SalesHQ

I get asked a lot of questions as a sales speaker and sales training consultant and this week I was asked a question by several salespeople and a magazine about how to position yourself to get that sales job in today’s market so I thought that I would jot down my thoughts… 2009 has been a tough year. For many, a ...

Does a job with a good salary, a company car, a flexible schedule, generous bonuses and no boss breathing down your neck sound like a dream come true? It's a reality for pharmaceutical company representatives. But the work isn't pure glamour. It's also intense, highly competitive and sometimes frustrating. Insiders say it's difficult to get your foot in the door with ...

The vehicle that introduces sales people to companies is a resume, but there are secrets hidden in the resume that hiring managers should know before they interview a candidate. In my sales management career, I would bet that I've seen about 5,000 resumes for sales people. Yet, I still haven't seen one that shows someone who has achieved 40% of quota. ...

If you’re looking for a sales job, you need to ask yourself one critical question, sooner rather than later: Am I a hunter or a farmer? “A hunter type of salesperson is great at building a client base from the ground up and excels at identifying targets, prospecting and closing new business,” explains Tom Kelly, a Chicago-based professional sales coach and ...

More Than Widgets Media, pharmaceuticals, financial services, medical supplies, plastics, software.... everything with a buyer has a seller. It's easy to fall into the trap of believing that the only things being sold in the marketplace are products, and useless ones at that. As one job seeker said, "I won't do sales. I don't want to go around talking to people ...

Thinking about getting into sales? Smart, very smart. Sales can be one of the highest paying professions out there. And it’s not just about the cash: Successful sales pros enjoy highly flexible hours, a high degree of self-determination, and the ability to rise quickly through the ranks. No surprise, then, that sales is a popular career choice. Of course, sales isn’t ...

Sales professionals, an old joke goes, have two modes of communication: talking and waiting until they can talk again. First-year sales reps in particular often personify this by “eagerly spouting all their newly learned product or service knowledge before learning the goals and needs of their customers,” says Marie Warner, president and founder of Warner Sales Architects and a 20-year sales ...

The dollar’s down, and the offshoring of supply chains continues apace. The stock market is volatile, but has been trending up through most of 2007. The housing market and the mortgage industry have seemingly hit bottom. All in all, consumers aren’t sure what to think. Given this mixed economic picture, what will 2008 hold for salespeople looking to change jobs or ...

Looking for a solid career? The insurance industry may be the right place for you. Armed with only a high school diploma or a two-year associate’s degree, you’ll find plenty of entry-level jobs are open to you in this field. At Mutual of Omaha, most of the entry-level positions for high school graduates are in the customer-service operations center, where customer-service ...

In 2008, one of every six layoffs came from the financial services sector, according to data collected by Challenger, Gray & Christmas. If you’re among those who got a pink slip, take heart: There are plenty of job options open to you within financial services and other sectors of the economy. What can you do with your financial services skill set? ...

Green Decades in the making, this $209 billion market has its roots in everything from water to energy to food. Look especially to organics, clean energy, alternative fuels, and water reuse and reclamation services. See the trends... Discount What goes up must come down. Consumers are no longer trading up when making their purchase decisions, but rather trading down. See ...

For every successful technology company there are dozens that fail and leave behind an array of lost promises, disappointed investors, and stressed former employees. This sector offers a highly engaging, and potentially lucrative career in sales. With that in mind, we must be willing to ask some hard questions about the company we are going to potentially work with. h4. The ...

Like many of you, I have many roles that I must fill. I am a sales trainer and coach; I am a sales management consultant; I am a writer and speaker; and I am a salesperson. As the owner of a sales training and management consulting company, I don’t have the luxury of concentrating on just one activity. I’m sure most ...

Surfing the net for a pharmaceutical sales job is tiresome and looking at classified job ads can be tedious and well... boring. But what about business networking? No, it's not as tedious as it sounds. In fact, it can be fun and interesting because you get to meet lots of people that are in the pharmaceutical sales profession and get the ...

Know thyself. It's some of the oldest advice in the world and still some of the best. Knowing what you can do, what you like to do and how you like to do it is the starting point for finding the right spot for yourself in sales. 1. Personality - What kind of personality do I have? Would I prefer meeting ...

Once you have identified an industry that calls to you, you need to learn all you can about the industry, the position, and the economic forecast for sales. Sales Opportunities - Cyclical and Otherwise In some industries more than others, sales opportunities mirror the economic cycle. “Employment for transactional sales professionals - like those in mortgages - tends to be more ...

From biotech to carbon credits to the robots that have replaced factory workers, 2008 will see the continued proliferation of complex products, creating a need for salespeople with high-level skills and special subject-matter expertise. Specialization and Education Are Key “The demand for educated, trained sales professionals is very high,” says Hoffmeister. About half of DePaul graduates with a major in business ...

Sales is about making connections, though not just with customers. Your long-term success as a salesperson depends on your ability to collaborate with others. Networking, whether it involves securing employment, generating business leads or seeking professional advice, yields immeasurable rewards. Building your network will also make it easy for you to make connections to companies or industries by connecting to seasoned ...

If you’re searching for a relatively recession-proof industry that offers challenge, growth and a strong hiring outlook, try insurance. As the Baby Boomers begin to retire, insurance companies will be looking to hire all types of employees, including sales, finance, accounting, customer-service, HR and IT professionals. Check out these articles to learn how to tune up your resume and brush up ...

Aspiring real estate salespeople tend to be a bit like investors chasing after performance: When the market is riding high, people pile on in droves, whether they’re buying stocks or taking the real estate licensing exam. Then they’re unpleasantly surprised if, just a year or two later, the market tanks and their portfolios sink or, in the case of real estate ...