Personal selling process and techniques MCQs With Answer

Personal selling process and techniques MCQs with Answer focus on structured steps and practical methods used in pharmaceutical sales. This introduction highlights key terms relevant for B.Pharm students: personal selling, selling process, prospecting, pre-approach, sales presentation, objection handling, closing techniques, follow-up, consultative selling, SPIN questioning, FAB, ethical detailing, regulatory compliance, product knowledge, communication skills, CRM and pharmacovigilance. Understanding these concepts helps future medical representatives and pharmaceutical managers apply evidence-based sales techniques while maintaining patient safety and professional ethics. The MCQs below are designed to deepen conceptual clarity and strengthen application in real-world pharmaceutical scenarios. Now let’s test your knowledge with 30 MCQs on this topic.

Q1. Which sequence represents the standard personal selling process in pharmaceutical sales?

• Prospecting → Pre-approach → Approach → Presentation → Handling objections → Closing → Follow-up
• Approach → Presentation → Prospecting → Closing → Follow-up → Pre-approach → Handling objections
• Closing → Presentation → Approach → Prospecting → Follow-up → Handling objections → Pre-approach
• Pre-approach → Follow-up → Prospecting → Closing → Approach → Presentation → Handling objections

Correct Answer: Prospecting → Pre-approach → Approach → Presentation → Handling objections → Closing → Follow-up

Q2. What is the primary objective of the pre-approach stage in pharmaceutical personal selling?

• To immediately ask for an order during the first call
• To gather information about the healthcare professional and plan the sales approach
• To deliver samples without prior research
• To finalize pricing negotiations with pharmacies

Correct Answer: To gather information about the healthcare professional and plan the sales approach

Q3. In SPIN selling, what does the “I” stand for and why is it important?

• Information — to list product specifications
• Implication — to explore consequences of a problem for the customer
• Interest — to capture the customer’s attention
• Initiation — to begin the sales process

Correct Answer: Implication — to explore consequences of a problem for the customer

Q4. In the FAB technique, what does “B” represent and how is it used in a pharma sales pitch?

• Benefit — to link product features to improved patient outcomes
• Brand — to emphasize company reputation only
• Balance — to weigh pros and cons in public forums
• Budget — to discuss pricing strategies with hospital administrators

Correct Answer: Benefit — to link product features to improved patient outcomes

Q5. Which selling approach emphasizes diagnosing customer needs and providing tailored solutions?

• Transactional selling
• Consultative selling
• High-pressure selling
• Push-only selling

Correct Answer: Consultative selling

Q6. Which practice is essential to ethical pharmaceutical detailing?

• Promoting off-label uses to increase prescriptions
• Presenting balanced, evidence-based information consistent with approved labeling
• Concealing side effects unless asked directly
• Offering undisclosed incentives to influence prescribing

Correct Answer: Presenting balanced, evidence-based information consistent with approved labeling

Q7. If a physician objects that a drug is “too expensive,” which technique most appropriately addresses this objection?

• Ignore the objection and move to another product
• Demonstrate value by presenting clinical benefits, cost-effectiveness data, and total cost of care
• Offer immediate off-label dosage suggestions to justify price
• Lower price without consulting the company

Correct Answer: Demonstrate value by presenting clinical benefits, cost-effectiveness data, and total cost of care

Q8. What is a “trial close” and when is it used during a sales call?

• A final demand for purchase used before presentation
• A question to assess the customer’s readiness to buy used during presentation or after addressing key concerns
• A technique to end the call quickly without commitment
• An internal sales report metric only

Correct Answer: A question to assess the customer’s readiness to buy used during presentation or after addressing key concerns

Q9. Which responsibility is mandatory for pharmaceutical sales representatives regarding adverse events?

• Document and report any suspected adverse events through the company’s pharmacovigilance system
• Ignore mild adverse events to prevent alarm
• Advise customers to stop reporting to reduce paperwork
• Report only if profit is affected

Correct Answer: Document and report any suspected adverse events through the company’s pharmacovigilance system

Q10. Which metric best reflects the immediate effectiveness of a sales call in pharmaceutic contexts?

• Number of samples carried in the bag
• Conversion rate: calls that lead to a measurable change in prescription behavior
• Distance traveled during territory visits
• Number of promotional brochures left at the clinic

Correct Answer: Conversion rate: calls that lead to a measurable change in prescription behavior

Q11. The AIDA model in sales stands for Attention, Interest, Desire and what final step?

• Analysis
• Action
• Approval
• Assessment

Correct Answer: Action

Q12. Which closing technique offers the customer a choice between two favorable options to finalize the sale?

• Assumptive close
• Alternative choice close
• Urgency close
• Negative close

Correct Answer: Alternative choice close

Q13. Which practice defines active listening during a sales conversation?

• Planning your next statement while the customer speaks
• Interrupting to correct the customer frequently
• Reflecting back what the customer says and asking clarifying questions
• Reading promotional material while the customer talks

Correct Answer: Reflecting back what the customer says and asking clarifying questions

Q14. What is the primary function of CRM (Customer Relationship Management) in pharmaceutical personal selling?

