Sales / Business Development, Retail

Sales Representative

Overview

A sales representative is responsible for selling a company’s products or services to potential and existing customers. Their primary duty is to identify sales opportunities, develop relationships with customers, and close deals.

Sales representatives may work in a variety of industries, including retail, technology, manufacturing, and healthcare. The specific duties and responsibilities of a sales representative may vary depending on the industry and company they work for, but their primary goal is to drive revenue growth through successful sales efforts.

Common tasks 

    TaskRelated trait(s)
    Prospecting for new customers and leads. Communication skills – Understanding others  Understanding customers and others Creativity and problem solving  Persistence
    Researching and understanding the needs of potential customers. Communication skills – Understanding others  Understanding customers and others Creativity and problem solving
    Negotiating deals and contracts with customers. Communication skills – Understanding others  Creativity and problem solving 
    Managing and maintaining relationships with existing customers. Communication skills – Understanding others  Understanding customers and others Creativity and problem solving  Integrity
    Developing a deep understanding of the company’s products or services. Conscientiousness
    Collaborating with other sales team members and departments to achieve sales objectives. Teamplayer Respect for rules Teamplayer Helping Others 

    Soft skills measured by TraitForward

    TraitNo of QuestionsCronbach’s  alpha (α)
    Communication skills – Understanding others80.71
    Do they understand others?
    Communication skills – Expressiveness110.84
    Do they express themselves effectively?
    Conscientiousness80.77
    Do they have a desirable work ethic?
    Understanding customers and others60.70
    Do they understand the emotions of others?
    Teamplayer Respect for rules90.74
    Do they follow rules?
    Teamplayer Helping Others60.75
    Do they like helping others?
    Teamplayer Positive group practices90.72
    Do they like being included in a group?
    Creativity and problem solving80.77
    Are they creative problem solvers?
    Social confidence40.72
    Are they able to express themselves in social situations?
    Extroversion70.81
    Are they skilled handling social situations?
    Integrity80.71
    Are they moral, honest, do they follow the rules?
    Activity Level and Multitasking60.75
    Can they multitask? Can they handle demanding workloads?
    Persistence70.77
    Are they persistent?
    *Cronbach’s alpha coefficient (α) determines the extent to which the questions consistently measure each trait and it is expressed as a number ranging between 0 and 1 . Higher values indicate higher agreement between questions.  A value of α equal to greater than .7 indicates acceptable reliability or internal consistency.  For more information on the psychometric properties of the solution, please click here.

    Did you Know?

    Source: US Department of Labor – Bureau of Labor Statistics / indeed.com

    *Median wage: 

    $62,890 / per year

    $30 / hour

    Except technical or scientific products, e.g., clothes, office supplies, business service

    $61,600 / per year

    The lowest 10% earned less than $30,620, and the highest 10%  earned more than $125,750

    For technical or scientific products, e.g., pharmaceuticals, agricultural or mechanical heavy equipment etc.

    $94,840 / per year

    The lowest 10% earned less than $44,460, and the highest 10% earned more than $168,320

    Expected employment growth:

    Number (in thousands in 2021): 508.7

    Number (in thousands in 2031): 528.4

    Employment percent change: -0.6

    Entry Education level:

    For non-technical or scientific products:
    High School diploma or equivalent

    For technical or scientific products:
    Bachelor Degree

    * Pay market rates for Sales Representatives may vary considerably  depending on the industry sector. Most employers use a combination of salary and commissions or salary plus bonuses. Commissions usually are based on a percentage of sales. Bonuses may depend on the individual’s performance and/or on the sales team performance in the business unit and/or  on the annual company’s performance

    Find out the psychometric properties for the Sales Representative Traitforward questionnaire

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