Sales jobs with OTE

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When you were on the phones just as a rep what was the most you ever made if you don't mind me asking. The most I've made in a year is 37k.

I agree with the points you made that there are some really ****ty commission only types of jobs out there.

Would you recommend a B2B sales career within the SME market if I came upto you as a newbie and said I wanted to get into sales and have just had this job offer with a company who does outbound b2b calls and I get 12k a year with commission on top OTE is 25k.

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probs about 10k less than that when i was doing b2c

and to be honest it would heavily depend on how you came across in the interview. your new which means you have no practical experience (something oft looked for in b2b). however your new which means you haven't picked up the calling habits and rapport building of b2c agents which has lets be fair a more impersonal approach both in appearance (still makes a difference over the phone) and in manner.

I am (was) willing to give people who impress me a chance, my boss wasnt only seasoned b2bers

Reply 21

socialnoob

Thanks for that reply. So you think there is more money to be made in b2c sales do you?

How easy do you think it is to earn 25k in b2b, I think it's pretty easy and have done it year in year out.

What I find is that with b2c you have to sell the sizzle whilst at the b2b level you have to sell the steak.

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Reply 22

IloveDisney

I have an interview lined up at Metamorphose for a sales and marketing role, which embarrassingly enough, I don't remember applying to! The role is mainly B2B sales, and I feel absolutely terrified as I have only ever had a standard retail B2C sales job. Anyone heard of this company? The pay is 21k, commission upto 30k, no idea if that's good or bad or even realistically possible to get that much commission!

Reply 23

socialnoob

Original post by IloveDisney

I've never heard of the company if the basic is 21k that is very high. Which is a good thing! Generally speaking any company that offers a 15k plus basic is going to be a good company to work for. That's been my experience. Go for the interview I'm getting good vibes from it already. If 30k is the OTE and the basic is 21k then it seems very likely that you will hit the 30k mark. The difference between 21k and 30k is only 9k.

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Reply 24

IloveDisney

Thank you for your reply :-) Oh really, that's Feb, hoping whatever happens for the best! X

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Reply 25

IloveDisney

This might sound really stupid but I am rather clueless, why is it they look for people for no experience in b2b sales?

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Reply 26

socialnoob

Original post by IloveDisney

This might sound really stupid but I am rather clueless, why is it they look for people for no experience in b2b sales?

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Most companies do actually ask for previous b2b experience the ones that don't rightly or wrongly, believe that B2C salespeople transitioning into B2B sales come with too many bad habits which are too hard and expensive to rectify. Selling to C level executives requires a completely different approach to when you are selling to "normal people".

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(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 27

IloveDisney

Original post by socialnoob

I agree, B2B standard is totally different. Although from what I've seen with these roles posted online, they all say ''no experience required, training will be provided''! I guess that's good for me, hopefully won't expect much from me in the beginning then :tongue:

Reply 28

Interchange

Original post by old glory

How credible are these OTEs? I find the idea of second year £80,000 OTE ridiculous, but are they?

Hi,

Generally the higher the basic the more credible the OTE. Not just because more of it is basic wage but because reputable companies will pay more. Anything commission only is generally crap but not always.

80k OTE with no experience is unrealistic I think. Reputable companies do not set unrealistic OTE. Sales has a high turnover of staff and bad companies will put a high OTE in order to attract money hungry people (who make the best salespeople).

Field sales pays more than telesales, in commission and basic. Generally.

It all depends on the company though.

Reply 29

TinFish

They are 'selling' you the job lol.

Reply 30

socialnoob

Original post by IloveDisney

How did the interview go then? Any news?

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Reply 31

IloveDisney

Original post by socialnoob

How did the interview go then? Any news?

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The interview was great, a bit too great lol. He offered me the job on the spot, and he was really nice but he kept continuously 'complimenting' me to the point where I felt awkward. I told him I won't be free until I finish university in May, and he kept trying to persuade me to take a job on now (full-time as well!). I rejected it and he told me to stay in touch throughout so when I'm free they have all sorts of jobs available etc. Not really feeling it though anymore, the company came off desperate. Saying that, I'm desperate for a job haha so just going to wait till summer and see what happens!

Reply 32

socialnoob

Original post by IloveDisney

Yeah he does seem a bit desperate to be fair! What were they selling? Seems like the company has a high turnover rate, always a worry.

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Reply 33

IloveDisney

Original post by socialnoob

Yeah he does seem a bit desperate to be fair! What were they selling? Seems like the company has a high turnover rate, always a worry.

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To be honest, I'm still not sure what the actual job is lol. But I think it's just a recruitment company, he was offering me some marketing role in Heathrow offices etc. Only about a week ago he rang again and kept saying please please apply for this job, it's some FedEx sales job role. I told him I would apply (but I haven't haha, not interested in it!). Ah well, everything happens for a reason :smile:

Do you have a job?