• To automate manufacturing processes
• To manage customer data, call history, and support targeted follow-up activities
• To replace medical affairs in clinical discussions
• To file patents for new molecules

Correct Answer: To manage customer data, call history, and support targeted follow-up activities

Q15. Effective territory management for a medical representative aims to:

• Maximize coverage of high-potential prescribers while minimizing travel time and costs
• Visit every clinic daily regardless of prescribing potential
• Always distribute the same number of samples to each clinic
• Assign territories purely by geographic size without workload analysis

Correct Answer: Maximize coverage of high-potential prescribers while minimizing travel time and costs

Q16. When using product samples ethically in pharma sales, the representative should:

• Provide samples only as allowed by regulation and document their distribution for patient benefit
• Distribute samples indiscriminately to increase visibility
• Give samples to non-prescribers to generate demand
• Use samples as the primary justification for off-label promotion

Correct Answer: Provide samples only as allowed by regulation and document their distribution for patient benefit

Q17. How should a sales representative respond to an unverified competitor claim about safety?

• Repeat the claim to reinforce skepticism
• Ignore it completely and change the topic
• Provide balanced, evidence-based counter-information and consult medical affairs if necessary
• Discredit the competitor with personal attacks

Correct Answer: Provide balanced, evidence-based counter-information and consult medical affairs if necessary

Q18. In the sales funnel, which stage involves determining whether a lead has the authority, need, and budget to buy?

• Prospecting
• Qualification
• Presentation
• Closing

Correct Answer: Qualification

Q19. Which type of question is most effective to uncover a physician’s unmet clinical needs?

• Closed-ended questions that elicit yes/no answers
• Leading questions that suggest an answer
• Open-ended questions that encourage detailed responses
• Rhetorical questions to impress with knowledge

Correct Answer: Open-ended questions that encourage detailed responses

Q20. Which metric best captures long-term value in relationship selling within pharmaceuticals?

• Number of business cards collected
• Customer lifetime value (CLV)
• Number of promotional emails sent
• Frequency of social media posts

Correct Answer: Customer lifetime value (CLV)

Q21. Which nonverbal behavior commonly signals genuine interest from a healthcare professional during a detailing session?

• Frequent checking of a watch while you speak
• Crossed arms and turned body away
• Leaning forward, maintaining eye contact, and nodding
• Answering calls during the presentation

Correct Answer: Leaning forward, maintaining eye contact, and nodding

Q22. The “Feel-Felt-Found” method for handling objections is best described as:

• A confrontational rebuttal strategy
• An empathic technique that validates feelings, relates to others’ experience, and shares a resolution
• A purely data-driven statistical argument
• A method to avoid the objection entirely

Correct Answer: An empathic technique that validates feelings, relates to others’ experience, and shares a resolution

Q23. What is the main difference between a push and pull marketing strategy in pharmaceuticals?

• Push focuses on creating patient demand; pull targets wholesalers only
• Push promotes products through the distribution channel to prescribers; pull creates demand from prescribers/patients to pull product through the channel
• There is no difference; both are identical
• Pull strategy ignores regulatory constraints

Correct Answer: Push promotes products through the distribution channel to prescribers; pull creates demand from prescribers/patients to pull product through the channel

Q24. Which legal compliance issue must pharmaceutical salespeople avoid during detailing?

• Discussing clinical trial data within approved labeling
• Off-label promotion of indications not approved by regulatory authorities
• Providing safety information as required
• Documenting sample distribution as mandated

Correct Answer: Off-label promotion of indications not approved by regulatory authorities

Q25. What should a high-quality product demonstration in pharma emphasize to clinicians?

• Only the marketing slogans and brand colors
• Clinical evidence, mechanism of action, safety profile and patient outcomes
• Unverified patient anecdotes without context
• Complex pricing models without clinical relevance

Correct Answer: Clinical evidence, mechanism of action, safety profile and patient outcomes

Q26. Which statement correctly distinguishes upselling from cross-selling?

• Upselling offers a complementary product; cross-selling offers a higher-value version
• Upselling encourages purchase of a higher-value product; cross-selling suggests complementary products
• Both terms mean giving discounts to customers
• Cross-selling is illegal in pharma; upselling is always permitted

Correct Answer: Upselling encourages purchase of a higher-value product; cross-selling suggests complementary products

Q27. Which time-management technique helps prioritize visits to clinicians with the highest prescribing potential?

• Random daily route planning
• ABC analysis (prioritizing accounts by potential and value)
• Visiting the closest clinic regardless of potential
• Spending equal time at every practice

Correct Answer: ABC analysis (prioritizing accounts by potential and value)

Q28. Which activity is a key component of effective follow-up after a sales call?

• Ignoring clinician questions once the call ends
• Monitoring patient outcomes, providing requested information, and scheduling next steps
• Only sending promotional brochures without personalization
• Reporting negative feedback directly on social media

Correct Answer: Monitoring patient outcomes, providing requested information, and scheduling next steps

Q29. During a negotiation, what is the typical effect of strategic silence after making a key point?

• It creates tension and ends the conversation immediately
• It encourages the other party to provide additional information or concessions
• It is considered unprofessional and always harms the sale
• It forces the buyer to leave the room

Correct Answer: It encourages the other party to provide additional information or concessions

Q30. Which ethical responsibility should a pharmaceutical representative always uphold when discussing therapy options with clinicians?

• Influence clinical decisions through undisclosed incentives
• Provide balanced information, disclose conflicts of interest, and respect clinician judgment and patient safety
• Withhold safety data to avoid reducing prescriptions
• Promote off-label use when it increases sales

Correct Answer: Provide balanced information, disclose conflicts of interest, and respect clinician judgment and patient safety

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