Careers advice - Technical Sales type jobs...

[snotrag]

Bit of advice please.

Shortly about to finish a DipHe in Engineering Design, and beginning to look at starting my 'career' proper. Originally intended to do a full Degree but I've struggled with academia and am now mature enough to know I'm far better suited, and quite capable of just getting a job and progressing that way.

I have quite good, and varied work experience for someone my age. I have worked as a Design Engineer for one year for a vehicle manufacturer. I have other work experience on the shop floor of various engineering/manufacturing firms.

I also have a fair bit of retail experience, and have for the past few years also worked in a bike shop, selling high end mountain bikes mainly - now some of you may scoff - but I feel I've got a good knack for selling.

I am good at explaining and understanding technical features, having good product knowledge etc. I know how and why things work and how they are manufactured.

I am beginning to think that a job in a design office is not for me - I fear It may just end up as sitting at a desk driving Autodesk all day.

Someone has suggested I may enjoy some kind of sales/technical/support role.
Working for a manufacturing company, selling their wares.

Will this give me more of a chance to deal with people than a straight engineering role? More chances to get out and about?
I want to combine my engineering knowledge, with the sales side.

Does anyone do this? What kind of things should I be punching into the job search sites?

Am I right in thinking I would be expected to work 'internally' for a while before progressing to a field sales type job?

I am looking for somewhere in Leeds/Sheffield area on the off chance of anyone having any leads!

Edited by snotrag on Wednesday 28th January 20:55

[andy-xr]

Sounds like you're looking more at pre sales than post TBH. If you're looking at IT it's going to be the age old problem of not getting the job due to lack of experience and not being able to get the experience until you have the job

From the research my compay have done, straight forward component parts, general office IT furniture (desktops, servers, printers etc) are set to decline with emerging technologies getting more spend. But seeing as our place is an emerging technology vendor I daresay there's some bias in there somewhere.

[snotrag]

andy-xr said:

If you're looking at IT

Not really looking at anything to do with IT !

[schmalex]

A sales role will naturally mean you spend a lot of time working with different people, both internally & externally.

The typical career progression for a sales person is:

• Tele-sales (to learn the basics of how to sell)
• New business (repping)
• Territory Manager (usually a mix of new business & accounts you have developed in a region)

From there, you can go in lots of different directions:

• Major Account Management (looking after the biggest accounts)
• New Business Management (looking after a bunch of reps)
• Telesales Management (looking after tele-sales)
• Regional / National Sales Management etc, etc,

Sales is a great career and can be very rewarding. However, it can also be extremely frustrating, as you are representing the company to the customer, so if some fkwit in the back room screws up, it is your arse that the customer will kick. Many people in the middle / back end of companies don't understand that whist sales people take a lot of glory, they also take a lot of st on behalf of their colleagues.

Edited by schmalex on Wednesday 28th January 21:00

[andy-xr]

snotrag said:

andy-xr said:

If you're looking at IT

Not really looking at anything to do with IT !

You may as well, it's what everyone else has done when they werent sure what to do

[miniman]

Yep, pre-sales consultant / pre-sales engineer is what you're referring to. Would certainly give you lots of opportunity to get in front of (potential) clients. The biggest difficulty is being able to balance the sales side with the technical side. You need to know enough to answer all the technical questions in detail and present the solution, but also when to shut up and let the sales person do their stuff, which will involve exaggerating, delay tactics and outright lies You will need a rapport with the sales team so you know how to support the way each of them sell, and how to relate the technical stuff to business requirements.

I've done pre-sales on and off for the last decade or so, feel free to ask any questions you like.

[Rob_F]

snotrag - i work in an engineering company in a similar role to that which you describe. I'll drop you a quick PM - if you don't get it put a post up and hassle me!

Cheers,
Rob

[snotrag]

Schmalex/miniman - Thats fantastic, thanks for that.

The progression you listed there certainly looks like something I could aim for.

My experience thus far has made me aware of the double edged sword this kind of thing could be, but it still appeals.

For an employer looking for someone to fill this kind of role, what they going to be looking for? Skills/Competencies?

Rob - thats great, thanks!

[bigTee]

how any a sales role in BT?

[schmalex]

snotrag said:

Schmalex/miniman - Thats fantastic, thanks for that.

The progression you listed there certainly looks like something I could aim for.

My experience thus far has made me aware of the double edged sword this kind of thing could be, but it still appeals.

For an employer looking for someone to fill this kind of role, what they going to be looking for? Skills/Competencies?

Rob - thats great, thanks!

