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What do you like/dislike about it? What are the long-term career prospects for someone thinking of starting a job in software sales? Is it possible to move into other non-sales business roles?
Always I thought the insurance is the hardest thing to sell, until I didn't wanted to sell software!
Everything, but everything I found a lot more easy to sell then an insurance: you can show it to your potential client ( car, real estate, whatever) he can see it, he can touch it. Usually he can try it... the insurance not...you put a piece a paper to sign and pay for that. He must die to receive money, but not him, but his wife, who maybe later will kill him.
Why is harder to sell software then an insurance?
Your software sales position it is created to sale a software product.
How to NOT do it:
- call a company from a list. The secretary will filter your marketing offers.
- after you have bypassed the secretary with a trick and you got to the boss, he will say: This is IT, you should speak with the IT administrator / IT manager. When they are on a meeting with you - in the best case- then they will try to proves you are an idiot and they are the smart guys and your product is not needed. Arguable reason can be the fake illusion of they are loosing the job or the prestige of be the smartest guys in the company. So the boss will say NO until the IT not say yes and there will say NO.
There are very few happy moments, when you get a signed contract. Then it comes the circus:
- the software is buggy, need to be fixed or payed back the money.
- the software doesn't have all features what you told or what they wanted to hear.
- they want other what they got: the signed paper don't say it case a button need to be red or green, but they want other, then what is implemented.
Both of the part of the sales they must BELIEVE even after purchase as they have an advantage with that transaction, otherwise they are considering a scam.
How to sell it is a good question, and how to sell it as everyone believe has an advantage... that is other question.
Example: I was invited to many IBM events as lead developer / IT manager ( they wanted to sell they product for the company for who I have worked).
I came to my company and I told:
- Hey boss ! There is a new software at IBM, which maybe not a bad idea to have it, others software products are useless for you.
- Yes? - and what is that?
- the product X can use in the ... situation. It costs you usd 60,000, but I can make a similar solution with around... usd 4,000.
What do you think what was my boss answer?
Do you think it was: No. Lets buy from IBM with 60k? - well no.
The funny thing do you know what is?
My boss didn't gave me 60-4=54k usd bonus... but not even a cent.
Now I know the story as my boss will not compensate me with anything in plus I would take an offer from IBM sales guys - of 5-10k usd - and I would say for my boss:
- Hey boss! What a great thing from IBM, lets buy it only it is 60k, it is nice to have it and nobody can make it. - lol
Everyone BELIEVE they made a great transaction:
- I made of +2+4 month salary
- IBM sales guy made a sale
- Boss received a great product
The problem it will be later.
The boss later or never or very soon will realise a similar software I should be able to do it and he is paying me. So he will be mad on me too but from IBM because was able to make corruption will not purchase anything ever.
For me I will loose the credibility, maybe my job too.
On that case both of 3 part will feel a sorry to do that.
That's why is dam hard to sell software and I can't. I can sell everything, but software not.
Last edited by android_developer_ro; 12-02-2014 at 12:27 PM..
Used to sell software, though in a very specific niche. So it was fairly easy to sell, anyone in the auto business either used our software or a competitor's software. So all I did was call people up to see when their contract with our competitor was up and call them a year later. Give them free access to our software for two weeks and then do a follow up call or visit. It was a lot of phone calls, in person cold calls, follow up calls and keeping track of everyone I talked to. But it was an easy sale once I found someone that was open to looking at our software.
Unfortunately, the software was too easy to sell. This company got rid of the majority of their outside sales reps and replaced them with inside sales reps that they could pay a lot less. But it did not impact me getting another sales job in a different industry. It wasn't like being a pharmaceutical rep and trying to change careers.
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