I Hate Sales People
I HATE sales people. Unfortunately, I have to deal with them to a certain extent, since I am technically a buyer. If sales people had their way, they would waste 4 or more hours of my work day, so I’ve had to resort to screening my phone calls. And, I have also made a house rule that if a sales person calls more then 3 times, they are cut off. I will no longer be placing orders with them. Period. The way I see it is that if you are offering a good product, it will sell itself. If I can use it, I will buy if from you. If you try and force your products down my thoat, obviously the product sucks and I don’t want it.
Last time I went car shopping, the sales guy asked what I was looking for. I told him I was looking for a Jeep, but since they didn’t have one in the color I wanted he said, “How about we get you into a nice Ford Focus…”. I rolled my eyes, turned around and walked off the lot without saying another word to that tool (Although I did want to say, “Fuck you and your crappy Ford Focus too!”). Am I missing something? What exactly does a Ford Focus and a Jeep Wrangler have in common?! Suggesting something so stupid and thinking that you could manipulate me into buying something I don’t want, is just an insult to my intelligence…
LOL yeah, even if you don’t really want it or can’t afford it they’ll try force it on ya because ultimately it pays their wages.
I bought double-glazing some years back and the f**kers kept calling me every month to see if I wanted other products. When I politely told them to piss off they left me alone…
…for a year at least.
Then they came round to my house asking if I wanted new doors for my garage which I sorta did ‘cos I busted the old ones…. I asked the guy to give me a ball-park figure, but no, I *had* to have an appointment and another sales guy came round. He quoted £3000 which I laughed at; then he gave me a 50% “existng customer” discount which I still laughed at - I know the cost of me buying and fitting brand new doors was £700 so in the end he left and I bought new hinges for my garage for £20.
Oh, and then there’s a guy I knew years ago, a friend of a friend, who I couldn’t stand - not just because he was a fag but a salesman too!
He went to sell double-glazing to this family and locked himself in their bathroom threatening not to come out until they bought something off him. The cops were called to get him out of their house.
Another time a hippy wouldn’t buy double-glazing from him. He saw the cannabis growing in the garden greenhouse and threatened to call the cops unless he bought something. He went back later and stole the plants anyway.
Bl**dy Salesmen !!!
I’m a sales person and I wonder every day why I’m mistreated. If you take an extra minute to explain in detail what your objective is while considering a product you might get a better response. If you stop taking calls a sales rep assumes you are away or have been busy and that they are only helping you. Try to treat them like a human being with feelings, a family and hobbies just like you and you might realize you CAN communicate with them and their not just a dog in heat trying to get a bone.
Okay, so this subject is truly comical to me. First off, why would any salesperson even contact the “buyer” unless you’re trying to waste your time? Decisions aren’t even made by “buyers”, but by C-level management. “Buyers” only exist because C-level executives don’t want to waste their time with that stuff. 100 bucks says that this “buyer” moron has to run the decision by his boss anyway. In reality, all a “buyer” is, is just a screening employee that handles bullshit that upper management doesn’t have time for anymore. They’re just as useless as “purchasing managers”, or “inventory control specialists”. Hahaha, please! Anyway, it’s funny how this gentleman laughs at salesman, but in reality, all organizations have these “sales personal” in some form or another. Without salesman, there are no sales. Without sales, you don’t generate revenue. Without revenue, you don’t have a company. So this man should be thanking his sales department everyday for letting him come to work and do his meaningless job. So, for all you discouraged salesman out there, he’s right, leave him alone because you’re targeting the wrong person. Start from the top and not at the bottom. One more thing, always remember, “never take a no from someone that can’t say yes”!
Haha…Whats even funnier is that “salesinfoguy” doesn’t see the irony in what he just said.
Yes, companies do have people that screen out sales calls (they’re called secretaries or office managers), which just goes to show, how annoying sales people can be. It’s worth $50,000 a year to a lot of companies to have someone screen them out.
If you have ever been told by a buyer that they don’t have the authority to make a decision to buy whatever crap you’re selling, they are just brushing you off. I thought that was obvious, but apparently not…haha.
And again, you’re wrong, saleinfoguy…Sales guys do not make or break a company. Perhaps in the old door-to-door saleman selling vaccuums days, but that was a loooooong time ago. Business is booming and I don’t see a single salesperson in sight.
