If you’re starting a new career path or entering the job market for the first time in sales, then you might be wondering what roles are available and which one is right for you. This industry offers a rewarding experience and there are a number of exciting opportunities out there, so knowing more about the different roles out there might help you narrow down your search.
You’ll experience better sales hiring from a better understanding of what recruiters are looking for when they create a new job posting. Depending on the position, you’ll find each one has different skill and experience requirements, parameters for success, as well as other distinctions.
Here are five different sales roles that you might be interested in.
1. Sales Support
If you’re looking to start out and test the waters of this profession, then this position may be for you. It’s designed to basically support the sales reps by performing back-end tasks that help their efforts. You might be responsible for a number of duties like investigating and tracking leads, creating and maintaining customer profiles, analyzing data, and performing research.
2. Inside Sales
An inside sales rep is one that works in-house and manages customer relationships within an organization. Their duties can differ depending on the company they work for, but typically they are responsible for reaching out to customers by phone, email, or online.
This role has seen increasing popularity in businesses due to the increase of consumers making online purchases.
3. Outside Sales
This kind of position is what you’d picture as the more traditional kind of sales – one where a rep is required to hit the road and meet with customers face-to-face. They generally spend more time visiting leads and customers more than they would in the office, and may be responsible for following up on leads made in-house.
More and more, inside and outside sales people are being paired for better efficiency. An inside team may create and organize appointments for outside personnel, which is referred to as lead generation.
4. Lead Generation
Some businesses have a team or individual who is solely responsible for lead generation and development. They’re may be tasked with conducting research, networking, and assessing the value of a potential lead.
With the right research and data in-hand, a lead generation specialist could tap into sales potentials otherwise unexplored.
5. Account Manager
In this role you are responsible for managing existing customer accounts. It’s essentially about retaining existing customers, keeping them happy, and finding creative new ways to continue to sell products or services to them.
They also act as a main point of contact for their clients, and will answer questions and provide support if ever needed.
With so many roles out there, it can be difficult to know where you’ll fit in best. If you’re looking for advice then consider talking to a sales headhunter who can use their expertise to determine which of your skills and qualifications are best suited for which role.
