Need a job? Thought of sales?
It just doesn’t sound sexy: sales. No six year old dreams of someday growing up to be in sales.
But there is a huge demand for salespeople these days, according to the Wall Street Journal. The jobs pay well and can offer stability, but there’s not a rush to apply.
Tom Bloomer, author of “Okay Boomer – Teach Me Sales,” teaches sales, and says young people today underestimate where they can go with skills they’ve developed on their own. “I love when I have that Best Buy encounter, and I need a particular new device, and I have someone who is knowledgeable, and asks the right questions, that really wants to make sure that I make the right purchase. That’s a good sales person.”
Sales is ultimately a partnership between someone needing a solution and someone who knows the options.
Bloomer has advice for young people looking at career choices. “Get started right now,” he suggests. “Because of a lot of companies through the pandemic have depleted sales teams. There are some amazing positions available in sales and now is the time.”
There is a generational shift at play hollowing those ranks of sale staff. One of the best traits for success in sales is strong interpersonal skills, and a generation who has grown up most often facing a device screen may be inhibited by face to face contacts. But by the same token, they are a generation who invented online “influencers,” who are nothing if not successful sales people, so perhaps they will find their own path to success. Have a following of two million and companies clamoring for your endorsement? Now THAT'S sexy!
The jobs are out there to try.
photo: Getty Images