Re: Salesman Compensation

["Stanley Barthfarkle" <sbarth@xxxxxxxxx>]

"J Barnes" <trishnjames@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:ueudnWr0deJx0dnZRVn-og@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>I know this has come up here before but it never really gets answered.
>
> How much do you pay a salesman in this industry?  I am thinking about
> paying 1,000 per month plus commission, cell phone and car allowance.  The
> commission will be about 10-15% of the total sale amount.  What is
> everyones opinions on this?  And what is everyone else doing?
>
> James B


I've read a few of the suggestions here, and wanted to throw one more idea
in- a "training" guarantee. Pay a guarantee of $XX for the first month,
decreasing over the next 2 or 3 months, and pay straight commission. When
the commission exceeds the guaranteed amount, pay the larger of the two.
Give them X amount of time to reach certain sales goals, and cut em loose if
they don't show real hunger.

There is a question I always used to ask my interviewees when hiring for a
sales position- "What do you want most from this position?"

If the answer is some canned crap like "a successful career" or "to
contribute to the company's growth" or "job security" I cut em loose.

The right answer? "To make obscene amounts of money." This hunger produces
successful sales people every time.