Frank Farrelly, Sigmar Director of Sigmar Sales and Marketing, takes a look at the current market for sales professionals.
31st March 2011
There is strong demand for candidates at a ‘Sales Rep’ level. There is weaker demand for more senior candidates and graduates.
Another factor is your type of sales role. Account Managers and Field Sales Managers are not in high demand, while Telesales and Business Development professionals are. Therefore such candidates have a choice of roles and the pressure is upward on salaries which can baffle companies looking at the bigger picture.
From the client side expectations can be too high. Take the ICT market where demand has remained strong. Some companies when they see the fall in the macro market assume that the salaries in ICT have reduced also. They look to recruit at a salary which will not attract the right level. So each company needs to look at its sector first and benchmark within it to get a realistic picture of what salary will attract the right caliber candidate.
What can candidates do?
1/ Drop their salary expectations,
2/ Re-skill
3/ Leverage off existing sales skills to move sector.
In reality this is easier said than done. A recent phenomenon is that experienced candidates are going for more junior jobs. Companies can be wary of this as they feel candidates will leave if things pick up. Again this can be frustrating for candidates.
My advice is to be flexible on salary but try and stay close to where you are career wise. For example, if you are a sales manager you should not drop below a senior sales consultant even if you are dropping 30-40% on salary.
Predictions for Sales Jobs Market in 2011
ICT will remain strong. There is still ongoing demand in these areas.
Specific areas of FMCG will still experience shortages, for example National Account Managers.
Telesales consultants, business development executives and sales professionals with specific languages can attract a premium on salary this year. For example Dutch and German candidates are in demand.
There were a large number of commission only sales roles in 2010; this will die out as good sales people will have better options. Commission only roles are a great way for people without sales experience to get a start. Traditional areas like advertising sales will bounce back but with more of a focus on the online side.
During the last few years many people who wanted to move did not. Therefore the ‘market churn’ was low. As confidence in the market improves as we expect it to, then more people will move resulting in more vacancies. I do not see it returning to the chaotic levels of 2005-2007. Some people are hanging on in jobs they dislike or are de-motivated in. In Sales this is very counter productive. I would argue increased churn would be a good thing. I would recommend that candidates do get two to three years in a job and certainly not less than one year.
Overall while it will be better than 2010 it will remain more of an employers market. Candidates will still have to hustle. Risk taking companies can get a high return if they grow their sales force and grab market share.
