Why are pharma sales models moving towards key account management and away from traditional frequency and coverage models?
The frequency and coverage model has been around a long time and until recently it was true that adding more sales reps to detail products and brands has increased sales revenue. But two major shifts in the marketplace are causing sales models to change, or begin to change. Firstly, the cost of healthcare continues to rise and governments have begun to take steps to try and curb further cost growth. A number of those measures have been targeted at standardising prescribing to some degree – trying to make sure that the most cost effective branded or generic drugs are used to treat particular diseases. In some ways, this flies in the face of the accepted norm for doctors – namely, complete freedom to prescribe what they think is the most appropriate drug for their patients – so there has been growing tension between governments and physicians. Government instruments, such as Primary Care Organisations (PCOs) in the UK, have been put in place largely to make sure that the right level of h
