SALES AGENT: ROLES AND PROFILE - JOB - 2024

The sales agent is the one who sells retail products, goods, and services to customers. Work with clients to find what they want, create solutions, and ensure a smooth sales process. You will also work to find new prospects to sell, through business directories, client referrals, etc.

Sometimes you'll focus on inside sales - which generally involves making calls to potential customers while you're in the office - or outside sales, which involves visiting new or existing clients outside of the office. Often times, you will work as a mix of inside sales with outside sales.

Companies are looking for a well-rounded, organized, detail-oriented sales agent to join the sales team, as he will play a key role in exchanging information about the company and its products.

In short, this agent will find sales opportunities, offer strategies, and sell the company's products.

What does a sales agent do?

A sales agent serves existing customer accounts, taking orders from them and establishing new accounts in their customer base.

Client service

- Plans and organizes your daily work schedule to call and visit existing or potential customers and other business factors, to assess their needs or promote products and services, and answer questions about credit terms, products, pricing and availability.

- Adjust the content of sales presentations, studying the type of customer or business factor to visit.

- Resolves customer complaints by investigating the problems raised. Develops solutions, preparing reports and making recommendations to management.

- Create and maintain a database of potential clients. Focus sales efforts by studying the existing and potential number of distributors for the products.

Administrative functions

- Prepare and send orders, referring to the price lists and the product catalog.

- Maintains a record of calls made through the computerized system.

- Deliver specific and personalized sales strategies. Comply with all established internal and external sales quotas.

- Provides historical records, by keeping records about your area and sales to customers.

- Keeps management informed by presenting activity and results reports, such as daily call reports, weekly work plans and monthly analysis of the assigned territory.

Marketing function

- Coordinate sales efforts with established marketing programs.

- Check the competition by gathering updated market information on prices, products, new products, delivery times, marketing techniques, etc. Research potential comes from business directories, web searches, or digital resources.

- Recommends changes in products, services and policies by evaluating the results and developments of the competition.

Other functions

- Contributes to the effort of the sales team to achieve the required results, meeting or exceeding sales targets, and works with the sales team to close sales.

- Maintains technical and professional knowledge by attending academic workshops, analyzing technical publications, creating personal networks and participating in professional associations.

Profile

Personal requirements

- Ability to work independently or as an active member of a team.

- Possess self-confidence, positive mindset, with the ability to manage territories effectively

- Reliable, hard-working, enthusiastic and persuasive, with the ability to multitask

- Ability to maintain a neat and presentable personality.

Customer service skills

The most important premise to keep in mind is that the customer is always right. Therefore, you will need to be able to speak in a friendly manner with both existing and potential customers, listening to their needs and helping to communicate options to them.

You must have excellent interpersonal skills, including the ability to quickly establish rapport with customers and suppliers, always being customer-focused to win sales. Additionally, you must have the ability to meet sales targets.

Communication skills

You must have excellent communication skills, as you must continually talk to customers about the various functions of the items you sell and clarify any questions and concerns that may arise. Likewise, you must have the ability to negotiate and close a sale.

You need to have excellent verbal communication skills to be comfortable making cold calls and talking to new people much of the day. Also, you must be able to show patience and enthusiasm when communicating with potential clients.

You must have the ability to communicate professionally and confidently with diverse groups of people, as well as the skills to deliver oral presentations both at internal sales goal meetings and for customers.

Constancy

You must understand that not every customer is going to be a sale. Therefore, the sales agent has to have the ability to recover from losing a sale and never give up, as this will be essential to his job.

It will be vital to maintain the tenacity to handle rejection and to continue with a positive attitude when reaching the next potential customer.

Flexibility

It is very possible that you have to work long hours, nights or weekends. Therefore, you must have strong sales motivation, as well as the ability to work comfortably and accurately in a fast-paced environment under pressure, to meet competitive deadlines.

Professional requirements

A person can become a sales agent without a high school diploma, although companies often prefer people with at least high school graduates.

The professional profile required ideally is that the sales agent has a bachelor's degree in business, marketing, economics, or another related field.

Sales agents must fully know the company's products to sell, both inside and out, as well as a deep knowledge of the company's services and its position in the industry, which is why most of their training it will be done at work.

Other professional requirements of the sales agent to perform their duties efficiently are:

- Understanding of the sales process and its dynamics from start to finish. It is recommended that you have sales experience.

- Experience in using computers and the Internet for a variety of tasks, such as research and exploration.

- Solid computer skills, including Microsoft Office applications (Word, PowerPoint, Outlook and Excel).

- Management of the assigned sales territory.

References

1. Monster Worldwide (2018). Sales Representative Job Description Sample. Taken from: hiring.monster.com.
2. Betterteam (2018). Sales Representative Job Description. Taken from: betterteam.com.
3. (2018). Sales Representative Job Description. Taken from: snagajob.com.
4. Zip Recruiter (2018). Sales Agent Job Description Sample Template.
5. JD & RE (2018). Sales Representative Job Description Example, Duties, Tasks, and Responsibilities.