procedure but yet they do aortic.

How do you have that conversation with them about the other stuff? I mean, I have some thoughts, but what do you think? 

Cynthia Ficara: Yes.

Oh, I've got lots of thoughts. But, you know, I say start, step back and do the big picture. Do the easiest old Google search. 

It is amazing that you can just Google- Yeah ... and be like, "Oh, this, physician trained here."

That might mean something about, maybe you know somebody else they trained with. Great conversation starter. What they're interested in. Now, to the details of leadership committee and all that I was talking about, value analysis. Those are direct questions, but to your point, you've got to get in there.

Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah. 

Cynthia Ficara: You've got to get to know them. But remember, you don't have to learn everything about them from them. Who else do you talk to in the hospital, right? Yeah. 

Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah. 

Cynthia Ficara: Because the 

huge support staff. You've got nurses, clinics, techs, gatekeepers, supply chain, committee. Like, Yes ... you could even pick up the phone and call another rep that goes to the hospital.

Anneliese Rhodes: Yes, absolutely. Or you can just use our good old friend ChatGPT. 

Cynthia Ficara: Yes. 

Anneliese Rhodes: It's, I mean, it's amazing how smart- It takes the place of 

Cynthia Ficara: my Google search. 

Anneliese Rhodes: I know, right? Oh, literally I go to ChatGPT now for everything. I don't even go to Google anymore. It's so much easier. 

Chat knows me so well now, it's like if I ask if I'm looking for something, like if I'm looking for like a new, I don't know, a suit or like, skincare, Chat'll be like, "Oh, hello, Lisa.

I know your type. Here are some brands for you." But, um- It's our 

Cynthia Ficara: own personal assistant ... oh my God, 

Anneliese Rhodes: it's like totally- I 

Cynthia Ficara: love it ... 

Anneliese Rhodes: totally your own personal assistant. So, you know, you can type into ChatGPT, "Hey- Dr. So-and-So, from this institution. Give me his background. Give me his education experience.

Tell me what his preferences are. What are his hot buttons? Because I will tell you, Cindy, and this is from, going on websites, is typically practices will highlight, whether it's in the university setting or the private setting, what are the things that they most like to do. What are their specialties?

Like- Mm-hmm ... again, you know, you can do hips, knees, shoulders, all the things, but maybe the guy is, like, working with some medical device company, maybe it's your competitor, on a new hip. Well, then now you know that's, like, his thing, right? He's not only a tinker- Yeah ... but he also likes hips. now you look into reconstructive hip surgery.

Learn everything you can about it. Know what's coming down the pipeline. Like, all of that makes you more knowledgeable and more, like, the fact that you care, youevery time you and I talk to surgeons on a daily basis, they wanna know that we're invested in their practice. Right. It- That means that we know what they care about, right? It, it doesn't mean that you're giving them money or I don't know. That's not what that means. What it means is are you invested in what I want, what I like. I want research. Are you bringing them clinical trials? Mm-hmm. Are you talking about clinical trials that maybe they've been a part of, or papers that they've written, or textbooks that they've authored? there are so many things that you as the rep, if you really wanna be that valued rep, should know. Mm-hmm. so I think it's just really important that you broaden your horizon when you're talking to your surgeons about, even though at the end of the day your goal is to sell your product, it should also be about what can I pick up from this surgeon that I didn't know before- Mm-hmm

so that the next time I see him or her, we can talk about that. Because it makes you- And 

Cynthia Ficara: you know- ... 

Anneliese Rhodes: valuable ... w-

Cynthia Ficara: when you were talking about the different types of... So I have not worked in orthopedics, but I can imagine that one procedure they probably get more RVUs for than another, right? That's right, yeah.

So that's how physicians get paid when they add all them up. And I think that, it's understanding, okay, maybe your product isn't gonna drive the highest RVUs, when you speak to them about does it complement that procedure, you know? Yeah. Maybe your product helps when they do these really high-driving products.

So by partnering, "Look, this'll make this better, whatever. We can work when you're doing this procedure," if it's an adjunct-type thing. If it's the main procedure itself, think about, like- what about referrals? Can you bring people in so they can use this product- Great point ... and get the good revenue?

Oh my gosh, 

Anneliese Rhodes: yes. And, 

Cynthia Ficara: we had that episode a while ago, on hospital economics and, you know, it's something you can go back and listen to, it does drive home. When you're the rep that understands how they get paid and what they need to have the resources they need to do their job, you are invaluable.

So then you go try to sell a product, he's who you want to speak with, or she. Yeah. 

