Making Sample Ordering Simpler for HCPs

In a video interview with Pharma Commerce, Mark Jara, founder and CTO of RxS, dives into how the sample distribution process in the pharmaceutical industry has evolved significantly over the years. A major change has been the reduction in the size of sales teams. In the past, organizations had large sales forces with 5,000-10,000 representatives, but that is no longer the case. Technological advancements and changes in product types have contributed to this shift. While products were once ambient (requiring less complex distribution), they are now more biologic and often require cold chain logistics, catering to a smaller, more specific patient population.

This shift in product types means that the traditional push model of distribution—where samples and literature were sent out to healthcare providers (HCPs) by sales reps—is no longer the primary approach. Instead, pharmaceutical companies have moved toward a “right-sizing” of their organizations, streamlining operations and using alternative communication methods. The new model is more focused on the needs of HCPs, who now drive the communication process. HCPs are the ones requesting access to samples at their convenience, based on patient needs.

This shift from a push to a pull model reflects broader changes in the industry, where technology, product specialization, and the role of HCPs in decision-making have reshaped the way samples and information are distributed.

Jara also discusses the value in an online portal that offers logistics flexibility, the inspiration behind developing SampleHub, the future of eSampling platforms, and more.

A transcript of his conversation with PC can be found below.

PC: Why is an online portal that offers logistics flexibility so valuable?

Jara: Take it from a personal perspective. I'm sure that as an HCP, the consumer goes on to multiple portals, logging in with their own access credentials to different shopping environments. The same thing is currently happening right now for HCPs. They're logging into individual portals to get their samples, specific from a brand. That may work for some companies, but ultimately, for the HCP experience, they're logging into very unique and different portals.

What we've seen is a push to consolidate that information—consolidate the ability to order literature material with regards to specific products or therapeutic classes—and being able to go into that one portal. As you can imagine, HCPs don't have time, so you're trying to minimize that impactful time that they have to be able to drive patient needs instead of being able to navigate administratively. They really don't have that administrative time.