Manufacturing sales representatives sell goods for wholesalers and manufacturers to the businesses clients and customers, who could be private individuals, or government agencies or other establishments. They interact with customers, explain product details, respond to any questions that their customers may have, and negotiate prices.
Most manufacturing firms sell their products to businesses, other industrial firms, and retail outlets through their own sales representatives. Commonly known as sales reps or manufacturer's reps, these sales workers are thoroughly familiar with their employer's product and often provide advice and technical expertise to the customers they service.
When the product sold is highly technical, such as computers or industrial equipment, a manufacturer usually employs engineers or other technically trained people for sales. These sales engineers or technical sales workers may design systems for the client, supervise installation of equipment, and provide training for the client's employees who will use the new equipment or material. Most manufacturers' sales representatives work in the wholesale trade. Others are employed in manufacturing and mining.
Places of Employment and Working Conditions
Certain manufacturing sales representatives are assigned huge regions and may have to travel extensively. Since a sales region may cover several states, sales representatives may be away from home for many days or even weeks at a time. However, those who cover a lesser area may spend a few nights away from home and family.
Manufacturing sales representatives spend a lot of their time on the phone, selling goods, taking orders, and settling problems or complaints about the produce. Nowadays, much of this work is done online via email and video chat.
Workers in this profession can be under substantial strain and anxiety since their income and job security often depends directly on the amount of merchandise they sell, and their companies usually set targets or quotas that they are anticipated to be met.
Some sales reps work out of local or regional offices, which keep them fairly close to home. Others cover large territories and do a great deal of traveling. Since they almost always work on commission, successful sales reps spend as much time as possible calling on customers during business hours and do any necessary traveling evenings and weekends.
Qualifications, Education, and Training
Selling skills, assertiveness, a pleasant personality, physical stamina, and the ability to get along with all kinds of people are necessary for this job. A college preparatory course should be followed in high school. Part-time or summer job experience in sales is valuable experience.
A college degree is becoming increasingly important for those who wish to work as a manufacturer's sales representative. Manufacturers of nontechnical products often prefer a liberal arts, business administration, or marketing degree. Other employers have special educational requirements. Pharmaceutical retailers (drug sales workers) sometimes need training at a college of pharmacy; chemical manufacturers often require a degree in chemistry; a computer manufacturer might hire only electronic engineers for its sales positions.
Regardless of the field, employers usually provide a training period of up to two years for new employees. Some training programs consist of classroom instruction plus on-the-job training in a branch office under the supervision of a field sales manager. In other programs, trainees are rotated through a number of jobs and departments to learn all phases of production, installation, and service of the employer's product before being assigned to a sales territory.
Potential and Advancement
Wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives hold 1,800,900jobs as of 2015. The employment growth outlook for this field is average—about 7% according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics—through the next decade, as the demand for more and more technical products will increase the demand for technically trained sales workers. Employers are expected to be very selective, however, and those with solid educational backgrounds will get the choice jobs. Experienced and hard-working people in this field can advance to branch manager and district manager positions and to executive-level positions such as sales manager. Many of the top-level corporate positions in industry are filled by people who started out in sales positions.
Income
Manufacturer's sales representatives may be paid in a number of ways-a salary (usually for trainees), salary plus commission, or straight commission. Many companies also provide bonuses based on sales performance. The highest starting salaries are paid by manufacturers of electrical and electronics equipment, construction materials and goods, food products, rubber goods, and scientific and precision instruments.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage of manufacturing sales representatives was $59,080 in 2015.
Reimbursement procedures for representatives differ considerably by the type of firm and the product sold. Most employers use a combination of salary and commissions or salary plus bonuses. Commissions typically are based on the monetary worth of sales. Bonuses may depend on individual performance, on the performance of all sales workers in the group or district, or on the company's performance.
Related Jobs
Related jobs include manager, engineer, wholesaler, advertising sales agent, insurance sales agent, purchasing manager, buyer, purchasing agent, real estate broker and sales agent, retail sales worker, sales engineer, and securities, commodities, and financial services sales agent.
