subject: How To Maximize Sales With The Use Of Sales Representatives [print this page] The sales representative position would fit anyone having a college degree and who has the appropriate knowledge as well as technical expertise to sell effectively. There are openings for sales representative in manufacturing as well as wholesaling. Most sales representative earns a combination of a fixed salary as well as commissions. The sales representative is a vital cog in the selling machine that comprises both manufacturing companies as well as wholesalers and contributes no end to the success or failure of either. Their main duties are to get the wholesaler as well as retail buyer interested in the merchandise they are selling as well as to take care of client's questions as well as concerns.
The sales representative may be selling a single line of product or a compliment of products on behalf of the manufacturer or wholesale distributors. They need to demonstrate the product and advise clients about using the product properly and also convince the client how using the product would help to cut costs as well as increase sales. The range of companies that the sales representative markets his wares includes manufacturers, wholesale as well as retail establishments, construction contractors, government agencies as well as some other institutions.
There are also sales representatives that sell directly to consumers and are known as retail salespersons and there are sales representatives that sell technical products and services and are known as sales engineers. The place where a sales representative works will give him a corresponding title such as sales representatives employed directly by a manufacturer or wholesaler are often referred to as sales representatives while manufacturer's agents and manufacturer's representatives usually self-employed sales persons or even independent firms that contract their services to all kinds of manufacturing companies.
The sales representative is usually a traveling man who spends a lot of time on the road visiting prospective buyers as well as current clients. The sales call generally involves discussing the needs of the client as well as suggestions on how the merchandise or service will be able to meet those ends. Very often, the sales representative would show samples and even catalogs that inform the buyer about the details regarding the product or service and also includes prices, availability as well as ways that would help save money for the buyer.
Another important facet of a sales representative's job is to obtain new accounts and this involves following leads from other clients, tracking advertisements in trade journals, participating in trade fairs and conferences and may also involve visiting potential customers, unannounced. The sales representative may also spend on entertaining clients during the evenings as well as on weekends. Negotiating a sale may often take months and the sales representative may also need to make persuasive audio-visual presentations on his laptop computer that is hooked to the internet in pursuit of completing a sales.
Many vendors sell a sales representative evaluation form that would help evaluate their quality as sales representatives and also as individuals. These forms may consist of a number of questions that need to be answered by the sales representative. These pre-formatted forms can save a company a lot of time, money and effort in evaluating the performance of sales representatives and are certainly value for money.