The first thing you should decide is whether you want to be in sales or pre-sales. Miniman's outline of pre-sales was absolutely spot on. I work very closely with my pre-sales guy and to be honest, I would be absolutely buggered without him. We both know exactly how each of us work & where our strengths and weaknesses lie so that we each know when to speak & when to shut up in front of the customer. As a result of this, we have hit my target (multi $m) each year for the past 4 years. For the past couple of years, my pre-sales guy has been on commission so that he benefits from our success as well. IMO, a good pre-sales person is worth their weight in gold.

Anyway, back to relevance.

If you want to get into sales, the SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT thing to do is close in your interview. The number of sales people I have interviewed, who haven't tried to close is staggering. Additionally, I look for an interest in and an enthusiasm for the market you will working in (I don't expect you to know the FAB's of the product / solution on day 1). Try to deonstrate instances where you have successfully negotiated things etc, etc.

[snotrag]

schmalex said:

the SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT thing to do is close in your interview. The number of sales people I have interviewed, who haven't tried to close is staggering.

Can you clarify exactly what you mean by this?

schmalex said:

[ Try to demonstrate instances where you have successfully negotiated things etc, etc.

That is something I definitely could demonstrate - in my current job I might meet the customer on 3 or 4 occasions, from their initial visit, sorting them out with some tests, through to doing a deal, and then a handover.
I enjoy working up a rep with customers for sure.


Rob - that was superb, I'll get back to you.

All this is very useful - as I dont know the correct lingo for the various roles/procedures etc.


Oh, and to clarify - the pre-sales guys are the ones who can introduce the product/service, perhaps doing demonstrations, and the showing off of your fantastic product - where it would be handed over the slaes guys to actually strike a deal or contract...?

Edited by snotrag on Wednesday 28th January 21:38

[Munter]

You might also like A commissioning post for an engineering company. You need to massage the client while you make the technology do what the design says it should, in the time they said it should.

Again you're the middle man between the client and your own company. But with a technical slant.

On the plus side with the right firm you can live practically for free. Always put up near site, food paid, company car. Might get to see the world as well.

Downside. You'll be away from home 5 or 6 nights a week working in the UK or abroad for periods of 6 months or so.

[schmalex]

snotrag said:

schmalex said:

the SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT thing to do is close in your interview. The number of sales people I have interviewed, who haven't tried to close is staggering.

Can you clarify exactly what you mean by this?

Firstly, prepare before the interview. Note down their turnover, no of employees, main lines of business, key customers, countries they operate in, what they do, main competitors etc, etc. When I go for an interview, I always do a D&B check & work through their figures to find out where they are strong & where they are not, as well as all the above + more (Often, I will take 2 or 3 pages of notes about the company in with me).

One of the first questions in a sales interview is always "what do you know about us?". If you sit there doing a good impression of a goldfish, you are scuppered before you even start!!! By doing a little research, you will have something to talk about and ask some good questions of the interviewer.

Closing is literally asking for what you want (the job, order etc, etc)

Towards the end of the interview, ask a number of questions along the lines of:

• How many other people are you talking to & how do I rate against the other candidates?
• What's the next stage from here - who else do I need to meet?
• Is there any reason why I wouldn't got through to the next round?

If it is a second or final interview, just ask "is there any reason why I wouldn't get the role" If they say no, then ask how the final process works. If they say yes, find out what their concerns are and address them (in sales, this is known as "objection resolution").

WHEN YOU ASK THESE QUESTIONS, KEEP QUIET FOR AS LONG AS IT TAKES THE INTERVIEWER TO ANSWER. So many sales people ask a very pertinent question & then totally dilute the impact by then waffling, as they hate the sound of silence!!!

If you haven't done this before, it may feel a little embarrassing, but really, it is what the Sales Manager is looking for. Practice a little bit beforehand so that you don't feel uncomfortable when you start the closure.

snotrag said:

Oh, and to clarify - the pre-sales guys are the ones who can introduce the product/service, perhaps doing demonstrations, and the showing off of your fantastic product - where it would be handed over the slaes guys to actually strike a deal or contract...?

Bang on. The pre-sales & sales person should act as a strong team, whereby the sales person isn't embarrassed to do the commercial stuff infront of the pre-sales person (a lot of the commercial qualification can sound pretty crass but it is as important to the sale as making sure that the kit does what the customer needs).

Edited by schmalex on Wednesday 28th January 21:55

[snotrag]

Schmalex thats fantastic. Although obviously not to the same level, I certainly understand what you mean now as that process is what I have to go through at work with our customers.

Edited by snotrag on Wednesday 28th January 21:55