“A question my team and I are frequently asked is “how do you get into sales with no sales experience?”. I will admit, this is extremely difficult to do, but if the opportunity does ever arise, grab it with both hands. In all our surveys, salespeople top all the polls addressing pay, job security, flexible working schedule, happiness in their role…the list goes on.

Anyone who visits our website will see that most of our vacancies are sales oriented. This is the upside. The downside is that almost all clients are looking for candidates with many years of sales experience.

So how does one gain entry into this elite club?

Account Management is a good springboard into sales. Becoming an Account Manager in your existing company can be used as a great gateway into a sales role. Read books on sales, and perhaps take an online course.

People often think sales is a persuasion game, but this is certainly not the case for top sales people. Our vast research carried out over 33 years of recruiting in the industries shows the best salespeople are not the way the public perceive them to be…not team player, pushy, bold and brash.

The best ones are empathetic and take a consultative point of view, really getting to know the company’s objectives. Many of our clients are in fact now using the title “Account Director” to best describe the role.

A company advertising a sales role and willing to take someone outside of sales have their colours to the mast by stating they are looking for a facilitator – someone who can act as a link between their goods/services and the customers’ needs/wants.

So why is it sales roles are so coveted?

There are many more options. If you are in a production management or operator role, unless you are willing to relocate, you are severely limited by your geographical location. If you find yourself in the situation where find a new role, you cannot work from home, you have to physically be there. If you look at where you live on the map and assess what is commutable from where you are, most people find this very limiting, whereas most companies are happy with salespeople working remotely as your role requires being out on the road.

Furthermore, the chances of production roles becoming available while looking is often few and far between. Sadly we have seen many companies fall by the wayside over the years. Statistically, salespeople from those companies will get a job offer within less than a week of company going into trouble, whereas production staff are waiting on average two months, sometimes a lot longer. We must always remember these geographical constraints. Choice also creates an attractive proposition. When a production person goes onto the job market, they very rarely have options to weigh up, whereas many salespeople receive 3-4 offers.

Fast forward 3-5 years’ time if one is fortunate enough to go from a production role into sales; if you find yourself on the job market, looking for more money, or better prospects, whatever the reason, the world is your oyster.”

George Thompson is the Managing Director of Harrison Scott Associates, the largest recruitment company in the UK in print, packaging and paper.


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