Here we go again, yet another comical remark from this clown. Here, let me slow it down for you this time, since you obviously cannot differentiate fact from opinion. First off, let me say, I do respect your opinion, and the fact that this conversation is becoming engaging, but not really challenging. Summer, I do agree with your comment regarding organizations having personnel screen phone calls, but these “personnel”, do have other functions. They’re sole job description isn’t “Keeping salesman out”. I don’t know about you, but when I look threw the classified ads I don’t see “Help wanted” “Keeping the evil salesman out”. And who’s even heard of a secretary making $50,000 a year! I’d love to live in this fictional world you’ve created in your mind! Furthermore, I never disagreed with you on having personnel screen calls. So, I’m not too sure of what you meant by this sentence. “Whats even funnier is that “salesinfoguy” doesn’t see the irony in what he just said”. If you were paying attention, the simple argument I was making is that sales associates shouldn’t contact “buyers”, or “office managers”, or whatever you want to call it because in the end they don’t make the final decision.
To answer your question of whether a “buyer” has told me they don’t make decisions to brush me off is false. I’ve never been told that because I’ve never targeted buyers. They don’t make decisions! So, I’ll take it rrreeeeaaallllyyyy ssssllloooowww here, and this is for everyone, one more time, DON”T CONTACT BUYERS/OFFICE MANAGERS!! They don’t make decisions! I thought I made myself “obviously” clear in my last posting, but I guess not huh, Summer…
In reality, C-level people are very receptive to taking sales calls This is because they understand the “big picture” when it comes to developing cost saving solutions for their organization. They actually care about the entity. Most of the time “buyers”, “office managers”, whatever you want to call them, don’t understand the big picture, nor care enough about to entity to speak with sales associates.
Finally, It’s truly funny that Summer happens to be in the fashion industry. I’m sure she would never demean famous designers like Gucci, Coco Chanel, Kenneth Cole, Calvin Klein, and Ralph Lauren. At the end of the day, these famous designers are sales associates too. Whether it’s a new great idea to a potential capital investor their selling, or to a large retail store that they want to carry their newest lines of products, or even just to the American public saying their product is better than their competitors, these people are selling too. So, Summer, if you’re telling me that business is booming, it’s because you’re “selling” your product. Might not be door-to-door, but in one way or another, your selling yourself to the potential customer/client, or your company to your target market…
I fear that you are slightly dilusional if you think that you are speaking fact and everything else is opinion.
I’ve given you all sorts of opinions, but this is indeed fact: I hate sale people. And quite honestly your just reinforcing that with your nonsense.
Perhaps you should look at it from a buyers prospective. Do you enjoy it when telemarketers call you? How about when 10 telemarketers call you a day and you are very busy? Or how about when your shopping for something specific (like a Jeep Wrangler) and a salesman tries to sell you something completely different (like a Ford Focus), because they don’t have what you want and they don’t care? They just want to make a sale.
But, I know that you have to keep up the “positive saleguy, everyone wants what I have” attitude in order to live your salesguy dream. Sales people are manipulators (at least the good ones) and I don’t have the time or patience for that bullshit.
Re-reading what you wrote is actually really funny…
“…And who’s even heard of a secretary making $50,000 a year! I’d love to live in this fictional world you’ve created in your mind!…”
Um, my secretary/assistant makes more then $50,000 a year. Maybe you should change careers if you think that’s a lot of money ;)…
Okay, so I think this will be my last post. I’ve obviously wasted enough time engaging in this meaningless conversation that has gone absolutely no where. I know from personal experience that there is truth to what I preach. It’s a proven method. You’re right, fact is, is that you hate sales people. I would never try to change your opinion, but only to try maybe having you become a more open minded person and really think about what you’re saying. That’s obviously not going to happen though. You can kick, scream and fight all you want, but in reality, if you own your own business, you are in sales. You might use different sales tactics, but you’re still selling something. I don’t even know you, but I know you, or someone in your organization has contacted “someone” you thought was interested in your products/services. Hey, who knows, but maybe you thought they were interested, but once you hung up the phone, or left their office, they were annoyed because you were the 30th fashion designer trying to sell them something they didn’t need. Or if you’re strictly an internet business, maybe you annoy people with online advertisements. Like I get from online and brick and mortar stores. So, to sum up that point, I know you sold your idea to a potential investor to fund your operations. But, who knows, maybe you were a millionaire before you started your business? I highly doubt that considering you’re shopping for Jeep Wrangler’s. I mean, what doesn’t your brain understand about that”? You’re basically a hypocrite.
