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Career Guide to Sales and Marketing

Are you a natural born salesperson?

Graduates and graduate caliber people who are looking to begin sales careers will find that there is a shortage of good sales job opportunities for candidates who have inadequate commercial experience. This invariably means that such candidates are more likely to fall prey to exploitative and sub-standard sales job opportunities. In order to find a suitable sales job, graduates will first of all have to obtain the necessary business sales training. This is because despite the fact that they have limited commercial experience, sales training will help improve their employment prospects by a significant margin. The best way to obtain sales training is by enrolling on to a graduate sales training program. Finding such training programs can often be a difficult task because very few companies and recruitment agencies offer such specialized and comprehensive training programs.

Some sales recruitment agencies do offer sales coaching to their selected candidates. However, most of these consultancies do not pay full attention to detail because they lack a thorough understanding of the organizational requirements of companies. Top notch sales consultancies in the UK and Europe have both the corporate clientele contacts and the innovative sales training techniques required for securing suitable roles for their prospective sales candidates. The last decade has seen the rapid advancement of sales recruiting companies, which have been supplying value-adding sales personnel to a range of medium and large companies. Many of these companies have enjoyed increases in their sales performance and overall profitability. The impressive track record and reputation which industry leading agencies now possess has made them some of the leading graduate selection and sales training companies in the UK.

There is no doubt that with the help of recruiting agencies, inexperienced sales candidates have an increased chance of going on to have fulfilling and rewarding sales careers. At this junction, it is worth mentioning that major recruiting agencies have a genuine interest in the long-term success of all their selected and trained candidates. The fact that they continue to provide them with support and guidance even after a job placement has been secured is a testament to this fact. The support which candidates receive enable them to immediately settle in their new role and to begin making effective organizational contributions in an expedited manner. So, it can be said that this comprehensive support service is also invaluable to client companies. Furthermore, it should be highlighted that there are very few sales recruitment firms which offer this sort of comprehensive post-recruitment service, though it is an industry trend.

If this sounds like something you’re interested in, then a career in Sales might be for you!

Firms in the advertising and public relations services industry prepare advertisements for other companies and organizations and design campaigns to promote the interests and image of their clients. This industry also includes media representatives—firms that sell advertising space for publications, radio, television, and the Internet; display advertisers—businesses engaged in creating and designing public display ads for use in shopping malls, on billboards, or in similar media; and direct mail advertisers. A firm that purchases advertising time (or space) from media outlets, thereafter reselling it to advertising agencies or individual companies directly, is considered a media buying agency. Divisions of companies that produce and place their own advertising are not considered part of this industry.

Most employees in advertising and public relations services work in comfortable offices operating in a teamwork environment; however, long hours, including evenings and weekends, are common. There are fewer opportunities for part-time work than in many other industries; in 2006, 12 percent of advertising and public relations employees worked part time, compared with 15 percent of all workers.

What Education/Certifications do you need for:

Sales Jobs / Sales and Marketing Jobs / Jobs Sale / Sales Careers

Most entry-level professional and managerial positions in advertising, public relations and sales services require a bachelor’s degree, preferably with broad liberal arts exposure.

Beginners in sales usually enter the industry in the account management or media department. Occasionally, entry-level positions are available in the market research or creative departments of an agency, but these positions usually require some experience. Completing an advertising-related internship while in school provides an advantage when applying for an entry-level position; in fact, internships are becoming a necessary step to obtaining permanent employment. In addition to an internship, courses in marketing, psychology, accounting, statistics, and creative design can help prepare potential entrants for careers in this field.

 Other qualifications. Success in increasingly responsible staff assignments usually leads to advancement to supervisory positions. As workers advance on the job, broad vision and planning skills become extremely important. Another way to get to the top in this industry is to open one’s own firm. In spite of the difficulty and high failure rate, many find starting their own business to be personally and financially rewarding. Advancement among the self-employed takes the form of increasing the size and strength of their own company.

Current & Future Job Outlook for:
Sales Jobs / Sales and Marketing Jobs / Jobs Sale / Sales Careers

 Job prospects. Competition for many jobs will be keen because the glamour of the advertising and public relations services industry traditionally attracts many more job seekers than there are job openings. Employment also may be adversely affected if legislation, aimed at protecting public health and safety, further restricts advertising for specific products such as alcoholic beverages and tobacco. The best job opportunities will be for job seekers skilled in employing the increasing number and types of media outlets used to reach an increasingly diverse customer base.

 Employment change. Employment in the advertising and public relations services industry is projected to grow 14 percent over the 2006-16 period, compared with 11 percent for all industries combined. New jobs will be created as the economy expands and generates more products and services to advertise.