Transition out of copier industry and into Amazon, MSFT, Concur etc.
I've been a successful outside sales rep and now sales manager in copier sales for the last 7 years, but I'm looking at the future of the industry and seeing it become more and more commoditized and squeezed. Massive layoffs and cutbacks in our industry, I think I'm doing alright for now, but wonder what the future holds. I would love to sell for or manage a team for any of the big software or service companies in the Seattle area. Goal income would be base $90k+ with target earnings of $150k+ is this realistic? Any suggestions? Where should I look?
Thanks. I'm happy where I'm at in the industry, no desire to move to another manufacturer/dealer. IMO, sales is sales. So I wouldn't expect to be doing the same type of selling necessarily, but curious to know what's out there.
Saying "sales is sales" is like saying "sports are sports" - imagine if Kevin Durant picked up a baseball bat tomorrow, what are the odds that his basketball training has properly prepared him to hit a 100mph fastball? The wording in your question accentuates how much of a knowledge gap you have in enterprise technology sales. My initial recommendation would be to study the different hosting and delivery options - would IaaS, PaaS, or SaaS be most relatable to what you do today? Then, which companies deliver this way where you can get a foot in the door? Also, consider selling hardware such as IoT devices, Microsoft Surface, MacBooks, etc since they'll be more similar to what you sell today. If you get into a company that does both, you could possibly start at hardware and transition to something else. An example would be selling Surfaces at Microsoft and moving to Azure. This would be extremely difficult to do, but it's a much better shot than writing "sales is sales" on your cover letter.
Thanks, I really appreciate the reply. By "sales is sales" I didn't mean to imply that all sales roles are exactly the same, you have to know your customer, your product, and your industry which are going to look different from one industry to the next. What I meant is that the basic rules of selling and the qualities that make a successful sales person don't really change, IMO. SaaS is currently on the rise in my industry with various document management and printer fleet management tools being converted to cloud based platforms, so I have some experience with that. However, we succumb to the problems of being a hardware based company trying to sell software and services. I think you're right that I need to broaden my own expertise and maybe pursue some certifications pertaining to software and saas applications. Any specific programs you recommend?
Try a VAR where you can get a little bit of knowledge all across enterprise infrastructure and Software. One niche will probably stick; networking, software agreements it could be anything. Then apply at companies that specialize in that. Alternatively go straight to a SaaS company that hires often, docusign or smartsheet.
I work at EMC and we have hired many excellent reps directly from Xerox. Don’t know about the entire copier industry but I know Xerox at least has great sales practice training programs that translate well to any successful modern enterprise selling strategy. Don’t be shy getting your name out there.
It’s honestly easier to hire someone who already knows how to sell to enterprise customers and train them on the technology and products, then try to train a technologist how to sell well.
You may have better luck working for Xerox or Ricoh selling to the corporations than trying to find a similar sales role there