To answer your question of whether or not “I” get “annoyed” with salesman calling me? Nope, can’t say that I do. As the owner, I make the final decisions; I don’t answer sales calls anymore because I’m too engaged with the financial structure of my organization and to which direction we are heading in the future. On the other hand, when my company was first growing, I did get a lot of sales calls. Did I get annoyed then? Honestly, sometimes, but to use the words “I hate sales associates” is too strong for that. I would, on the other hand, at one point call them back, or answer their call at the time received because I was there once and I understand them, business, and what’s involved.
I have two final thoughts. One, sweetie, if you’re shopping for a Jeep Wrangler, go to a Jeep store. You brought that one on yourself. That’s like going to a Ford store when you want a Chevy. Two, according to salary.com, the median expected salary for a typical secretary in the United States is $30,000. So, to answer your question to whether I think $50,000 is a lot of money, sure is for a secretary. You should consider giving her less. Or, maybe you should change careers if you can’t afford anything nicer than a Jeep Wrangler. ; )…
Bye bye!
What a crack up :). Where do these people come from? It’s always the “Anonymous” people that post the most asinine things. Here’s a good read for any one that is impressed by showy material things (actually it’s a good read for everyone):
The Millionaire Next Door
It even has a chapter on sales guys and how they tend to drive the nicest cars that they can’t afford and they piss away all their money trying to look wealthy.
So, go on with your bad self and your 500 series BMW that you lease (because your credit wasn’t good enough for a loan big enough for the 700 series). I’m sure someone thinks you look successful
Hey there Summer..regarding the SALES GUY back and forth debate..sheesh, I’m surprised it went on that long. As for Anonymous, secretaries do make $50k/year you ding dong. Take a look at salary.com in California which is where Summer is. I just wanted to comment on one thing you said, “Sales people are manipulators (at least the good ones).” You know what? I agree with you about the aggravating low food chain sales people (argh!) but I promise you that this is the truth: The “good ones” most often never have to resort to manipulation. In fact, they are sought out as solution providers. They are consulting types and the reason they are good at it is because they care about the customer and about the company.
Although I am mostly speaking of professional sales, let me give you a retail example since that was your focus. You want to buy a house but fear going to a bank or broker because someone is going to try to haunt you for six months once they get your number. So you ask a friend who recently bought a house and she says to try this guy George over at Wamu or whatnot. He took good care of her and so you go there and he’s great. He is not pushy and let’s you make all of the decisions after he gives you all of the info you need to make the decision. You buy the house about a month later. Bingo, a good sales person-why? This person was so great at what he does that he now works on a referral basis.
If you own a company you are selling. Selling to VC’s..selling to investors or selling your company via PR. Just like anything else in life, there’s the ‘good ones and the bad ones.’
Unfortuately in sales, the bad ones are really, really, really bad and I hate them too.
Cheers!
I totally agree. When it comes to something like buying a house. Sales people (real estate agents) are an enormous help. The industry I am in (fashion/retail) is totally different. For example, I was placing an order with a certain company at the last trade show I attended. The sales guys was pushing this one accessory so hard saying it was one of their best sellers, etc. I got sick of his pitch, so I caved and bought a few. It was the worst selling belt of the season…I’m sure he was only pushing it because they had overstock or for some other selfish reason. Not really in my best interest to buy poor selling products so the manufacturer can have more room in their warehouse…
I was googling “i hate sales” and found “i hate sales people”.
I am in the sale of corporate goods to a specific industry, and I am looking for a new career. What I would like to do is share a couple of observations with you.
My own experience…
I am finding that manufacturers in our industry are now either going direct to the customer or they are using box houses and catalogs. Basically trying to eliminate the middle sales person.
However, our customers are finding that dealing with the factory direct is very discouraging (try and get customer support from Sony or Microsoft) because the factory only wants you to buy their products (with very little objectivity) and very little time to spend with you.
Customers are also finding that the catalogs and box houses do not really know anything about the products, they are not experts, and they don’t really even care who you are - because they sell strictly on price.
The role of the customer advocate is gone, and the customer has no one their side.
I see a parrallel to this on the retail side.
[i should note that the internet has helped give people a better sense of control when making purchases, and some companies have developed effective formulas in selling products without a salesperson knocking on your door (I.E. Dell, Apple, Supermarkets, Target, etc.) - although companies like Apple and Dell do still have a corporate sales person calling on businesses]
So here is what I think…
The quantity of sales people with a level of product expertise, a somewhat objective opinion, and a relationship to the customer is diminishing. I think this is how the mom/pop shops began to dissappear as well. It is not cost-effective to “get to know you” - the customer anymore.