Anneliese Rhodes: 100%, yeah. totally, like, oh, not really off-subject, but I was also thinking, this was something else you and I were talking about when we were talking about this episode, and I wanna make sure that, we talk about this a little bit too, is, okay, so you know, you're learning about the practice.

You're learning about, their clinic days versus their OR days. those things are also really important. 

Cynthia Ficara: Huge. 

Anneliese Rhodes: Why are they important? Well, I can tell you  all my years of doing this, that you're gonna get a much better response from a doctor on a clinic day versus a day that they are in the OR.

what do you think about that, Cindy? I see you nodding your head. 

Cynthia Ficara: I'm smiling because you are so spot on. So think about this. In an OR, you're hyper-focused. We talked about that before. They're like the conductor of an orchestra. Yeah. Some of these cases are big. They're thinking about this patient, and it's all in, it's all attention.

Everything is about that patient. What is clinic day? It's prospect for future surgeries. in and out. Who are you seeing? And when their, thought is much more, short, quick... they're doing appointments in and out. They are not in the OR where the patient's under anesthesia, and that's their focus.

Yeah. They get to do office stuff. Yeah. They have a lunch break Maybe not. 

Anneliese Rhodes: Right. Or, but, you know, at the very minimum, they are finishing their day at a, quote-unquote "normal time," right? Yes. Oh, yeah. Like 5:00, 5:30, 6:00 if clinic runs really late. But typically, clinic days are the best days.

Like, I will tell you that if I'm gonna try and get in touch with one of my surgeons, I usually will text him or her at the end of what I know is their clinic day. And talking about a little bit of AI, by the way, cause I just did this, literally just did this. you can send text messages later, right? Yes. Like, you can time them for going later. Yeah, I just learned this, by the way. I'm a little behind- ... the eight ball on that one. cause usually I'll just put a reminder in my calendar at the time to text the surgeon. Now I know that I can actually set the time. when I think about it, I'll be like, "Oh, I gotta text this doctor about this thing," whatever.

I'll set a time, exact time of when I want them to receive that message because I know when their clinic day is, it's usually 5:30 to 5:45 when that message hits them because they should be- They should be leaving clinic and walking to their car, which means that they actually have the bandwidth to hold the phone, look at the phone, and be like, "Oh, I can quickly respond to her."

sounds simple, sounds small. Big deal. Because you actually get a response, right? Mm-hmm. Versus you send a text message in the middle of the frigging OR day at, 1:00 PM or 2:00 PM. You may never hear from them ever. it's not against you. Again, it's not about you. But they're so busy, whenever you're standing in the OR, how many times do you hear their phone ding? 

Cynthia Ficara: Oh, my ... 

Anneliese Rhodes: I swear, like some of my doctors- Like music ... it's like, 50 times. Finally, like someone 

Cynthia Ficara: will- Yeah. And then a staff member picks it up- 

Anneliese Rhodes: Oh. Yes ...

Cynthia Ficara: and reads it. 

Anneliese Rhodes: Yes. 

Cynthia Ficara: Right. 

Anneliese Rhodes: Yes. So now it's actually been cleared out of the alert system- Yep

of what they're gonna see, and they may never even see your message. Nope. 

Cynthia Ficara: Nope. That's so true. Yeah. For those of you out there that are like, "Well, wait a minute, I don't know when my surgeon's clinic days are," it's very simple to find out. You can even call the practice to find out if you don't wanna just text them- Oh

if you don't have a relationship, to say, " Is your clinic Tuesday or Thursday?" Or, "When's your clinic day?" Yeah. But that's an easy thing to speak to the practice about, practice coordinator. And you know what? It's also courteous to ask, is this an appropriate time to set up a time to meet them?

Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah. 

Cynthia Ficara: For The most part, the answer is yes. I do know one doctor that is so busy on clinic day, says, "See me any day but clinic day." Oh. Which is one rare person. Yeah. But then again, you have to ask, right? 

Anneliese Rhodes: You're making them your priority, not- Yeah ... your product, not your procedure, but them as a whole.

Them as their whole practice. I know you have a busy clinic. I know your surgery days are Monday, Tuesday, Friday. I know that you do hips on Tuesdays and shoulders on Thursdays, or whatever it is, right? So, You gotta make their world your world, and in return, they'll give you that time more often than not because they like the fact that you respect that.

They like the fact that you've invested the time and the energy to really respect their practice, their time, and what matters most to them. 

Cynthia Ficara: Yes. And when you know what matters, you can bring value. Let's just take the research, for example, just because we've talked about that two or three times. 

Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah. 

Cynthia Ficara: So if You know this doctor loves research, okay?

