Sales Managers

Plan, direct, or coordinate the actual distribution or movement of a product or service to the customer. Coordinate sales distribution by establishing sales territories, quotas, and goals and establish training programs for sales representatives. Analyze sales statistics gathered by staff to determine sales potential and inventory requirements and monitor the preferences of customers.

O*NET reports this occupation under titles such as: District Sales Manager; Fractional Sales Executive; National Sales Manager; Regional Sales Manager; Sales and Marketing VP (Sales and Marketing Vice President); Sales Director; Sales Manager; Sales Operations Manager (Sales Ops Manager); Sales Supervisor; Sales VP (Sales Vice President)

Tasks

• Oversee regional and local sales managers and their staffs.
• Resolve customer complaints regarding sales and service.
• Monitor customer preferences to determine focus of sales efforts.
• Confer with potential customers regarding equipment needs, and advise customers on types of equipment to purchase.
• Review operational records and reports to project sales and determine profitability.
• Plan and direct staffing, training, and performance evaluations to develop and control sales and service programs.
• Direct and coordinate activities involving sales of manufactured products, services, commodities, real estate, or other subjects of sale.
• Determine price schedules and discount rates.
• Prepare budgets and approve budget expenditures.
• Confer or consult with department heads to plan advertising services and to secure information on equipment and customer specifications.
• Visit franchised dealers to stimulate interest in establishment or expansion of leasing programs.
• Represent company at trade association meetings to promote products.
• Advise dealers and distributors on policies and operating procedures to ensure functional effectiveness of business.
• Direct, coordinate, and review sales and service accounting and record-keeping, as well as receiving and shipping.
• Direct clerical staff to keep records of export correspondence, bid requests, and credit collections, and to maintain current information on tariffs, licenses, and restrictions.

Knowledge

• Sales and Marketing
• Customer and Personal Service
• English Language
• Administration and Management
• Personnel and Human Resources
• Computers and Electronics
• Education and Training
• Economics and Accounting
• Communications and Media

Skills

• Active Listening
• Speaking
• Reading Comprehension
• Critical Thinking
• Monitoring
• Active Learning
• Writing
• Learning Strategies
• Mathematics

Abilities

• Oral Comprehension
• Written Comprehension
• Oral Expression
• Written Expression
• Problem Sensitivity
• Deductive Reasoning
• Inductive Reasoning
• Fluency of Ideas
• Originality
• Speech Recognition
• Speech Clarity
• Category Flexibility
• Information Ordering
• Near Vision