The sales person is the one who traditionally you trusted to help take you from your current situation to your goal, and they either took advantage of you, or they took care of you.
Unfortunately, I think you have had at least 1 too many bad sales experiences. I have too. But, i have had some good experiences as well.
How This has effeced my selling…
As a sales person, I have learned how to keep my customer first - always. Then, they come back and take care of me and my family by trusting me with their relationship. It is always a win / win situation with me. You can ask my customers. This is what courses like Dale Carnegie teach. Their philosophy is to always see things from others point of view, and when a sales person does this they become sensitive to you and allow you to guide them in the direction you want to go.
It is sort of like the difference between a mediocre waiter and a fantastic waiter. They both are hoping for a tip, but one of them puts that thought second to actually serving you the best they can. A good sales person will try and earn your relationship not your wallet. The financial compensation then takes care of itself.
So I think there are still good sales people and positive sales experiences to be had. However, How markets will utilize sales people (middle men, catalog orders, or factory direct, etc.) in the future will help determine, I think, the kind of experiences that consumers will have.
Baby and the Bath Water…
Additionally, the exchange of goods and services and money is what makes the world go round, and sales people are predominatly the driving force behind this. If you were to immediately remove all sales people from the world, I believe that the economy would immediately collapse (The Stock Market is buying and selling, for example).
Typically sales people are the last to be let go when a corporation is downsizing because they are typically the only link between the factory and the customer.
So it is quite clear that wether or not sales people are good at what they do in helping to create a positive buying experiences or not, sales people should be around forever in some capacity or another to help glue products to consumers, and keep goods and services exchanging.
Now, i have been debating on whether or not to stay in sales because it is very difficult work (thus the google search for ” i hate sales”). Your teeth get kicked in regularly, you are only as good as your last sale, and the business world is cut-throat. On top of that, I occassionally inherit someone who hates salesmen, and this just ruins my day.
Unfortunately, there are few other career choices where I will be able to meet my financial goals, and still maintain a life for my family.
Also, I have a degree is sociology and the human services industry does not pay.
So I will be here for a while.
Tongue and Cheek…
So what I say is this, You need to buy, and I need to sell. If there is a goal that you need to accomplish and I can help get you there, why not explore the relationship? If I meet or exceed your goals, I get compensated - win / win.
Remember all people (no matter what profession) are people too.
My promise…
I will try even harder to create experiences for my clients that are positive for them.
I hope that your next buying experience is absolutely fabulous.
Michael, Florida
Michael - You have a lot of good points.
I’m not suggesting that all sales people should burn in hell, as I’m sure they are helpful to some people. I simply know what I want, when I want it, so having to listen to the sales schpeel of some guy that is just trying to sell/upsell me something that I don’t want, need or can’t sell, is annoying. Then multiply that by 10, since there are numerous sales guys trying to get me on the phone all day. I just don’t have the time for it. If I need a product, I call and place an order. I don’t need someone “checking up” all the time, phishing for a new order/sale.
Summer,
I happened to have bookmarked your site for some reason, and check back every few weeks to see if somebody else has any thoughts.
no luck so far.
For some reason, even though i don’t know you, i hope you are doing well.
Hi Michael! Thanks, that’s sweet. Everything is muy bueno!
To be perfectly honest I actually typed “I Hate Sales People” into Blackle for the explicit purpose of reading the voracious defenses offered for sales people. This blog did not disappoint - I really enjoyed seeing our sales-guy friend being slapped down repeatedly. His argument crumbled around him when he quoted your secretary’s salary as being almost utopian - personally I wouldn’t bother getting off my ass for $50,000 and if this guy would, I must question the value of even becoming a sales person in the first place! Well done.
I’m not sure how I was being slapped down repeatedly. They responded to the argument, but as far as being slapped, I don’t think so. As far as the secretary line. I only point out that 50k a year is too much to pay a secretary where I’m from, which is Chicago. Reread the post before you reply with dumb shit buddy.
A response typical of the most uncivilized saxonian forms of life. You are, however, correct in one notable point: you weren’t slapped down. You face was repeatedly slammed into the mud. Before advising others to re-read your atrociously worded post, I suggest you do so yourself, for you made no mention of your own state of origin when you blindly ranted that $50K was “too much to pay a secretary.” How embarrassing for you - your attempts to decry Summer’s work led to your own humiliation as you were forced to admit that the meagre salary of a secretary was surprising to you. This would have been laughable, were you not so desperate.
