In most major metropolitan areas in the United States, approximately 4.5% of the population is in sales. That might not seem like a high percentage by itself, but in real terms, that number still represents millions of salespeople from coast to coast in a variety of sales positions. Even though technology has drastically changed sales, there will always be a need for flesh-and-blood people who can look clients in the eyes and shake their hands when closing a deal.
As your job search moves forward, you should know that sales is a field open to anyone willing to put their best self forward, build long-term relationships, and adapt to a constantly changing environment. If that sounds like you — or if it sounds like that could be you — then have a look at what life in the best sales jobs could mean for you and your career, whether you’re just starting or eager to start over.
7 Rewarding Sales Roles
Before applying for a sales role, it’s worth looking into how such roles can differ between industries and positions in order to find the best sales jobs for you. For instance, you may find that you’re a better fit for Advertising Sales rather than Real Estate — or vice-versa — or you could be drawn to Pharmaceutical Sales.
Insurance Sales Representative
People will always need various kinds of insurance, but more often than not, they are simply presented with options from their workplace, and they don’t shop around. It is the job of Insurance Sales Representatives to contact potential customers, explain different insurance policies, and try to sell those customers newer or better insurance plans that can help them pay less and get more. Kick start your career as an Insurance Sales Representative with some of the Best Employers in Insurance, like Liberty Mutual or Farmers Insurance. Working for a company like Liberty Mutual comes with additional benefits aside from enhancing your skills and career development, such as salary satisfaction amongst 72% of employees.
Advertising Sales Representative
Even the best products and businesses sometimes need a little help with getting their name out there and reeling in would-be customers. Advertising Sales Representatives sell advertising space to companies that can generate attention or buzz about a company or its products. Despite the proven effectiveness of different advertising mediums, Ad Sales Reps often must give presentations to convince clients to place a print, TV, or online ad.
Medical Devices Sales Representative
Medical Device Sales Representatives sell medical products to hospitals, doctors’ offices, clinics, and health care systems. The most important background Medical Device Sales Reps must have is one in sales. They are not necessarily expected from the get-go to have an understanding of the healthcare field or in-depth knowledge about what kinds of doctors or hospitals need which kind of equipment.
Pharmaceutical Sales Representative
Pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors employ Pharmaceutical Sales Representatives to tell doctors about new products, provide samples, and urge those doctors to prescribe the new products to patients with relevant conditions. Pharma Sales Reps will also talk with pharmacies and pharmacists to ensure over-the-counter products are prominently displayed or specially recommended to customers.
Real Estate Agent
Real Estate Agents connect home buyers with home sellers, helping to facilitate home sales. Real Estate Agents typically research a housing market and take clients to see different available homes for sale. Once their clients find a home they want to buy, the Agent guides them through the often repetitive and frustrating process of making offers on houses, negotiating purchase contracts, securing a mortgage, and closing.
Account Executive
Account Executives at companies like GoDaddy have a variety of responsibilities, including building and maintaining cross-functional relationships between clients, teams, and engineers. Their duties include the signing of contracts and doing whatever else is needed to keep clients happy and teams busy. Account Executives keep track of activities for different accounts, delegate people to handle their clients’ needs, and analyze trends and finances while making plans to attract new customers.
Sales Engineer
Sales Engineers work closely with Advertising Sales Representatives on B2B sales of complex products that need more than just an Ad Sales Rep’s talent to close the deal. While an Advertising Sales Rep can tell customers how good a product is, a Sales Engineer can tell customers how good a product is while also explaining technological aspects, helping customers understand why it is so good. Many companies need good Sales Engineers to help articulate the value of their platform and services to potential clients.
The Benefits of a Sales Role
Few roles have as much upward mobility or personal growth potential as those in the best sales jobs. Even if you still don’t think you have what it takes, seeing some of the benefits may just convince you to change your mind and give it a try.
Competitive Income
Unlike positions for which an annual salary is more or less set in stone, how much salespeople earn is often based on commission. In a sales role, your income is never truly static. If you’re good enough, you can make much more over your base salary than colleagues with similar experience. If your peers make more than you, that can be ample motivation to try even harder and exceed their sales volume in the next quarter.
Unique Days
Salespeople often spend most of their time out in the field rather than in an office, going on door-to-door cold calls or traveling across the state or country to drum up new business or meet with existing clients. While it may be the case that they’ll occasionally have to work or travel on weekends or holidays, if the result is a new ad buy or client, they won’t mind much.
Flexible Work Hours
In addition to the potential of working irregular weeks, salespeople often set their own schedules to match client availability or to account for work travel. This means that just as they can be freed from the perennial Monday-to-Friday grind, they’re also not necessarily chained to the normal 9-to-5 schedule of those in other industries.
Continuous Professional Growth
Where you start in sales is almost never where you end up. Those who start as Ad Sales Representatives can, with effort, end up as Corporate Benefits Sales Representatives. Every successive sale you close in whichever role you take on will boost your confidence in yourself and your career. What’s more, the skills and confidence you earned in sales roles will most assuredly come in handy should you ever choose to try to enter a new field.
Start Your Next Sales Career with BestCompaniesAZ!
If you’re a job seeker in search of a new role and care about fitting in with both that role and the company culture, look no further than BestCompaniesAZ. Since 2002, BestCompaniesAZ has built itself up by connecting the best talent with the best companies in the Valley.
With a variety of resources and clients, BestCompaniesAZ is the best resource for job seekers who want to work for the top employers in Arizona. To help jump-start the next phase of your career, get in touch with BestCompaniesAZ today.
