No One Else Is Gonna! Advocate for Yourself
I was feeling a little bit nostalgic today for the way things used to be back in the “old days,” which for me would be the early 90s. Most print shops had sales managers, many even exclusively, meaning their ONLY job was to manage a team of salespeople, and they did not even call on their own accounts. Hell, some of these sales managers even served as a trainer, mentor and strategist for their salespeople. Do you remember those times? A great sales manager showed you how it was done. A great sales manager had been in the trenches, had done the sales job and done it well, and had been moved up the ranks of the company into a coveted leadership role. Many of you out there might be able to name your first great sales manager.
And now it’s 2015. What? I can’t remember the last time I heard of a sales manager today, who wasn’t also managing key accounts, heading up marketing, recruiting and on-boarding all the salespeople. So where does that leave you, grasshopper? Who do you go to when you need advice, to vent or to set your goals for the year—or for your whole career, for that matter?
- Categories:
- Business Management - Marketing/Sales
Blogger, author, consultant, coach and all around evangelist for the graphic arts industry, Kelly sold digital printing for 15 years so she understands the challenges, frustrations and pitfalls of building a successful sales practice. Her mission is to help printers of all sizes sell more stuff. Kelly's areas of focus include sales and marketing coaching, enabling clients to find engagement strategies that work for them and mentoring the next generation of sales superstars.
Kelly graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in Political Science and, among other notable accomplishments, co-founded the Windy City Rollers, a professional women's roller derby league. She is also the mother of two sets of twins under the age of ten, so she fears nothing.