Interestingly, the concept of the humble office secretary has been subject to change in recent times. Secretaries are commanding up to $100K per annum, and rightly so, given that most secretaries are tertiary educated and left responsible for the management of business functioning. I suggest, therefore, that our sales guy friend consider a secretarial position himself, for his ignorant comments are embarrassing him.
Good point about sales idiots pissing away their money. A close family friend of ours recently filed for bankruptcy after attempting to fund a lifestyl he couldn’t afford on a commission-based income…
Hi Summer,
Re your comments about carsalesmen: check out the following link
http://www.edmunds.com/advice/buying/articles/42962/article.html
It’s an interesting account which shows that there are many different sides to a story. I found it most illuminating - and it’s good to know what happens behind the scenes.
Hi!!
I’m a professional salesman and I comprehend as to why so many people hate salesmen.
But hey! Come on people! You’re looking at the lower end of the canvassing side which can sometimes create a negative perception!
And don’t forget that the majority of companies have a sales department which helps to breed the stigma that you love to associate with a salesperson! So look at organisational training strategies and send ‘em a letter if you disagree!
Anyway, just thought I’d say hi; and that we’re not all rogue traders… we’re opportunists!!
But yeah, like Marmite, you’ll either love us or you’ll hate us!
=)
Nomaan Ali
nomaan_ali@hotmail.com
Had a telemarketer call today (I’m still laughing). Advised him politely that I wasn’t interested in his “great offer.” He continued his spiel unabashed - I hung up.
He called back a few seconds later.
“Why’d you hang up on me?” He whined.
I explained that I didn’t have time to listen to “great offers” I’m simply not interested in.
“But I wasn’t trying to sell you anything!” He howled indignantly.
“I was just going to send you a free brochure!”
Some of them will even try to force you to listen to their offer in the name of just publicity even if you tell them politely that you aren’t interested…..they actually need some hate language to stop it. And they say we are helping you…..why the hell would we need their help? We know what we want and would buy it anyways.
These posts are ridiculous. Get a life loser. You people think you’re so important, but nobody even cares about who calls you on your phone. It’s like you guys have a mild case of down syndrome. Who cares if salesmen call you? Is it really so important that you have to have a blog about it? You have nothing better to do? Really, this blog should be about Summer getting plastic surgery on that old dried up face of hers! Oh god! I can’t even look at it anymore, it’s making me sick! Later you mongoloid looking bitch!
Ok here’s the deal…buyers think their sh%* doesn’t stink when they make like probably 60-70k max. I’m in sales, set my own schedule, and make about three times that much. If it hjelps you to be an ass to deal with that conundrum then so be it. I’ll be off counting my money sucker.
I’m a sales person for a IT services vendor. Been doing it for a few months and fuckin’ hate it.You’r right most sales people are loathsome. At least half the guys at work know it. Some hate it, most don’t give a shit…me I’m getting a new job come the new year.
This commentary is hillarious!!
These contrasting articles make very interesting reading! Michael x from Florida and Nomaan Ali from x, together make a very good point. All of your views will be product/service/sector specific. No one can say that all drivers are bad because you were nearly run over by one last week. In the same way, not all sales people are bad because you were ripped off in the past.
Mica Olmert, Sales Director
Summer: How do I reach you to get your permission to use some of your posts for a book I am writting? JC
hi, I have been reading this blog and insulting each other is kind of elementry. Anyways I’m a door to door salesman for home alarm systems. I do not play games with the people and they respect me for that. I am 20 years old and am going to college. Summers I can totally understand where you are coming from. I think that u don’t hate the person but their profession. That salesman should not been selling you something crappy. The reason We are needed is becaue I am able to create a relationship with that person and I am there to educate the person about the business. I get referrals and build our customer base, which is done best by a salesman. That car salesman should have told that gentleman where you could have bought that jeep so maybe that company down the road would send somebody there way. Point being is that nothing gets sold without a salesman somewhere in the business.
Sorry I’m doing this on my phone
Im in sales. What I REALLY do not like is speaking to the chief of a cmpany who is definately interested in my product. He asks me to arrange a meeting with his office manager to ascertain the precise requirements because she has more knowledge on an operational level. Then to report back to him with the findings and present a proposal.
