Do I Need a Sales Rep?

How are you progressing with your February Check List?  It can be hard to keep up, but oil those wheels and keep it moving!   You might be wondering if you really need a sales rep, or if it's cool to try to do sales on your own…..well either is totally acceptable to me, it's just a question of what YOU can commit to.  Do you know what you can commit to? 

Let's look at both sides of the coin so you can see what will work for you…..and remember, both are acceptable and no one will think you are lame if you can't, or don't want to do your own sales.  Personally I hate doing sales (you might already know that about me), but at the same time, I KNOW how to do and I am really good at it (hey I did $500K in the first two years of my second company)……and I think that if you discover you don't want to do sales, that you should at least know how, have tried to do it, and can know what to expect if you hire sales reps. 

Question: Do you know what my #1 rule is? 
Answer: Always know HOW to do the job you are asking someone else to do for you.

Let's look at doing your own sales:  Doing your own sales is something you'll need to be able to find at least 2-3 hours a day for…….unless sales are just flooding in, in which case…….get back to shippig sister and read this later!!  What I mean, is that you should be working on the actual sales to stores which includes calling them, emailing them directly, setting up email campaigns, and looking for new stores monthly.  Sound fun?  If you haven't tried it yet, don't knock it.  I always found that to set goals for myself kept things hopping along.  Get a big calendar on the wall just for sales and make a hash tag for each new store in green (for money)  – I guarantee it will inspire you!

What if you want to hire it out?:   There is seriously nothing wrong with this, and frankly, I highly recommend it if you don't like sales, or just don't have the time, or furthermore, if you are bad at it.  Sales are the lifeline of your company so skimping here is not an option!  If you are ready to hire it out, then start looking for reps in the areas that you feel your product will do best.   You can go one of two ways here – either find a fancy showroom, or find road reps – up to you and your budget.   Either way, if you have done some sales yourself, you know what to expect and can stay on top of them.

I'd love to know what works for you so let me know in the comments.

xoxo

Written by Sarah Shaw

There are 4 comments

Sandra says:

February 25, 2014 at 1:10 pm

Great post! As it happens, I am currently looking for a sales rep for our company – do you have tips on where to find skilled help? I've put the fielders out, but no response to date!! Thanks for your help!

Reply

• Sarah Shaw says:

  February 25, 2014 at 1:19 pm

  Sandra,

  Have you tried http://www.greatrep.com?

   

  Reply

Estelle Shaw says:

February 25, 2014 at 2:45 pm

I love the calendar idea.  Putting one up right now. 

Reply

• Sarah Shaw says:

  February 25, 2014 at 2:47 pm

  Awesome Estelle

   

  Reply

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