Characteristics of the Salesforce in the US Health‐care Service Industry: A Comparative Study of Selling Professional Services

Describes the job of selling health‐care services and compares it to traditional types of sales positions. Providing such a comparison may stimulate marketing managers in other service industries to conduct their own survey of salesforce characteristics and to analyze critically the findings. The research design serves as a model for the research process, analysis and interpretation to be utilized in other service marketing arenas. Promotion of health care has evolved from an emphasis on advertising to a current interest in personal selling. Along with public relations and planning research, sales is becoming a significant part of the marketing function of health‐care organizations. Specifically, the study was designed to define the basic characteristics that profile the present salesforce in health care in the USA. Addresses attributes of the organizations, as well as organizational variables. Managing a successful salesforce in the approaching health‐care reform era will be essential to an organization′s survival.