Or, that's his hot button. He's on all the committees. If I were to go see that doctor on a clinic day, what might I do? I might look to even pull up the search, even on, the latest ortho publications, that you just wanna know what to talk about.

So I think about this. So quick story. I have this friend that I've known for years, and she is probably one of the, like I don't know how she knows everything, but I love to be around her because she's going to tell me all of Hollywood's latest. She knows movies. Oh, gosh. She knows actresses. I love it. "Oh, did you know this?"

And I'll be like, "No. How did you know that?" So I know that when she calls, I'm like, "Oh, I'm gonna learn something." Like, I'm gonna learn about- That's 

Anneliese Rhodes: funny ... 

Cynthia Ficara: all these new shows and stuff. So like what if the doctor thinks, "Oh, Cindy's coming and it's clinic day. She's gonna talk about something or-"

Anneliese Rhodes: Great 

Cynthia Ficara: point, Cindy

be able to talk to me about something." Exactly. 

Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah.

They look forward to seeing you. And then they tie the positive receptors to you versus the- Yeah ... negative of pushy sales rep, "I just wanna push my product. All I care about is my product and my procedure." Now they're like, "Oh, sweet, she's gonna bring me something new.

She's bringing value," or, "He's bringing value- So big ... to the visit." So big. And, What does that looks like the office opening the door to you. Yes. You have an open door policy. That looks like the office scheduling person, surgery scheduling person scheduling and calling you and choosing you.

That looks like the PA saying, "Hey, why don't we use Cindy's product versus Lisa's product," right? The competitor. That looks like so many different things, and it's all a win for you. I love that we're talking about this, Cindy, because I think it's so important and it's a broad topic, but you can make it super specific to what you do and your specialty where you're working.

but it pays in dividends. I really think it does. 

Cynthia Ficara: It does. You know,

And tying back to the beginning of our conversation, I feel that a really good way to really summarize this is for everybody to understand that, in medical device you are not just selling a procedure. Those successful med device reps that make a career out of this sell to a practice.

Yeah. So If you could just think in your mind to switch from selling just a procedure to selling to a practice, already that makes you think about your approach, your conversations, and what you can bring. Because again, their world is the world you need to join, which is their space that has so many different avenues.

It's Not just your widget. Your widget is an amazing asset when you know how to place it there. 

Anneliese Rhodes: Yeah. 

Cynthia Ficara: And I just think that stepping back sometimes gets you five more feet forward when you do it the right way. 

Anneliese Rhodes: 100%. I'm glad we talked about this today. I think it, just reminds all of us again, even us that have been doing this for forever, it reminds you that you have to remember it's not just about you, not just about your company and your product,  it's about everything, right?

It's about the patient, it's about the doctor, it's about their specialty, it's about what their world looks like. And I think sometimes when you step back and you really, you learn stuff, right? Oh, right. And you bring more value. And It kind of makes your job a little more fun, 'cause you realize, hmm, maybe I didn't know enough about that.

Maybe I do need to learn more about that. Anyhow, I really liked today's topic. I think it's a great topic because it is so easily overlooked because we get so blinders on, focused on one thing. , like the race horses that wear the blinders, that's how I feel like a lot of sales reps get.

They think they're doing everything- Yes ... but they're not. They're not even coming close to doing everything, and if they were to just take the blinders off and be a little more open-minded and say, "You know what? Maybe I do need to learn more about this," they would be more successful. 

Cynthia Ficara: Exactly. So I feel like a call to action for today would be to come up with one point for each of your top three customers. Pick your top three customers, and what one piece of information can you learn more to be more part of their practice than selling your actual device? And I'm gonna leave you with a little takeaway, and I think I want you to think about this. Know their practice better than your competition knows the product.

Anneliese Rhodes: Love that. I think that is awesome. What a great line. I love that. All right, well, I hope everyone enjoyed today's episode. We totally thank you guys for listening, tuning in. we've got lots of great stuff going on. We never really talk about it. We should talk about it more, Cindy, but- I know, 

Cynthia Ficara: we 

Anneliese Rhodes: need to we have courses- Yes ... available on bigimpactacademy.com. We've got our planner. Everybody knows what the planner did for me last year. It brought me to President's Club and Rep of the Year. It's actually selling quite well. We're getting a lot of feedback from a lot of you out there, so thank you for telling us about your wins and how much you love the planner.

We're so happy that it's working for you, 'cause it works for us. And just keep tuning in. Keep subscribing, keep listening, and share it with your colleagues, with your partners, with your friends, with people that you think need to hear secrets in medical device sales, because we are here to support all of you.

Cynthia Ficara: Thanks, everyone