Going the Agent Route with Your Sales Initiative

Going the Agent Route with Your Sales Initiative

In more than one industry, the trend is to outsource the sales function to independent agents who handle the task of securing new customers. This works very well in many fields, and also helps to decrease expenses for the company, while still providing excellent pay for the agents, who also have the privilege of working for themselves.

For many independent sales agents, the pay structure often involves a buy rate. In effect, the service provider handles the billing and supplies the service. The agent sets the rate to the customer. When the client pays for services rendered, the agent receives the difference between the quoted rate and the buy rate.

This model is increasingly being used in a number of fields, such as teleconferencing, and allows the agent to make his or her own judgment call on how much of a profit to make off each unit of usage.

Another model is based on generated revenue rather than paid revenue. In this scenario, the agent is paid a percentage of the revenue generated by his or her efforts in a given period of time, such as a month or quarter. It is not unusual in some industries for the percentage in this type of arrangement to be between five and ten percent.

Finding qualified sales persons is not hard to do. In some cases, you can find qualified sale agents through trade shows, local chamber gatherings, and job fairs. Another avenue is to advertise on your web site, outlining the basics of your agent program and allowing interested persons to apply.

Make sure to set your basic criteria, such as some experience with your industry type, background on sales generated as well as what type of support the agent can expect from your firm.

Agent agreements are often for a specified amount of time and are typically open to review by the company on annual or biannual basis.

This means if things are just not working out, your company does not have to hang on to an agent that is not performing. The good news is that since you do not have salary and benefits invested in the agent, replacing him or her is less of a financial burden to the organization.

Make sure to set your basic criteria, such as some experience with your industry type, background on sales generated as well as what type of support the agent can expect from your firm.

Agent agreements are often for a specified amount of time and are typically open to review by the company on annual or biannual basis.