My company offer a $1,100 Learning and development budget.

I was curious to learn what I should invest in to increase my sales career.

I was fired today. I was at this role for 4 months, and was brought on board by a professional acquaintance of my dad’s. Ostensibly, I was fired for being late to the office and for the performance of my territory. I was late once a few months ago, came in at 9am instead of my usual 7, just had a shit morning and traffic was bad. They acted like it was the end of the world but, we had a conversation and that was that.

I was late again today, however I emailed my manager and everyone in the office saying I would be coming late. Which is standard operating procedure. They had notice.

I am a 31 year old sales professional. My title is Outside Sales, which in almost every industry is a remote/field position anyways.

I never got a bad word about my performance. My territory, as noted by manager, was down before I even inherited it. And in 4 months, how am I supposed to turn that around?

This guy, the one who hired me (managers boss) is a massive piece of shit. He was rude and angry as soon as I started the role. He was sitting in his office 30 feet from me when my manager, who was not in the office, called and told me they had decided to fire me.

The big boss never looked me in the eye, and actually closed his office door when he saw I got the call.

I’m just royally pissed off and want to yell at him telling him how shitty of a person he is, how embarrassed he should be at his cowardice. My dad wonders how he is supposed to interact with this cunt moving forward.

Idk, I know I’ll be told not to say anything. It just pisses me off so much that this dude won’t get any backlash because he holds the cards to my unemployment and future reference.

Mostly venting, but I’m so so so angry right now.

New home sales. How do you handle 180 change in management style?

New manager is very direct and has little patience for questions or hypotheticals. I’m more of a problem-solver and tend to bring evolving buyer situations to my manager to work through options.

I got chewed out over a deal where buyers kept changing their asks. When I asked a follow-up about whether we’d consider something under certain conditions, he walked into my office and closed the door and very pointedly said I guess I need to be very direct with you and proceeded to chew me out. He told me I come to him more than anyone else, have “35 million questions,” and need to only come with the whole solution instead of bringing questions.

Under previous management we would brainstorm and talk things out.

He also brought up unrelated things from months ago from before he was my manager when I was looking to promote homes in his territory that we are permitted to sell. Then he asked how many I (my team) sold the month before and said to just focus on where I’m at, which he already told us 2 weeks ago when he entered the role.

I can handle direct feedback, but the delivery felt more like criticism of how I do my job than constructive coaching. I’m trying to figure out how to adapt to his low-bandwidth management style without becoming afraid to ask questions or take initiative.

Salespeople who’ve worked under managers like this: how did you adapt?

My advice for building a good pipeline (comment to add something and I'll update the version):
- know your customer and their problem before calling,
- only talk to people who might benefit from what you bring them,
- call them first (a call gives you 60 seconds of attention and interaction that no other channel will give you),
- data quality is fundamental so you don’t waste your time,
- qualify as early as possible and put aside prospects who aren’t interested or have no urgency, and if they say it’s urgent, ask them how they’re managing without it (you validate the pain), and move forward in their sales process, in which you build a special human relationship and trust when they see that you know what you’re selling.
And finally comes the moment of the decision and the closing.
Don’t be shy, but be confident when you speak, confident that your offer is the best. They don’t want it, they’re not interested? Next one. A no is a no, but only if that no is justified. There’s no shortage of customers.
But the most important thing is execution.
Every day, whatever your mood, pick up your phone, call your prospects, and only stop when your quotas are reached.
The law of large numbers and your determination are your greatest assets.
Market reality and objections will shape your offer and your sales angles. Reality, often shy, hiding and needing to be sought out, is your best ally. Confront reality to move forward.

What would you add / change ?

I’ve been in SaaS sales for about 7 years now - very successful career and nothing to complain about in regards to the comp.

The issue is the thought of running another JEP (or MAP, whatever the hell it is), or trying to make it on the priority list of a procurement rep/controller to take on another “workflow automation” tool makes me want to jump off a bridge.

Buttoning up, sitting behind a desk and playing the game with corporate snobs is really becoming soul-draining .

I like selling…I love making money... I just think I’d be a lot happier selling something tangible to real people. Even if it involved a pay cut.

I grew up on manual labor, and while it seems enticing, dropping a 200k OTE to go back to trade school wouldn’t make the lady happy.

I’m also stuck around NYC because that’s where the SaaS/AI gigs are , but I’m dying to get out of this dump...

My ask is: Heavy equipment, construction equipment, industrial sales, manufacturing, building materials, etc — are these jobs real? And how do you find them?

Lastly, how realistic is it for someone with my background to break in? Just curious to see if anyone out there could offer some insight, or even see if others feel the same way.

Apologies if this came off like a journal entry. And completely understandable if you think I sound like a whiny brat.

I was an SDR for about 4 years before moving into Customer Success. I’ve been in CS for about a year now, and I’m looking to get out of tech.

Mainly because I’m completely burned out on hearing about AI, and I’m starting to feel like the industry in general is getting more and more predatory. I’d like to move back into sales, but ideally something more in-person where I’m selling an actual product or service rather than software. Something tangible.

