Black Sales Journal

The interview skills that you honed have been superb, and your ability to stay focused during the group interview was exemplary. The list of accomplishments on your resume gave you credibility, and your vision showed well.

Now, you have the pleasure of being selected for the job you coveted. Job one now is to make sure that you get a “deal” that you can live with. Too many sales professionals have avoided the discomfort of negotiating, which should be what you do best, and have settled for something that they later regret.

Salary- Know the Landscape

There is nothing more compelling for a sales professional than getting paid what they are worth. In order for this to happen for you, you need a brief education and awareness of the salary landscape. Getting what you deserve requires this understanding, as it is the basis for your ability to effectively negotiate. This requires some background, some homework, and a little bit of intuition.

The good part is that if you’re currently an employee of the desired company, you most likely have knowledge of their compensation. Also, the databank of information that you have accumulated during your business and sales career, no matter how long it has been, is useful.

One useful yet controversial “tool” that will help to define the landscape is called Glass Door. Many professionals from numerous occupations use this tool, and it is abused by just as many. One of the most common uses is to determine a baseline and as I explain further you will have better understanding of Glass Doors’ worth and veracity. I will provide a link to Glass Door’s site below, but first let me give you some caveats.

Glass Door depends on user/member reporting to build its database of information. Each participant must give up some information on himself or herself before having full access to the information provided by others in this database. It is extremely popular at this time, yet is probably to some degree a good place for “liars poker” as well. With that in mind, I suggest you take it with a “grain of salt.” It does not mean that you can’t use this in your quest for information, but you do need to do it with an understanding of the limitations of the tool.  You can get to Glass Door by using this link, or putting http://www.glassdoor.com in your browser.

Glass Door gives you salary information on a number of different positions, including those involving sales and service. Interestingly enough, that may include sales positions at your current employer, as well as sales positions at your prospective employer. It also factors in your geographic area as well.

This gives you a jumping off point, as you look to understand what sales professionals of like experience and position will make. Keep in mind the Glass Door is not limited to sales.

This tool gives you more information than salary.  Keep in perspective.

Before we leave this brief discussion on salary expectations and requests we should also recognize that the salary probably should not be your driving issue. You’re driving issue probably should be total compensation, and that should will be driven by the strength or weakness of the sales compensation plan that you are on. You will need a solid review of the plan to get an idea of your earning potential.  You should ask questions liberally, and I would suggest that you see the mechanics of the plan using some real sales situations.

You should get this in spoken to in the offer letter.

Lock in your “Conditions”

I will simplify this to avoid confusion. Your “conditions” would be anything that is not salary and not employee benefit driven. This will include the following items:

• Territory
• Goal Expectations
• Expense allowance–per diem
• Company Vehicle
• Inherited business
• Inherited prospects
• Issues regarding assistance and support
• Expectations on any legal costs and issues regarding any non-competes or contracts

These items are important as well, and need to be negotiated just like the salary. I call them conditions because they are a condition of the agreement that should be observed by either party.  These are part of the employment agreement and should be discussed and recorded.

Above all, get it in writing.

Lock-in your benefits

This is ultra important, not because it makes the job any less difficult, but because it makes the working conditions palatable.

I would include in that discussion the following items:

Vacation
Personal days
Employee Benefit Issues

You may not be negotiating employee benefit issues as they should be going “by the book”, yet you should get definite clarification on these issues and have a meeting of the minds as you will feel abused if you lose a dispute about these in the future.

Above all, get it in writing as no one wants to hear what you understood to be the deal; they want to see the agreement.  Remember, as you have heard before, it is not what you know; it is what you can prove!

The Power of Commitment

I think that you know my sentiments reducing all agreements to writing.  It is best for both sides.  You should also be prepared to live with it.  You negotiate for a living, and this is the most important negotiation that you are going to be involved with for years to come.

Do your homework, and be knowledgeable.  Close the deal and get to the business of selling.  No one likes surprises!

Next Post will cover the actual salary negotiations.  Knowing the landscape puts you in position.

Good luck and good selling.

We welcome your comments.

