Q Talk

[terrier3]

On 10/28/2014 Funloving said:

On 10/12/2014 terrier3 said:

On 10/12/2014 jaxs mom said:

IME you generally need to bring in at least 3-4x your salary in profit dollars, so if you are paid 100k you need to bring in 400k in sales profit. No company is going to keep someone who only ends up breaking even, unless it's a new hire in training or they are growing a new market. But I'm not an expert on tv sales jobs.

I have worked in sales for 30 years.

The higher the price point on the product, the lower the commission.

Ex.: radio reps have a commission of 10-15%. TV reps have commissions of 3-5%. Because the sales are lower and the price per commercial is MUCH lower.

Most businesses know what they will be paying in commission...if salespeople do outstanding jobs and make a lot of money (sometimes more than their salaried bosses) - they will adjust the commission downward.

Hi terrier3-

As an ad agency owner, from your example my guess is you're in media sales.

Am I warm?

I was....radio and then cable TV...30 years total.

Now I am a media consultant and get a much better commission! I negotiate it with my clients and it's a much better deal.

[Funloving]

On 10/12/2014 champagnepoodle said:

On 10/12/2014 LISALIPLINER said:

Trust me, she does not make a million a year...lol. Hosts usually start out in the $70,000 range and they DO NOT get commission. Prime time hosts can earn a middle six figure salary.

LOL! My entry level employees start out at $75,000 annually. What the heck year are you talking about? 1987?

Haha.. same deal here champagnepoodle. I'd say LLL is stuck in more like the 60's.

[Funloving]

Good post Wackers!

That's great terrior!

Look, not everyone is cracked-up for sales, as we know. Good salespeople in large corporations can easily make 6 figures. It stands to reason- they're the very core to keeping a company profitable. As someone else stated, they ARE the lifeblood of the company, often exceeding the income of their company superiors.

In the arena of TV home shopping it's quite demanding. They must have the ability to talk non-stop with the dynamics to make the viewers feel they know them more intimately...and gain trust for both the salesperson & what they're selling. They have the savvy to convince thousands of folks that they want and/or need products which the customer may not have even considered purchasing before- as they run to their phones or computers to order. They make a hard job look effortless, work long hours with several shifts a week. And, like all sales, they must have great people skills, be extremely persuasive without coming off as pushy (sure to us quite debatable) and have the gift of gab. Yet even more-so in the position of home shopping where they're continually putting their best face forward for the total length of their show... regardless of feeling crummy or having a bad day. They're always "on" in that respect. I've known top media salespeople apply for a home shopping sales positions (both at the Q & HSN) who couldn't make the cut. I'm talking very attractive top sales people who outperform their peers.

Because of my own industry I knew Lisa Mason, who came from the PBS news end when she lived here, and Chris S. who worked at HSN who was with a CBS affiliate station here. Both have moved on.

However, it's apples and oranges comparing retail sales in a dept. store. to "on air" sales. Many times a dept. store sales person starts out at minimum wage. It varies a lot depending on other factors, but they aren't even remotely comparable. LOL

Wanted to add- like in any biz it never hurts to be recommended by another highly valued employee. Lisa R. recommended QVC take a look at Shawn K. some years back now. I'm sure she obtained the position on her own merit, but having Lisa endorse her certainly worked in her favor, too.

[Sooner]

On 10/12/2014 Tinkrbl44 said:

WHY would people think this is "high"?

You can safely assume that anyone in SALES has some sort of commission / bonus structure, based on performance.

Example ...... if you were a sales person that was responsible for, say, $100 million in sales in a year, a mere million in commission would seem paltry.

Just FYI, millionaires in the United States are largely comprised of SALES people.

Obviously, it depends what you sell, but I'm very surprised that anyone is surprised.

Me too. Doesn't sound high to me for what they pull in and how hard they work at it.

[Catch71]

I know a lawyer who is on staff at HSN. He told me years ago that I would be shocked to know how much the hosts make. I guess they deserve it, but they are not brain surgeons just good sales people. When I watch QVC I find it hard for them to really connect with the viewer who most likely makes peanuts compared to them. Unfortunately there are a lot of people shopping on the Q that are probably in debt and get sucked in by the hosts sales pitches. Kinda bothers me especially when I hear the elderly calling in buying purses in every color because the hosts say they have it. I know the hosts are just doing their job but it bothers me. I have a friend who recently lost a dear Aunt. When she went to her house it was filled with unopened QVC boxes - thousands of dollars of merchandise unopened! I fear this happens a lot. Didn't mean to get off topic but with the hosts pulling in million dollar salaries I cannot help but feel for those in debt because they adore the hosts and order things they do not need.