The role of a sales manager is often confused with a sales representative's role.
Sure, the ideal sales team member is expected to be able to think strategically, negotiate well, and be great with people. What separates the Sales Manager is their ability to lead the entire team. And in many cases they need to be able to CREATE the team.
Some Sales Manager Tasks
In my many years of work with large product launches, I've actually been the sales manager for years. What a sales manager is asked to do varies a ton!
Hire & train sales people
Setup pricing strategies
Setup who works on what accounts, quotas, commissions
Calculate sales rep commission checks
Work with the marketing department (or BE the marketing department in small businesses)
Coordinate with product development for new product releases
Book and attend certain sales meetings
Even ship out samples sometimes
Sales managers are also involved in training sales reps on the product's features and benefits. Depending on how you setup your business, you might ask your sales manager to lead all activities at trade shows. (Read my proven tactics for great trade show results in this Entrepreneur magazine article. Or in our previous article.)
In the following audio, we discuss sales manager responsibilities and expectations.
This audio is part of our Product Power Coaching call series. Click here to join the complimentary calls.
Make sure you are hiring the right skills for this important position if you are bringing in a sales manager. They will need to be comfortable leading people.
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