I feel this is particularly important for salespeople working for larger healthcare companies that have a large variety of devices, for example Johnson and Johnson or Medtronic. If you are a salesperson for a large healthcare company then your job is relatively simple because once you establish a relationship with a doctor or a hospital then you can essentially fulfill each and every one of their needs. In the case of a salesperson for a smaller company, they can only sell the products their company makes, so for other devices and products the hospital or doctor would have relationships with other salespeople and companies making your job more competitive, especially if one of the other companies also sells your product. 

I feel this is particularly important for salespeople working for larger healthcare companies that have a large variety of devices, for example Johnson and Johnson or Medtronic. If you are a salesperson for a large healthcare company then your job is relatively simple because once you establish a relationship with a doctor or a hospital then you can essentially fulfill each and every one of their needs. In the case of a salesperson for a smaller company, they can only sell the products their company makes, so for other devices and products the hospital or doctor would have relationships with other salespeople and companies making your job more competitive, especially if one of the other companies also sells your product. 

Establishing a successful business relationship with the customer is especially valuable in the medical device industry because for many devices, the initial sale is only the first of many transactions from vendor to customer. Certain devices will require regular maintenance, repair, part replacement, and upgrades, so it is important for sales representatives to make these services available in order to achieve complete customer satisfaction throughout the lifetime of the device.

However, sales reps do have to be careful when it comes to business relationships with customers - there are laws regarding gift-giving and providing entertainment services to clients in order to prevent bribery. It is preferable to build trust by selling genuinely helpful goods and services that clients can rely on, rather than risking an ethics violation.

I believe that one of the biggest reasons that successful business relationships for sales representatives are important is because of the amount of competition in the medical device industry. Not only are your sales reps competing with the sales reps of the competing companies, your actual product or device is also competing with theirs. Thus, having solid representative skills that lead to an established relationship with consumers can be extremely vital in the long run. 

However, I have seen in my time in the medical device industry so far that there are lots of rules and regulations against sales reps and the materialistic items they are allowed to present the business partners with. These rules are extremely strict because corruption in the workplace can cause severe consequences for both companies involved. It can be as simple as buying the business partner a sandwich for lunch. This is why I believe trust/relationships with the customer and the legitimacy of the medical devices both play a big role in retaining clientele. 

Building trust as a sales rep is important whether you are at a larger or smaller company, but depending on which one you are working for depends on what your priority goals will be when talking to customers. For larger companies, a sales rep has a wide span of products to offer for customers so they are are looking to to establish a general relationship with another company, hospital, or private practice to buy and continue buying multiple products from their company. However, for a sales rep at a smaller company, their main goal when talking with a customer is convincing them of why they should go with specific products that would be of greater use to them compared to a similar product from a larger company. I would think that it would actually be more crucial for smaller companies to build a strong solid foundation of trust with their customer base since they are competing with larger companies who are likely selling similar products, maybe even at a lower price. Sales reps at smaller companies could compete though by presenting better quality products than their larger company counterparts. They may even have deals to entice customers to go with them, whether this be better pricing in bulk or even just giving first access to new items for loyal customers. Either way, building a good trust with a customer base is essential for any company's success, not matter the size.

I wholly agree that sales reps must build working relationships with customers. Without such relationships the sales rep cannot do their job. In theory, the sales rep should be talking to clients at all times. Initial trust is built by a quality product, and a sales rep can't fully support something if they know its horrible. Thus, they should first be included in the development process so they can trust the product they are selling. Furthermore, once the client sees the salesperson's trust in the product; they'll then be more motivated to buy the product. Trust must be extended from the beginning to the end of the product's reach. The designers, marketers, salespeople, and customers should all be confident in the product itself, and trust the product to do what it intends. If all this occurs, business will run smoothly.

As a sales rep for a company, following up on cold calls and inquiries by customers about the products of the customers becomes essential for the company to acquire a sale and make a profit. Creating this bond of trust between the sales rep and customer becomes essential because the sales rep is the face of the company, and based on the interactions of the customer, the sales rep can influence their buying decisions. If the customer doesn't trust the sales rep, then the customer will make infrequent purchases, leading to less profit for the sales rep as well as the company. In my experience, the sales rep fosters this trust with the customer so that the customer can continue to purchase products from the company as well as increase their orders every time they purchase. It's commonplace in the industry that at holidays, customers would send gifts to the company for doing business with them, or even the company sending the customers gifts because they felt this type of relationship was built. In terms of the sales rep, they cover this territory where this company is located and often make trips in order to show the customer that they care about their needs and want to show their trust in matters. Not only does the sales rep build trust in their relationship but also in the product that they stand behind through the claims they make about the product. If the sales rep makes numerous claims about a product and the customer verifies these claims, then the trust between the two becomes either strengthened or weakened.

Although I agree that sale reps have to take the time to build trust in order to maintain a healthy relationship I think it's it important to define what doing extra is. Providing gifts in particular may be difficult when gifting a person who works for a company that doesn't allow gifts because it may be seen as bribery. 

You need to see the legality behind gifts, food, etc. I am not sure if you are allowed to give all that to people you are trying to do business with. But yeah, trust is very important, but your job is to sell the product. Your job is to push the product into the market. Naturally, do you think people would trust you, a salesman? You would have to be a very passive, shy salesman that is not pushy to gain someone's trust. I do not know how else you could do it. 

The importance of building trust as a sales representative with a customer is very important.This is a quality that every sales representative working in the medical device field should have.Sales representatives usually become friends with doctors because they sell products to them several times over many years, and also if a doctor needs a medical device, the first person they ask for an opinion on where to find and get the device should be sales representative. The sales rep can take the doctor to a dinner, event or sports game to thank the doctors for buying their product and so they can strengthen the friendship between them.

In the medical device industry, the emphasis on trust and long-term relationships is critical. It is the role of a good sales representative to build this long-term trust by providing quality service and personalized support. Besides gift giving and taking customers to lunch, there are other ways for sales reps to build strong relationships with their customers. Some ways to deepen customer relations may include consistent follow-ups, offering valuable insights, and being proactive in resolving issues. The sales rep must make it clear to the customer that they care about whatever issues they may have and are there to help. Specifically in the medical device industry, it is extremely important for customers to trust their sales reps because these are high stake sales. Customers must feel secure that they understand how to use and troubleshoot their device and that it will be safe and effective. It is the job of the sales rep to establish this trust and security in the product that they are selling. Once a trust is established, customers are much more likely to want to repeat business with a specific company or rep. Giving customers gifts and lunches cannot hurt, but in my opinion, it is more crucial that customers know that the device that they are working with is safe and effective. 

I have been working as an engineer in neuroimaging research for the past 5 years, and having a good relationship with sales rep has been a great boon to our research. The equipment we buy has a large ticket price($50000-$200000), so actually deciding what tier of product you need and when to replace old equipment are huge decisions. Being able to sit down with sales reps that you know and trust is such a huge help in making these decisions, and can help avoid big problems downstream. I personally have been in meetings with reps to finalize purchases, and I have brought up issues we've encountered with past equipment and how the new equipment might not be addressing them, and the sales rep has gotten in touch with their product engineering department and created custom solutions to fit our needs.