Would you like to buy this toaster?
April 15, 2011 12:35 PM Subscribe
I’m looking to make a career change, possibly into sales. You sell me on it…Go!
I haven’t been happy in my job for some time and since this seems to be the norm for the past 2 years or so I think it’s time to do something about it. I’ve always been close to sales, certainly supporting it for the last 7 years in a web marketing role and now I think I’d like to learn more about it.
My current situation doesn’t acknowledge busting your ass and I think having that recognition is appealing. In my previous positions I always considerate sales a natural progression but went down a more marketing/web developer role but I’d like to give it a try – I think I’d do well in it.
FWIW I’m 33, live in Dallas, with a marketing, IT, web developer background. I’m really interested in IT, always reading up on what’s new and hot in the tech world so I’m hoping to parlay that interest and passion into a successful sales career.
Can I? Are there employees that will hire someone with NO sales experience but still pay me what I need (base) to take care of my family? Inside or outside sales would be fine; I just want to be home at the end of the day.
Has anyone made the transition? Any recommendations, resources, suggestions for employers’?
I’m tired of working for the weekend and really want to find something that I’d enjoy but also that would challenge and reward hard work.
I haven’t been happy in my job for some time and since this seems to be the norm for the past 2 years or so I think it’s time to do something about it. I’ve always been close to sales, certainly supporting it for the last 7 years in a web marketing role and now I think I’d like to learn more about it.
My current situation doesn’t acknowledge busting your ass and I think having that recognition is appealing. In my previous positions I always considerate sales a natural progression but went down a more marketing/web developer role but I’d like to give it a try – I think I’d do well in it.
FWIW I’m 33, live in Dallas, with a marketing, IT, web developer background. I’m really interested in IT, always reading up on what’s new and hot in the tech world so I’m hoping to parlay that interest and passion into a successful sales career.
Can I? Are there employees that will hire someone with NO sales experience but still pay me what I need (base) to take care of my family? Inside or outside sales would be fine; I just want to be home at the end of the day.
Has anyone made the transition? Any recommendations, resources, suggestions for employers’?
I’m tired of working for the weekend and really want to find something that I’d enjoy but also that would challenge and reward hard work.
Best answer: A sales person that actually understands web development and web hosting infrastructure would be a valuable person in a web development / consulting shop. I did that off and on for about 10 years, but lately I've settled into a more traditional software sales role. I moved into web sales from print sales, and then made myself more valuable by learning the development side well enough that I'm able to make a few bucks on the side doing freelance web work.
I don't think Dallas' COL is that different than the DC suburbs, so I would think given that you will be new to the sales role, you could reasonably expect to get 50K - 60K plus commission to start. I'd hire somebody with your background at that price.
Feel free to Mefi Mail me with any specific questions.
posted by COD at 1:04 PM on April 15, 2011
I don't think Dallas' COL is that different than the DC suburbs, so I would think given that you will be new to the sales role, you could reasonably expect to get 50K - 60K plus commission to start. I'd hire somebody with your background at that price.
Feel free to Mefi Mail me with any specific questions.
posted by COD at 1:04 PM on April 15, 2011
One more thing, the reality is a smaller web / consulting shop is that the sale rep and the sales engineer are going to be the same person, and it's hard to find person that can handle both roles. It's kept me employed for the last 15 years....
posted by COD at 1:06 PM on April 15, 2011
posted by COD at 1:06 PM on April 15, 2011
I have no business giving you specific advice, but as far as motivation... the world runs on sales. In every line of work, from plumber to lawyer to technology, it's ultimately about sales. So, if you have specific IT knowledge and want to transition to sales, you should be able to make that happen (especially because a lot of tech people want to run screaming the other direction). Read this for some tech sales inspiration from Mark Cuban.
Will you be immediately comfortable? I think it's unlikely, although I obviously have no idea. But do your homework, set yourself up to be successful, and go into it with a positive attitude. You will be taking a risk... but ultimately, you have to sell yourself on the idea first before you'll be able to convince someone else to take a chance on you.
People who want more responsibility are very valuable. You sound like one of those people. Go find a great job, and best of luck.
posted by _Silky_ at 1:45 PM on April 15, 2011
Will you be immediately comfortable? I think it's unlikely, although I obviously have no idea. But do your homework, set yourself up to be successful, and go into it with a positive attitude. You will be taking a risk... but ultimately, you have to sell yourself on the idea first before you'll be able to convince someone else to take a chance on you.
People who want more responsibility are very valuable. You sound like one of those people. Go find a great job, and best of luck.
posted by _Silky_ at 1:45 PM on April 15, 2011
I would like to weave in some snark from the recent threads about the uselessness of the school of Business, from whence Marketing originates, but I'm a biz major and therefore too lazy and don't have the search skills to find it...