When in fact I do speak to the ‘office manager’ she informs me that she actually knows far more than the chief of the company and she will not meet since they are only going to stay with thier current supplier.
I hate this madness by these lazy, jumped up, incompetent people. They simply cannot be bothered to spend half an hour deviating from facebook, hotmail, filing their nails or whatever other constructive things they do to fill their day. I have to deal with these inept people on a regular basis and generally find that they do not care about their company and have moved on in six months anyway.
I much prefer speaking with C-level peeps since they are more business savvy and will give you a straight, genuine yes or know as to whether my services will fit into their business model
I am working as a salesperson for a company that fixes medical equipment. so they have me call these 1000000000 hospitals every single day to ask them if thy want to send they’re products on and shit like that. I hate it so fucking much!! people is rude to us and I understand that! and I’d be rude to me to if I had a person calling and calling! fuck my job!! it sux dick
This is for anon 2. My friend you have hit the nail on the head.. In my previous posts I mention that prospoecting to buyers or office managers is a waste of time.. It you want to meet with someone that truly is passionate and knowledgable out their company than it is c level individuals. I stopped dealing with buyers and office managers a long time ago.. I figuered that you should never take a “no” from someone who can’t say “yes”.. A little bit of advice and something I use that has worked in the past is to make sure your pitch is geared towards the individual you are speaking with.. If it’s the CEO than gear it more towards company wide objectives.. If it’s CFO than gear it more towards financial.. And if it’s office manager than gear it towards their process/time.. These office mangers do wear many hats within a company and anything that will save them time they will love… Because you right, they want to get back to facebook and their hotmail.. Lol.. Good luck!
Ok people, Sales are the backbone of any organization. No matter what your product line is there must be an end user to it. Sales is everything from someone shoving their product line down someones throught to one person telling their buddy “you should buy this product and this is why….” If sales didnt exist products wouldnt move off the shelf and the world would be full of unemployed people. So for someone to say they hate sales people, that is asinine. Hell this person is selling right now, selling people on his opinions. And not every product sells itself as they articulitely stated. Sometimes you have to show people the benefit of a product before you go ahead and pass judgement on it. All this blog was is someone just being a baby because they probably have nothing better to do. We all have a job out there, and some people are selling products. Get over it
You are an absolute cock, you have no idea of how a buyer should behave, and you are doing your company a disservice. You have an arrogant know it all attitude that will lead to your downfall. You silly silly man with no ability see beyond the end of your snotty nose, let alone see the big picture. You will amount to nothing in life and spend your days as a lowly second rate buyer. Here is a guarantee you can keep - You will never make it to a CXO level in any organization. Looser
Sometimes salesmen can be a pain in the butt. It’s like they speak a foreign language, huh? It kinda helps when you know how to communicate, negotiate, and tolerate salesmen language. I have an inexpensive e-book to help you with dealing with salesman. It’s at http://www.anti-salesman.com if you’re interested.
85% of all CEOs were once salesmen. If you hate salespeople then you also hate America and you hate capitalism. It’s that simple.
When a company is looking to downsize you can bet your bottom dollar that they won’t even consider firing any of their productive sales reps. But those middle managers, pencil pushers, HR people, tech nerds, etc will be out the door with a pink slip in hand in two seconds flat!
Trev you are exactly what is wrong with america
This comment is directed at Trev…
First of all, hating salespeople doesn’t mean that one also hates America and Capitalism. That’s like saying a person who doesn’t like hamburgers also hates beef and therefore hates cows too. Saying someone who hates salespeople also hates America is an incredibly ignorant statement to make, since I also hate pushy, arrogant salespeople, but happen to love my country. And no, it’s not “that simple” … salespeople are a bi-product of Capitalism, not the cause of it.
See, your attitude is part of the reason why Summer, myself, and many others hate salespeople so much … they see everything in life through the Lens of Selling. Summer isn’t writing a blog post … she’s “selling” her opinion, right? WRONG! Hate to break it to you, but most of your stupid little sales metaphors don’t really apply to the reality of life and existence in general. And I’m pretty sure Summer wasn’t thinking “Man, I really want to sell my opinion to someone today … let’s write a blog post!” when she wrote this…
In the defense of all the people you so callously claimed would receive pink slips over a sales rep…
While they can be total dicks too, without middle managers, higher-ups would have to spend much of their time dealing with every employee directly, leaving them less time to actually make the big decisions.
