The big catch-22 is that you can't get a sales job until you have sales experience, but you can't get sales experience until they hire you to do sales... Right? Wrong. You can take a job as an in-house sales representative (entry level position, usually involving phone work), do that for a year or so, and learn sales that way-plus show the company what you can do. Or, you can get a job in client support/customer service, supporting the sales department, and learn that way. Or, look for a company that's willing to train you, as long as you swear to work for them for a certain amount of time once training is complete. Any of these approaches work well. My estimate is that you'll spend from 1 to 2 years in inside sales, 1 to 2 years in low-level outside sales, and then you're totally out on your own-a terrific place to be.
Is it necessary to know something about an industry to sell for it? Yes... and no. Knowing something about the industry can help you get a foot in the door, can give you an advantage over other job applicants, can help you manage your sales territory for the first few months, and can help you target the appropriate accounts right off the bat. However, you'll really do 99% of your learning on the job. I had zero knowledge about each industry when I first started in them. I paid attention, sold my sales and/or management skills over my knowledge of the industry, and learned fast. It worked for me.
Note that inside phone sales is not telemarketing. You do not annoy people by calling them at dinnertime; you sit in the company office and answer phone calls from new or existing clients who need information or wish to place an order. Inside sales is the bottom of the ladder-you have a tough job, you have to show up in the office, dressed appropriately, and on time on a daily basis; people yell at you over the phone; you never get to meet anyone face-to-face, which makes it much harder to develop a relationship with your client, and the money is not great. The good news is that it doesn't last forever. Think of it as your internship.
Outside sales, junior grade means that you often travel with a senior person, who shows you the ropes. This allows you to learn a lot in a short time. While the money isn't great, it's better than inside sales.
Product manager may or may not be a promotion. When you're a product manager, you have the responsibility of building name recognition and a client base for one particular product, but you don’t sell anything else, which can be limiting, and can cut you off from your former client base. However, if you make a new product a huge success, you get all sorts of money and recognition within the company, which is good for promot-ability.
Becoming sales director is the Holy Grail for some salespeople, while others prefer to lay low and live the good life as a field salesperson. Personality usually determines whether you will want to go to this stage. Being a director means you spend your time managing salespeople, who are also known as "cowboys" because of their cussedness and independence. After being a manager for 5 years, I gratefully dropped back into being a salesperson-now the only person I have to manage is myself. And, contrary to common belief, being the manager does not necessarily mean more money-just more aggravation.
Becoming vice president of sales means you take the headaches of being Sales Director, multiply them 10-fold and then add corporate politics on top. Personally, I have no interest in this position. However, the money is really good-expect to make $150,000 to $250,000 annually, with performance bonuses on top of that. If you're in a hot company, you can do even better.
Career Mobility
If you get tired of sales and decide to switch careers or companies, you should know that a good sales rep can go just about anywhere, given the proper network. Selling is an innate talent, as well as a trainable skill, and not everyone can do it. This makes you valuable. You can switch companies easily, switch industries with a bit more effort, and move to a very senior position within a corporation with diligence. A majority of CEOs in Fortune 500 companies formerly were sales reps, according to Forbes Magazine. The key here is who you know-networking is everything. The higher up a sales position is, the less likely it is to be advertised, and the more likely it is to be filled by connections, networking, and word of mouth. Never overlook headhunters (kindly known as "recruiters" or "search consultants")-some of the best jobs are found through them, so they can win now through the chaff looking for the truly golden individual for a particular opportunity. Always be nice to headhunters-they are good nodes in your network. When they call you, be polite and listen, even if you don't think you are interested. If it's not the right job for you, say so-and then suggest someone else you know who might be a better fit. The headhunters don't forget favors like this. They also call you more often, and thus you are more likely to hear about a truly nifty job.
What about Travel?
Sales absolutely requires an enormous amount of travel. There is a direct correlation between the sales revenues I bring in and the amount of time I am sitting in front of a client. Phone calls, e-mail, and even video conferencing do not bring in the same results. Just the idea that you thought enough of someone to get on an airplane to come see them warms the cockles of even the hardest heart-especially if you do it regularly.
I travel about 2 to 3 weeks every month, hitting all 7 of the major cities in my sales territory (San Jose, CA; San Francisco, CA; East Bay, CA; Sacramento, CA; Seattle, WA; Richland, WA; and Anchorage, AK). I log about 100,000 airplane miles per year. You really do get used to it. In fact, there are some tricks to make it downright enjoyable.
For example, I find one hotel in every town, and I always stay there. I get to know the staff, the best rooms, the concierges, and (especially) the reservations manager. Whenever I go to that city, I call the reservations manager and tell him or her that I'm coming back to their hotel for a few days. I get the best rooms, for the lowest rates, and people are always happy to see me. In return, I give them all my business in that city; I always write a thank-you card to the reservations manager after I leave, and I try to remember key people's names. People love to hear their name-it is the loveliest sound in the world to them. (See, I'm always selling!)
Another tip-buy a good map of a city (Not a rental car map!), and keep it in a file where you keep all the other pertinent information on that city, including client locations, dry cleaners, hotels, drug stores, and so on. Then, when you get ready to visit that city, just grab the file and throw it in your briefcase. You will become so familiar with the city that, after a few trips, it feels just like home. I learned to like Anchorage so much that I'm moving there.
Try to fly with only one airline, whenever you can. You not only rack up miles (leading to preferential treatment and first class upgrades), you also get to know the gate people-which can come in very handy when a flight is oversold, or you have excess luggage, or you're running late, or for any number of other little problems that life may throw your way.
Learn to pack a suitcase properly. Everyone knows how to pack, right? Wrong. For 5 days out, a woman will need 2 jackets, 5 blouses/shirts, and one dark skirt or pants. Period. One pair of jeans for night, to wear with the same blouse you wore during the day. One pair of shoes-low heels or flats-that match the skirt. One purse to match the shoes. One nightgown. I also bring one pair of running shoes, just for walking around after work.
I leave the rest up to you, but remember-you're probably not going to run into Prince Charles, so don't bring anything extra, it just adds weight. I can go out for 5 days with one small carry-on suitcase. I toured mainland China for 4 weeks with carry-on luggage, and did just fine. There are department stores everywhere, and it takes 5 minutes to pick up an extra pair of panty hose or clean socks. And 24-hour dry cleaners exist, so a coffee stain on a jacket is no big deal-just switch to jacket #2 for a day.