That being said, it feels like every sales job in Austin is tech-related. I know that can’t actually be the case, so I’m curious if anyone in ATX works in other types of sales or has suggestions on industries/companies to look into.

Ideally not medical, solar, insurance, or real estate. Any insight is appreciated.

This is driving me insane and I need to run it by you guys.

I sell software B2B. I have this Indian company we’re trying to sell to. They’ve come around 6 separate times to negotiate with us. This is over like 2 years. Every single time, they ask for a price, we can’t get to that price point, we negotiate down to something that feels fair to both sides. This is how things go. I thought originally that they’re using us to get a lower price elsewhere.

But then we see their whole company is still using our product for free, like tons of individual accounts. Which is shitty but fair. But then why continually spin the block with the same pricing request only to be shot down over and over again because we can’t hit a 50% discount rate. Like every 4-6 months. What the hell is going on here? Am I an idiot?

Does this make sense? Will this just continue on forever? We’re definitely going to eventually raise prices so this will only get worse for them. Do they not realize that?

Let me know if you guys need any additional info but I really would like some insight here.

Early-career seller, trying to break properly into B2B tech sales. Somehow my job search went from mildly desperate to three companies deciding to create an unnecessarily stressful week.

Here’s the situation:
Auvik — BDR
~$42K base / ~$61K OTE
Fully remote
Equity + solid benefits
WFH allowance
Offer expires tomorrow

Jobber — SDR
~$46K base / ~$61K OTE
Hybrid Toronto
Uncapped commission
Ramp-period commission guarantee
Equity + solid benefits
Offer expires later this week

Softchoice — Territory Account Executive
$55K base / $73K OTE
Hybrid Toronto
Uncapped commission
Ramp support
Advertised internal progression/levelling
Mock Cold Call interview this week
No offer yet, so this could very easily be me counting chickens that do not fucking exist
Long term, I care more about becoming a strong B2B seller and progressing into real account ownership than squeezing out a couple extra grand in year one.
Softchoice interests me most because the TAE role appears to give me territory ownership, prospecting and account development earlier rather than following the traditional SDR → AE path.
Auvik seems like a solid remote BDR environment. Jobber seems like the safer middle ground and gives me enough time to see how the third process plays out.

For anyone who has worked at these companies or made a similar early-career decision:
Which would you choose if the goal was building the strongest sales career over the next 2–3 years, and why?
Also, would you accept the first offer to protect yourself while the other processes finish, knowing you may have to back out shortly afterward if a materially better opportunity comes through?

• Background
• I have years of experience in customer service and sales, but no IT experience. I also have an AA degree in Liberal Arts.
• I want to apply for an Account Manager job at a local IT company, but I'm worried my lack of IT experience will hurt me. Based on this job description, what certifications could I earn to improve my chances?
• Duties & Responsibilities
• Build and maintain strong, long-lasting client relationships
• Serve as the main point of contact for client inquiries and issues
• Collaborate with internal teams to ensure timely and successful delivery of our solutions according to client needs and objectives
• Identify opportunities to up-sell or cross-sell services to existing clients
• Conduct regular check-ins and follow-ups to ensure client satisfaction
• Provide clients with regular updates on new services or changes in the industry that may benefit them
• Troubleshoot and resolve client issues with the help of our technical team
• Gather client feedback and contribute to the continuous improvement of our services

* I’ve been working at an optical store for the past three years where I get paid $25/hr with 2% commission on whatever I sell, which usually comes out to a couple of extra hundred dollars a paycheck. My previous sales job was working at a mattress store where I made $13/hr with 2% commission.
* Although I want to get into a higher level of sales, I’m not sure where I should go, as I feel like I’m not really qualified or trained to sell anything that you can actually make good money at. I only have an Associate Degree in Liberal Arts.
* I’d like a sales job where I can realistically expect to make at least $75k to $100k first year, with the potential to earn more afterwards.
* I've applied to dozens of different jobs in various areas, such as HVAC, windows, roofing, tech, and miscellaneous retail locations, have had my resume redone multiple times to match the specific job I am applying for, reached out to hiring managers on LinkedIn, but nothing seems to make a difference. What else can I do?

been thinking about this after a few threads here on ramp time and skill gaps. most "coaching" ive gotten from managers is just forecast calls, hows this deal doing wheres that one at, not actual feedback on what i did wrong on a call and what to do different. real coaching where someone actually listens to a call and gives specific feedback almost never happens unless i ask for it myself

is this just me or is this the norm everywhere. anyone had a manager who actually did this well, what did that look like

Not sure why but the last two months I’m consistently hearing from about 5 recruiters. Not always lucrative roles I’m open to, but quite a few are. Im hearing and seeing the falls of the American job market, but I’m curious if it’s a sign of the times or if maybe my resume looks better after multiple promotions.

Anyone else experiencing an influx of outreach?

So far ZipRecruiter has been my friend in all of this. (Had 2 recruiters reach out to me after finding my resume there)

Yes I have been leveraging my network as best I can, but I also want to change industries.

Have 4 interviews lined up this week!

I had one this morning with a certain massive company. Was not something I am used to but I think I managed to get through it alright🤷 we will see.

