Another Kind of Sales Reluctance

In an earlier blog, I posted about the reluctance of many in business to learn good sales techniques because of a general feeling many people have that sales is not “their thing”.  But there is another kind of sales reluctance that we encounter which puzzles me greatly.  I’m talking about the reluctance of people to pursue sales careers, and in particular, commission-based sales jobs.

A year or so ago, I saw a Manpower, Inc. study that listed the hardest professions in which to acquire employees.  If I remember it correctly, Sales was ranked third hardest.  And this was not just pertinent to the United States, but worldwide!  There is a shortage of people with sales skills and experience, and this seems to be borne out by challenges I’ve encountered among clients striving to build stronger sales teams or replace retiring sales people.

The challenge is bad enough when sales positions are largely salary-based, but when we throw in a commission-based pay program, the reluctance shows itself even more.

Sales is the lifeblood of any company.  Without it, nothing happens, no matter how good we think our product or service might be.  If we don’t sell, we go broke, period.  So arguably, sales is the most valuable function and job category in business.  Proof of that is often seen in looking at sales compensation charts, where sales positions are often at the top, or near the top of non-executive positions across the board.  Because of that, one would think that Sales would be seen as a most attractive career path, and that sales openings would be swamped with applicants.  But just the opposite is true.  Recently a client of mine advertised for a clerical position, and received nearly 50 applications within a week.  That same client then posted a commission-based sales job with the high likelihood of four times the pay of the clerical job, and has received only one application in a two week period.

Here are some thoughts on possible causes of this conundrum:

·        Sales is not taught in schools at any level.  In very few universities can one get a degree in Sales.  Every other business function has a college major available, but not Sales.  We aren’t “growing” sales people.

·        We think Sales is a personality trait, and not a learned skill.  Few people think they have the Sales trait, and thus convince themselves they can’t sell.

·        People fear commission-based pay programs of any sort.  We have become a society that is risk-averse when it comes to our careers.  We will go bungee jumping and skydiving, abuse drugs and alcohol, and engage in other high risk behaviors, but God forbid we should take a job where we might earn a little less if we have a bad sales month.

And yet, with most commission-based pay programs, there is no ceiling on earning potential.  The more the sales team earns in commission, the more the company makes.  It is win-win, and can lead to high pay for the sales professional.

Sales is somewhat similar to entrepreneurship.  The money is made due to the effort of the entrepreneur or sales person.  One would think that the allure of success in a selling career would be similar to the allure that drives people to start their own businesses, but without the investment required as a business owner.  So where are the sales people?