Anyway... as has been said, people with tech skills who are able and willing to sell tend to be very marketable. As has also been said, you frequently do both selling and doing in a smaller shop. That's kinda me, although I'm probably 65% sales/marketing whiz and 35% techy, whereas for you it may be the other way around.
Some of your own snark suggests that you may have some stereotyped attitudes about sales that you need to get out of the way. Learning how to sell is not the development of Jedi mind tricks that leave people pinned to the desk with the signing arm free. Nor is it particularly, these days, about productivity and perseverance in the face of doing tons of cold calling. I've been selling since the late '80s, and if that crap EVER worked, it sure doesn't any more. Especially since the web has matured, the expectation is that if they need you they'll find you. The trick is to have an effective presence that gets found.
Selling is about UNDERSTANDING the customer's needs and building a bridge between their needs and your product such that buying it is a logical choice. Sounds pretty simplistic, but if you've ever talked to someone who can drone stats about their product but can't understand what you're talking about when you ask "will this work for me?" you know it's not something everyone does equally well.
You also have to ask yourself - are you basically extroverted and do you enjoy talking to people? I'm not talking about being some sort of party animal clown; I mean if you walk into a room do you naturally and comfortably talk to new people, or do you hide by the punch bowl? Are you a good time manager and do you work well without being handed specific assignments, i.e. do you naturally look for new things to do? Do you like to be dressed and groomed well, or do you work best in jeans and flip-flops?
Lastly, sales is unfortunately not immune to the problems of low recognition. Some organizations blame all problems on sales and credit all successes to the people in operations who "make it happen." When job shopping, you just have to make sure you're looking at a situation where this isn't the case (the best you can). It's usually a good sign if the founder or at least the CEO type sees him or herself as at least partly a communicator or salesperson themselves, as opposed to being a stone cold techy.
And if they pull out a toaster and make you role-play "sell me this toaster," RUN.
posted by randomkeystrike at 2:14 PM on April 15, 2011 [4 favorites]
Anyway... as has been said, people with tech skills who are able and willing to sell tend to be very marketable. As has also been said, you frequently do both selling and doing in a smaller shop. That's kinda me, although I'm probably 65% sales/marketing whiz and 35% techy, whereas for you it may be the other way around.
Some of your own snark suggests that you may have some stereotyped attitudes about sales that you need to get out of the way. Learning how to sell is not the development of Jedi mind tricks that leave people pinned to the desk with the signing arm free. Nor is it particularly, these days, about productivity and perseverance in the face of doing tons of cold calling. I've been selling since the late '80s, and if that crap EVER worked, it sure doesn't any more. Especially since the web has matured, the expectation is that if they need you they'll find you. The trick is to have an effective presence that gets found.
Selling is about UNDERSTANDING the customer's needs and building a bridge between their needs and your product such that buying it is a logical choice. Sounds pretty simplistic, but if you've ever talked to someone who can drone stats about their product but can't understand what you're talking about when you ask "will this work for me?" you know it's not something everyone does equally well.
You also have to ask yourself - are you basically extroverted and do you enjoy talking to people? I'm not talking about being some sort of party animal clown; I mean if you walk into a room do you naturally and comfortably talk to new people, or do you hide by the punch bowl? Are you a good time manager and do you work well without being handed specific assignments, i.e. do you naturally look for new things to do? Do you like to be dressed and groomed well, or do you work best in jeans and flip-flops?
Lastly, sales is unfortunately not immune to the problems of low recognition. Some organizations blame all problems on sales and credit all successes to the people in operations who "make it happen." When job shopping, you just have to make sure you're looking at a situation where this isn't the case (the best you can). It's usually a good sign if the founder or at least the CEO type sees him or herself as at least partly a communicator or salesperson themselves, as opposed to being a stone cold techy.
And if they pull out a toaster and make you role-play "sell me this toaster," RUN.
posted by randomkeystrike at 2:14 PM on April 15, 2011 [4 favorites]
Are you a charming, energetic extrovert? Because that is the key to being successful in sales.
posted by mlis at 3:54 PM on April 15, 2011
posted by mlis at 3:54 PM on April 15, 2011
If you think you could do well, go for it. Sales is a tough job, but if you can do it, it pays well.
Are there employees that will hire someone with NO sales experience but still pay me what I need (base) to take care of my family?
Sales pays for results. Experience is not the issue. Will someone pay you to feed your family if you do not reel in clients? Not in the long run.
posted by ovvl at 10:24 PM on April 15, 2011
Are there employees that will hire someone with NO sales experience but still pay me what I need (base) to take care of my family?
Sales pays for results. Experience is not the issue. Will someone pay you to feed your family if you do not reel in clients? Not in the long run.
posted by ovvl at 10:24 PM on April 15, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by rkent at 12:56 PM on April 15, 2011