Reply 34

John - Recruiter

Hi everyone, I was reading this thread and have just signed up to TSR to see if I can offer some advice. I'm a graduate recruiter myself now and have used my own agency and others in previous job searches so hope I can offer some help and advice. I wanted to start by answering the original question: how credible are these OTEs?

Your OTE is your ON (not over) Target Earning. It means that if you hit your targets, you can expect to take home the advertised amount.

How realistic are they? Well herein lies the question, one that can only be answered by an honest recruiter, (there aren't many of us!) or an honest interviewer.

Asking about the commission structure at interview (I would advise asking the employer as opposed to the recruiter) is crucial to be able to understand if the OTE is realistic. Part of this will include what your targets actually are - are they realistic?

Basic salaries - if you're serious about sales, and an employer is serious about you, you shouldn't be offered less than 18k. Commission only jobs aren't scams but if you don't deliver you get nothing. I always thought that unfair and now every job we work on has a minimum basic salary of £18k.

B2B sales and recruitment aren't easy but good jobs do pay. I had one sales job where all I earned was £21k basic and didn't generate any commission. In my next job in recruitment (where I am now) I earned £45k in my first full year post probation (I.e. months 4-15).

If anyone has any other questions for me, fire away!

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Reply 35

Josh1702

Hi IIm new to the world of sales, but have an induction day at a company selling high end health and well being products. They offer 1200 a month basic pay and commission ontop but you only get basic pay if you make 60 appointments for the month. Does this sounds realistically achievable to you? Especially as I'm new to this and need to learn?
Thanks Josh

Reply 36

Doones

Original post by Josh1702

That's roughly two per (working) day. Sounds easy but probably isn't... it will depend on how good the leads are that you are contacting. I presume it's a call centre? Or is it face-to-face? Face to face might be easier. Cold calling from a call centre (or appointment setting) is very tough...

Ask them what % of new recruits actually hit the target in their first month. (Although they might lie...)

Reply 37

Vereor

As others have said OTE is on target earnings, not over target earnings.

Sales jobs (b2b or recruitment) are hard work, there's no two ways about it.
I've been working 12 hour days 5 days a week for the last 4.5 years as an engineering recruiter to the oil and gas industry. I cannot stress enough that you will not have time for a social life during the working week.
If you have made plans but a client asks you for something at 6pm, then its tough and you're working until 10pm.

The money has been great and I've had some truly wonderful experiences that I don't think would have been possible otherwise.
I started on £18k basic and made £32k overall in my first year (OTE was £30k, almost the entire office surpassed targets).
Last year (year 4) I made £25k basic and made £45k overall. I've also got a decent pension already built up and I've had a company car for the last 3 years.

Look for a company with low turnover of staff. I worked in IT recruitment for a grand total of 6 weeks before I took the oil and gas job. That was awful, the targets were unreasonable, the commission was crap and people regularly broke down in tears in the office. I was the 8th person to leave (from an intake of 10) in 6 weeks.

In my company my manager had been there 10 years and my other colleagues 3 or 4 years plus when I started, that's a good sign. Take a look around when you interview, do people look happy?
There will normally be sales boards up in any target driven office.. are people generally achieving what your target will be?

After the first fiasco I went into sales with my eyes open as I had some good advice from acquaintances so I'll share that. Go in with an idea of what you want to achieve and then have an exit plan.
My plan was always to clear my debt from university, buy a house and get married. Then get out with enough money in the bank to retrain comfortably.
It doesn't sound a lot but I think I would have struggled in most other roles straight out of uni to cover the above £50k while at the same time maintaining a pretty good lifestyle.

Despite the long hours the perks have been pretty good. I've eaten in a number of Michelin starred restaurants, been to the Savoy more times than I care to remember.
I've had a presidential suite at the top of a hotel in Marbella and last month spent £1500 taking a client out for a meal at the top of the shard (the wine was £400 a go and we had 3 bottles).

Only work professional recruitment or high end sales.
By that I mean look for companies interested in the big picture, high margin stuff.
It's better to do the work getting one job covered for a £160k salary (£28k fee) than running around like a blue arsed fly trying to cover 8 jobs at £20k.
In professional services you're also likely to be dealing with managers in a lot of companies, it isn't ever going to hurt to have those contacts.
Engineering (building services and rail are big at the minute), finance, IT (management and director level) and marketing recruitment are good examples of busy markets at the moment.

At the end of this month I finish here and I'm going retraining as a caseworker with HMRC. The money is crap (£23k) but now I've done what I set out to do its more important to me to enjoy a better work life balance (37.5 hours a week is going to feel like part time!). I'll pick up some qualifications and fund some of my own and hopefully its the start of a new chapter.

The above is an honest account of my experience, I've had days where I've felt so burnt out I never wanted to go back to the office and I've had days where I've enjoyed myself so much I thought I would never leave. It's a mixed bag!