Without pencil pushers, you’d have to fill out all that boring paperwork and do all that mundane data entry yourself, leaving you less time to talk people into buying your crap.
Without HR people, you’d have nowhere to go if you had a complaint or issue in the workplace. There also would be no one keeping track of your personal information, and no one to make sure that precious commission check of yours is correct and accurate.
Finally, without “tech nerds” like me, none of those fancy electronics that you depend on to get your job done everyday would work. Since almost every sales rep I’ve ever worked with is far too dumb or too impatient to ever learn the basics of computer maintenance or how technology works, you’d hopelessly FUBAR your computer, screw up your phone, and succeed in destroying your smartphone, essentially rendering yourself completely useless to the company.
Don’t think for a minute you aren’t replaceable, either, because you certainly are. It’s true that a company wouldn’t replace a productive sales rep, but they also wouldn’t replace a productive middle manager, pencil pusher, HR rep, or techie either. Just because you earn the company revenue doesn’t make you any more important than the people who have to run the big ship that you live and work on.
My apologies to the professional, charismatic people out there who work in sales. Someone who can identify a need and sell a good product or service without being a pushy, arrogant jerk-off is indeed useful, but from what I’ve seen, those sorts of people are outnumbered by the chumps I’m directing this comment at!
I am a receptionist, and part of my job is to screen calls. When I receive calls from sales people, I tell them I can only take messages and forward them, and they normally get upset and start being rude. Once one even told me that she would find out the direct phone number to HR to get me fired, just because I wouldnt transfer her call to the person she wanted. I let my boss know what happened in case HR mentioned anything, and she told me not to worry and that I did a great job. If I were to transfer every sales call I received, I’m pretty sure managers wouldnt have much time to actually work.
It’s amazing so many of you profess to know so much and can’t even spell or use proper grammar. Your opinions are greatly discounted when you can’t even use a spellcheck program.
Most of the people here are making statements about sales and that it’s negative. Clearly they have never experienced what sales really is. True professional salesmanship was abandoned by American industry in the late 20th century. People like to use a car salesman as a good example of sales and it isn’t. A professional salesperson is an expert in their field that works to determine what best meets their client’s needs, then if their product can meet that need they work to educate the client as to the benefits of the product so they can make an educated decision. They do NOT close the prospect. They do NOT pester the prospect. They are there as an expert to help those who need what they offer.
If they cannot get someone to buy without being a “salesman” as you define them, then they are not doing their job and shouldn’t be called a salesperson. And as for a product selling itself if it’s any good, that’s absolutely ridiculous. No one knows everything about everything. Often something is needed and professional expertise is needed to help guide a person through a decision making process. And even more often, someone thinks they know all about a product and they really don’t. A sales professional is there to help get you educated to know what is available in the marketplace so YOU can make the decision without pressure. In fact, a true professional recommends what’s best for you, even if it means they do not sell their product.
If you’ve never experienced that kind of salesmanship, then you’ve never really experienced sales professionalism. Just because somebody calls themself something doesn’t mean that that’s what they are. Someone can call themselves a doctor but it doesn’t mean they really are.
I am currently an inside salesperson,and a lot of the issues brought up here hit close to home. I personally hate sales and the only reason I am doing it is because it’s the only thing hiring in this economy. And while I really do hate knowing that I’m bothering people, and hate thinking about people rolling their eyes when I’m introducing myself, I am only trying to do a job. I completely understand that people are solicited nonstop during their jobs, and I understand that people don’t have time to spend even 15 minutes to discuss the product I offer. Just tell me so. No harm no foul. But the people that act rude to me before I can speak more than 3-4 words, or the people that snarl at me as they hang up before they even know why I calling, these people bother me everytime. And it’s hard not to take that rejection personal. Because I know if these people knew me in real life they would know I am a nice guy, who always tries to be polite and always tries to look at things how other people see it. Those people would never hang up on me. But because I’m some faceless salesperson, its so much easier to treat me like the scorn of the Earth. And I get that it’s part of the job, but it’s tough to be berated like that every day.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not trying to say being a salesperson is the worst thing ever, trust me there are much much worse things in life than making 150 calls to people who hate me before I even talk to them. All I’m trying to say is that there is a person on the other end of that line. A person who might be in sales because they have to be for the moment. A person who is constantly under pressure because they have to make 150 calls a day and only have 250 leads to call from (hence why you get calls multiple times. If I didn’t call you 2-3 times, I’m not doing my job and I’m fired). I know there are shady salespeople all over the place, but let me tell you from experience there are more salespeople out there at my job that are nice people who are trained to be persistent, but also to act as a consultant to the customer, helping to determine if our product can really benefit our prospect. You might not believe me but I am trained to halt the sales process if a customer can not benefit from our product. Now granted these cases are few and far between but it does happen. Most sales companies including mine it is vital to build relationships, not to sell a product to a someone who doesn’t need it. Because if I do that, is that person going to come to me when he needs something else? Hell no.
