what is a sales manager?

As a sales manager, you drive the company's revenue by building and nurturing a high-performance sales team. You guide the sales force to hit revenue targets and build customer relationships to foster loyalty. Aside from training sales reps and motivating them to achieve their goals, you also have administrative duties in the sales department. For instance, you set the monthly targets and sales goals for the year for every sales representative. You also analyse data on past performance and study the market trends to predict future performance.

Sales managers play three key roles in a company: people management, customer management and business management. As a people manager, you empower account executives through training and regularly checking their progress to ensure they meet their targets. As a sales manager, you are the primary liaison between the company and its clients.

You are responsible for building and fostering relationships with various clients and customers. Since you regularly interact with customers, you find new business opportunities and identify ways to grow account revenue. You also ensure the company's products are delivered on time and provide good after-sales services.

Working as a sales manager involves a mix of sales and customer service duties. Some of your sales duties involve creating new business opportunities and guiding clients through the purchase process. Your customer service role comes in when you manage your clients' portfolios and maintain good relationships.

Would working as a sales manager suit your relationship-building and customer service skills? Then read on to find out what competencies and qualifications you need to thrive in a sales manager role.

sales manager jobs
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average sales manager salary

Sales managers in Greece take home an average salary of €65,000 per year, while you can receive an average bonus of two to five salaries. Your compensation package will fluctuate based on various factors, including experience and the size of the sales team you manage. As you gain experience and expand your sales team, your compensation package gradually increases, and you take home over €70,000 annually.

how to increase your salary as a sales manager

Sales manager careers are result-driven, and most companies offer extra incentives for meeting targets. For instance, you are likely to earn bonuses for increasing the company’s revenue or customer base. If you want to increase your earnings, consider working for a larger marketing team. For instance, working with a large company improves your earning prospects since you manage a larger team and can negotiate a higher salary. The industry you work in may also influence your earnings. For instance, selling technology products or high-end luxury items may pay higher commissions and bonuses than selling other items.

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types of sales managers

The types of sales managers depend on the positions they occupy in the company, including:

team working together
team working together
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working as a sales manager

Working as a sales manager is an exciting role with promising growth opportunities. If you are interested in the role, check out the duties, responsibilities and work environments associated with sales managers.

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sales managers skills and education

While most employers emphasise sales skills when hiring sales managers, you require the following qualifications:

  • Education: most employers require a bachelor’s degree in sales, marketing or business administration to become a sales manager. If you have a degree in a different field, you can pursue an executive diploma in sales management to learn managerial skills. If your job involves selling machinery and technology items, you require a technical background in engineering or information technology (IT).
  • Experience: to work in sales, you require extensive experience selling to customers. Your sales and relationship-building skills help you run the sales team. You also need knowledge of using CRM software and Microsoft Office applications, like MS Word and Excel.

competencies and characteristics of sales managers

The main qualities and sales skills of a sales manager include:

  • Active listening skills: as a sales manager, you rely on active listening to understand the client's needs. Your active listening skills help you understand client problems and develop useful solutions. If you want to build your listening skills, try minimising distractions and reiterating what the other person is saying to acknowledge that you understand.
  • Time management: as a sales manager, you require time management skills since you handle various responsibilities. You need organisation skills to maintain regular contact with existing clients and develop new campaign ideas. Time management skills also help you plan sales campaigns and prioritise clients based on their value.
  • Relationship-building skills: as a sales manager, you nurture good relationships with existing clients to generate recurring businesses. You require relationship-building skills to develop and maintain strong relationships with long-term clients. The best way to build a rapport with clients is to understand their needs and provide high-quality customer service.
  • Communication skills: as a sales manager, you liaise with various professionals and perform duties that require excellent communication skills. Your ability to communicate is valuable when negotiating with clients, making presentations to stakeholders and delegating duties to other workers. Your communication skills foster a great work culture since you can brainstorm sales ideas.
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FAQs

Here, you will find the answers to the most frequently asked questions about the profession of a sales manager.

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