The profession
An Introduction to sales
Sales may not scream out to graduates as the obvious career choice. However, the fact is that sales roles need people with the transferable skills that a degree teaches, and so it is a career that any graduate can step into fairly naturally. It is also a career, which can offer highly rewarding salaries as well as good prospects. For this reason it’s no surprise that sales is now seen as an excellent move after university, with more graduates than ever moving into this area. ‘The Association of Graduate Recruitment (AGR) Graduate Recruitment Survey 2007, Summer Review reported an increase in 2007 of 38%.
Salaries and starting out
Graduates entering sales can expect somewhere in the region of £18,000 - £23,000 with the median salary being £18,000 (AGR). In addition to this they can also expect to earn commission, which potentially increases earnings considerably – especially for the top performers. It is important to be careful when applying as sometimes targets for commission can be deceptively high and often out of reach for those starting out.
Getting into the industry isn’t easy. Although some telesales experience can be useful, an employer will want to see examples of a candidate successfully selling or persuading a client/customer to do something. Alternatively, experience and so knowledge of a particular sector can be extremely useful when applying for some sectors. There is the opportunity for some to work within, or closely related to, their areas of study such as in IT or pharmaceutical sales, however most roles can be entered by graduates from any background.
B2B & B2C
At its simplest, sales can be split into two areas: Business to Business sales (B2B) and Business to Customer sales (B2C).
- Business to Business sales is the selling of a product/service to another business. It offers graduates the chance to get to know the workings of businesses, researching sales opportunities and often having to give presentations about their product to a client, face-to-face. This is the typical area for graduates to go into, as the rewards tend to be higher and the opportunities greater.
- Business to Consumer sales is the direct selling of goods to the consumer and is not as common an area for graduates to go into. However, increasing many retailers look for graduates to join their fast-track graduate management schemes. Further information can be found in our General Management or Retail services)
Sectors
Sales jobs can be very varied as they are available across a wide range of sectors. Here are a few of the major areas: You must be logged in to read the full article. Please register or log in.