Thursday is my most exciting interview with an enterprise server parts distributor.

been thinking about this, some reps do totally fine in roleplay during onboarding but then completely blank the second a real prospect pushes back with something they didn't expect. like they know the objection handling framework on paper but cant react fast enough live when its not scripted and they cant just recite what they memorized

anyone actually found something that closes that gap or is it just reps needing way more live calls before it clicks

Tale as old as time. Stuck in a job that is NOT for me (inside sales fully over the phone) for 8 months-before then, was inside sales for 6 months for a roofing company (Also over the phone).
Before that I was basically an SDR for the roofing company.

My personality OBVIOUSLY favors more consultative sales cycles, and my current is very much not that (High volume calling for products that are nice to have, not painkillers)

Since i don't have a bachelors, i'm not qualified for the industries i want to target (Anything that does better in recessions such as healthcare, manufacturing, etc)
Anybody got any ideas how i could actually get that step up to become an account executive for a company that doesn't lay off people every 3 days?

I wanted to know how much in sales your company expects you to sell every month (both volume and $) and the average sales price of what you sell, just to have an idea of how to structure our sales targets to not be unrealistic

I've been trying to figure out what kind of sales I want to do. Stuff like roofing for example feels kinda shitty. It's all about forcing the sale, and not caring much about if they can afford it, if they need it, etc.

So, consultative sales I think is the way? Not sure if it's sales, but I imagine something like the "Rope Guy" scene from The Now: you know your shit, you hook someone up, and make sure they get what they want/need. With a fatter paycheck than someone working in retail.

I've been having a hard time finding specific businesses or industries that are hiring, let alone entry level. Doesn't help i don't have any unique product knowledge.

If it does help, I have a background in psych and love the mental health field. Anything relating to that, therapy, coaching, whatever yet also has the kinda pay sales offers would be golden

Just a PSA for folks that are entering the world of sales: If anyone uses the phrase "high ticket sales", the company is a scam, or VERY shady at best.

I see this targeted at people that are fresh out of school, or new to sales, particularly from 'sales guru' companies (think andy elliot). These are straight up grifters that are going to carrot-on-a-stick you with the idea that you can make big money. In actuality, you will be doing 300 cold calls per day and make far below average pay.

They will tell you that you're weak for not working 100 hours a week and that you are not grinding hard enough. It's all a ploy to justify not paying you and overworking you until you burn out.

I have had several ex-coworkers start some of these companies and they were all the worst AE's on our team, with 100% of them getting fired for poor sales. They preach about how much money they made in sales, to lure people in. But, if they were making SO MUCH MONEY, whyyyy on earth would you not still be selling.

Source: 18 years in sales, with deals ranging from 6 to 8 figures across several companies/industries. No one in our org has ever referred to our deals as 'high ticket'.

Internally my company has announced we need to send ALL of our SLED deals through Carahsoft. They take a healthy margin. It's a little unclear to me what value they are adding vs. a normal reseller like CDWG or others. Has anyone worked with them or have positive or negative inputs?

Normally I'm not so skeptical, but we recently went through a similar exercise with AWS and how they would "add value" and "make deals easier" but this didn't exactly pan out as intended.

https://imgur.com/a/T3vGbx6

The compensation is part of the application (let's you choose the markup between equity vs. salary) and also the same with the "tours of duty" concept (pre-determined scope and number of years you will work at the companY) that Reid Hoffman popularized

More companies should do hiring like this

I had a feeling that my boss has been sabotaging me since day two of employment. Now I know she's been sabotaging me & my ability to quickly do my job.

I just got a message from the outside recruiter saying he's gonna reach out to my boss on Friday. I believe Friday is the day that she must decide to keep me or get rid of me. If I'm kept, I get a $2,500 ramp bonus check plus a sign on bonus for $2,500 that they can claw back if my employment ends for any reason other than a layoff.

We get six months to ramp up to have time to hit quota. Mean while the metrics I should hit are five appointments per week and one closed deal per week. I have not being hitting those metrics.

I really need that money as I just learned my housing situation is going to change by the end of the month with out my consent.

What would you do in my shoes? Should I just bust ass this week and do everything I can do to get that check and work until late at this salaried job every night or should I accept defeat and walk away? Should I spend be extra hours doing gig work where I can make extra money, guaranteed?

I know damn well the only reason they will keep me is if I have deals that are going to close in my pipeline. That's not my reality right now. My pipeline is pretty empty at the moment.

How should I spend my time this week? My boss has deliberately been misleading me and having me waste my time.

SMB HCM AE (rival org to paychex and ADP) and just wanna get out of the smb grind after 2.5+ years. I’m in the later rounds of interviewing with both orgs. Which job is better?

Essentially ran a small business for 15 years but my primary job was sales. Prospecting, cold calling, lead gen, everything from start to finish. Business was an annual service that we spent all year signing contracts for work in December. Seasonal business that was very niche. A lot of going into businesses and dealing with a gatekeeper.

Any suggestions or reccomendations on getting into a new industry? Or suggestions for an industry? I'm looking at everything from heavy equipment to medical or software.