This is an interesting topic, and that is why we would like to cover it here.  God has given us the gift of being different.  We come from so many backgrounds that it is difficult to point them all out.  There are as many variations in our culture as there are reasons to rejoice about it.

I am going to give a definition of your culture that is slightly shortened from Webster’s Online Dictionary (Definition of Culture):

The integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior that depends upon the capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations.  Additionally, the customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social groups.

In other words, that which is part of you because of your surroundings and your past including that which is learned and absorbed, and that which you will be passing on to others.

This is a broad interpretation.  I think you will agree that it is interesting that culture, in the form of one’s diverse background can actually be a lightening rod for criticism or even a reason for exclusion in the world of corporate employment.  Comfort, likeability, even preference is affected by one’s background, color, and certainly culture.  Now these are not synonymous at all, they just blend to make a concoction that many employers avoid drinking.

Decisions on hiring, promotion, and even things as simple as who gets referrals and redistributions are done on the basis of how you are perceived.  Is it always fair?  I am more than certain that it is not!

What Are You Suppressing?

It is always wise to be yourself while in the office or work environment, as it is easier that way.  But…the self you need to be is the one that not only got you hired, but the one that can sustain your employment.  I am not saying you should be a chameleon.  You need to know how to be you, the business professional during the hours that you are selling the services and products that provide your living.

The workplace is a vessel of many principles and traditions.  You don’t have to conform to all of them, yet need to know which ones are important enough to follow so that you don’t damage your chances of success.

Suppress your culture?  Suppress it only if your culture runs afoul of the principles and traditions of your customers and your employer, and then, you only need to suppress it at work.  Should you wear your culture on your sleeve while you are at work?  I think you will agree that the answer is a resounding NO!

Let’s be Practical

Here is a brief look at some of the situations that commonly occur just to give some practical perspective.

Promotion - Your interview for a promotion is much anticipated.  You are working, in a conservative industry (commercial banking), for a conservative bank.  What do they expect from you in terms of your delivery, your approach to customers, your educational background, and your appearance?

Job Interview – You are in search of a position fitting your years of experience and your success in the past.  You are known as a solid sales professional and you want to move up in position by taking a sales manager role.  In addition to all else, your results have indicated that you are the likely candidate.  What will get you hired in this coveted position?

Reduction in Force – You are a solid performer, yet you recognize that they are considering layoffs in your sales department.  You feel you are a key performer, yet realize that there are others who have done a good job as well.  Your numbers are solid, and your product and industry knowledge are exemplary.  How are they going to make that decision as to who stays and who goes?

In each of these examples, there are two common denominators.  One is the fact that you are competing against others.  The other is that you still have a customer who has expectations from a business standpoint.

In each of the above, you could have problems if you stray from being race neutral in your approach.  Also note that you still deal with the forces of the 3P’s, Perceptions, Preference and Prejudice. Cultural diversity can and will sensitize this.  Whether you are black, brown, tan, yellow, or white, you need to recognize that if you are race neutral in your professional manner, you have a better chance of professional success.

I don’t care whether you are white or brown, if your organization has a policy against dreadlocks, braids, and Mohawks, you may want to avoid fighting it, and consider a profession or employer who does not care.  Keep your individuality, and exercise it when you are on your own time.

If tattoos and piercings are part of your culture or appearance, you should consider a sales career where those things don’t matter.  Most sales careers are not the place to be too different as there is a customer out there who will make the decision on degree of difference.

There is no doubt that you need to be the image of the consummate professional in the customer’s eyes.

Is this selling out?

This is a good question.  What I am actually sa

ying is that you must play the professional role in this theater.  Be as different as you want during your off hours.  Your alternatives to conforming are self-employment and other careers.  You are not selling out by being the professional.

One Last Word

You can be an activist in the street, a militant about social issues, or a pacifist about conflict.  I am advocating that when it comes to professional sales, be the consummate professional (while at work) who is also an activist in the street, a militant about social issues, or a pacifist about conflict.

It can be done.  It is done in sports and in many other arenas.

Be the best!

Your comments are welcome.