Teams | Collaboration | Customer Service | Project Management

If you’re reading this, you probably have a solid idea of what’s required for a strong sales team: The question is: which members of your team are handling all of this? If you expect your sales representatives to handle this avalanche of logistics while also closing deals, you’re setting yourself up for some seriously burned-out teams and major issues with efficiency. The secret to a successful modern sales team isn’t the closers—it’s the people behind the scenes.

At this point in the sales market, there’s no such thing as a truly unique company or product. With hundreds of overlaps in product types, product features, company values, and overall pricing, it’s challenging to stand out from the crowd and even harder to do so without blowing your budget. Value chain analysis lets you pinpoint the costs and values of every aspect of your business so that you can put your best foot forward and increase your profit margin.

When someone mentions direct sales, your first thought might be of a well-intentioned friend hawking health powders and supplements for some multi-level marketing company. While technically direct selling, that image doesn’t come close to describing the impact of the direct sales model. If you’ve waited in line for the new iPhone in front of the Apple Store, you’ve participated in direct sales.

You’re looking for a sales position and scouring the job postings. But it seems like every role requires at least one year of experience, which you might not have. Before disqualifying yourself from a sales career, you should know that your experience doesn’t have to come from an actual sales job—you just need to understand how to transfer your current skill set to the position you’re applying for.