Anyways, I am rambling. I really respect your opinion. I can’t say I’m perfect. I turn down telemarketing calls when I get them. But I never just hang up on them. All I am saying is that please don’t just rudely hang up on me the next time I call you. At least let me get out what I’m trying to say before saying I am not interested. Because even though it’s assumed that we are hardened to deal with rejection, the fact is most salespeople I know can’t help but be effected when someone hangs up on you. I personally have to take a step back and recover before making another call. And you know what, at least in my line of business, there are really products out there that you never heard of that can benefit your company. I realize that 95% of the time it won’t, but at least listening to a person’s 10 second pitch shows respect to humanity and at least gives you some idea if you will ever consider this product as a potential benefit.
Anyways, whichever way you choose to go, I found this discussion very interesting, and there are several comments on both sides that I agree with.
its amazing how the split has occured between sales people and consumer/potential clients…..let me throw out two points, both of which come from a neutral standpoint.
I own my own buisness and also go through numerous sales calls, but i make sure i really dont want what they offer before i send them away. Imagine sending the sales person away when they could save you 20% on a good, or service?
Second is that in owning my own buissness i actually go door to door, and cold call, as well as direct mail trying to sell my buisness. I am a sales person as well, and am suprised at why everyone hates them.
That sales guy is trying hard to make a living, and probably gets put down 100 times a day, and lashed at.
The consumer also goes through annoyance with calls. My question is…why this split?????
Cant we all be more mature and look even further to the truth to realize we all should be calloborating, and giving each other some patience.
This writer hates his job which is common for confused people. Saying your a buyer and that you hate salesman is the exact same thing as saying you are a doctor and hate patients.
If you hate everyone you deal with how is it that you end up buying from people you hate?
Has this writer never sold himself. How did he get his current job if this is the case?
Your boss would be wise to remove you, because you act emotionally within your job. This is a 100% indication that your not that good at what you doing.
What a prima donna you are! Your the guy that becomes a cop because of an inferiority complex and ends up abusing people. Get over yourself and realize that the world falls the day salespeople stop calling! Dont be upset that all the people that call you have more courage and a better income.
Very interesting thread. It is amazing what the sales profession has done to itself. Decades of hard selling, scams, manipulative tactics, fast talking, over promising and taking advantage of uninformed buyers has established unprecedented distrust.
There are many generalizations about sales reps, buyers and secretaries here in this post.
Just as secretaries rang from a $7.50 an hr call screener/switch board operator to a CEO’s right hand that is involved in critical administrative duties worth every penny of a $75,000 a year compensation package…
The nature, role and necessity of sales reps very by industry and even by company culture. In many instances, sales reps are able to negotiate better deals on behalf of customers or resolve issues and complaints that customer service departments are not empowered to resolve. This especially holds true in the business to business sales environment dealing with Fortune 500 companies.
In some industries, the necessity of sales reps is so extreme that the book of business follows the sales rep. A sales rep can accept a position with a new company, call all his buyers and 90% of them will make the switch based on the relationship alone.
On the other hand, some customers can make informed buying decision through other sources and the sales rep only comes along with harassing calls to up-sell, cross-sell and attempt to manipulate the customer to ring the cash register more often. Move down the hierarchy of sales and you will find the windows and doors prospecting HS drop out or the outsourced script reading India based telemarketer that provides little value to buyers looking to make informed decisions.
You can usually determine fairly quickly what type of sales strategy or tactics are employed by a company or individual sales rep.
The challenge for many sales reps and companies that have adopted a consultative selling or customer centric selling methods is breaking through the negative connotation that the sales profession has established.
Many sales professions enjoy their careers because they enjoy helping people. They are more driven by the appreciation and gratitude received by customers they helped work through a complicated buying decision vs. hitting their quotes or the thrill of closing a deal.
Sales reps their necessity needs to be dealt with on a case by case basis.