Specialist sales representative, Business representative

These professionals are in charge of promoting the company or business within the sector in which they are located. It is a highly specialized professional profile since the type of products and services that they commercialize often imply a high degree of technical complexity. Under the supervision of the commercial director, they are responsible for the commercial management of the company's product line and client portfolio, providing technical and commercial solutions to market needs. Their tasks include visiting clients in order to determine needs, drafting commercial offers, technical advice on products, conducting promotions and negotiations, managing orders and after-sales technical assistance together with product specialists.

Usually, they operate in a certain area, visiting companies, research centres or universities, delivering catalogues or arranging telephone appointments, and it is common for them to maintain relationships with purchasing managers and scientific personnel.

They will be responsible for the maintenance of the client portfolio and for carrying out market prospecting to attract new accounts in the field of goods and services in their sector of economic activity. In order to achieve these objectives, they often have the support of their own team and the company's commercial network.
They may work with different target audiences: they may sell and commercialize the product or service from company to company, known as the Business to Business (B2B) sales process, or go from company to end customer, known as the Business to customer (B2C) sales process.

These professionals have knowledge of the technical and manufacturing characteristics, but their versatility enables them to work in other areas such as the start-up of new business expansions or their management. For this reason, they must know this market in depth, both the different products they can offer and the needs of their potential customers and how they can help them meet their needs. Usually, they act under the supervision of the commercial management or, in the case of small companies, directly from the general direction or management, to which they report. They act with a wide margin of autonomy for the establishment of commercial relations with their clients, materializing through the signing of a service provision contract. Once the contract is signed, they follow up on customer relationships through the term of the contract, trying to meet and satisfy their needs and making regularly scheduled visits.

Trade specialists are part of the sales team or sales department within their company. They occupy a strategic function since they represent the company to customers within their own market. The activities that they carry out imply a permanent collaboration with different departments, including the technical office, production, financial and legal areas, and logistics services. Professional development leads to roles of sales coordinator, commercial director or large account manager, depending on the company and the experience gained.

• Maintenance of the client portfolio: monitor current clients in order to detect new needs and try to establish new contacts by visiting companies or attending trade fairs and related events.
• Provide support to the technical department in the drafting of projects.
• Responsible for creating commercial support teams and subsequently evaluating and monitoring the technicians.
• Obtain and prepare detailed technical documentation on the products commercialised.
• Determine the proper framework for commercial action, in accordance with the company¿s action plan in order to achieve the established sales objectives.
  Sell, guide and advise the client, identifying and analysing their needs.
  Identify and analyse in detail the client's needs and characteristics, as well as the budget margin, by asking appropriate questions.
  Prepare and plan a technical sales argument in order to more easily commercialize the product.
  Organise an operational sales plan: planning visits, routes, sales objectives and conditions offered.
• Clearly inform, guide and advise the client on the products that can satisfy their needs, highlighting the competitive advantages of the company's offer.
  Prepare commercial offers in collaboration with the different departments of the company.
• Manage the after-sales service through timely monitoring and resolution of incidents in order to guarantee customer satisfaction within the standards established by the company.
• Actively participate in improving the positioning of the company by observing the market.
  Communicate to their superiors the evolution of sales made, by preparing a report on visits and the results obtained.
• Detect, through contacts and visits to customers, possible causes of deviation in sales, unsuitable products and quality problems, transmitting them to their superiors.
  Provide the commercial management with information regarding customers, the competition, prices, new products, their modifications and the promotional and advertising actions of the competition.
  Attend specialized fairs and exhibitions in order to find out new and trends in the field of activity to which they belong.
• Communicate to technical services proposals and suggestions related to the operation and possible improvements that can be made to the products.
• Actively intervene in advertising actions with the aim of contributing to the increase in company sales.
  Collaborate giving opinions and providing experience in the definition and design of catalogues, samples and other commercial support elements.
• Carry out information or demonstration sessions for groups of real and potential clients.
  Send letters, documents or other direct mail material or promotional information to customers.

Regulated training and graduates

This occupation requires solid technical knowledge as well as commercial skills. Technical training is almost essential. For this reason, most professionals have studied an undergraduate or postgraduate degree related to their field of knowledge or economic sector, or an engineering, if applicable. In the case of SMEs, it is possible to find professionals who have studied training cycles related to Commerce and Marketing, or even the higher secondary-education course who have great commercial skills and provide previous experience in the sector or in an industrial environment with similar characteristics.

• Professionalism Certificate: Sales activities (Level 2)
• Professional Training Course(s) in the field of Trade and Marketing - Intermediate Level: Trade activities
• A-levels
• Grau: Gestió d'empreses en comerç i distribució
• Grau: Administració i direcció d'empreses
• Grau: Màrqueting i comunicació empresarial
• Grau: Màrqueting i direcció comercial
• Grau: Màrqueting i investigació de mercats

Complementary training

Other specific skills

For the development of the tasks of this profile, it is also necessary to have mastery of the following skills:

• Technical knowledge of the whole sector of economic activity in which they work (legislation, technologies, etc.).
• Advanced level of English (minimum First Certificate and highly valued Advanced level). Knowledge of a second language is valuable. Negotiation skills and availability to travel.
• Driving licence and availability to travel nationally or internationally 20-25% of the time, depending on the type of the company. High availability of periodic trips in national and international territory.
• Business skills, good communication skills and sales experience.
• Knowledge of computer systems for commercial and logistics management at the user level.
• Accustomed to working with computer support (databases, spreadsheets, word processors, trading terminals and specific programs applied to commercial management).
• It is essential to provide a clear commercial vocation, an excellent orientation towards the achievement of objectives and results, and a high potential for professional development.
• Ability to work independently.
• Good knowledge of the products of the sector and the creation of catalogues, offers, etc. Ability to speak to speakers with high technical level.

Learning and use of knowledge: Level 2

Negotiation: Level 3

Customer orientation: Level 3

Strategic orientation: Level 3

Team work and cooperation: Level 1

Customer service

Direct and personal interaction with people and relating to the public are highly-motivating activities for individuals who have an interest in the field of customer service. A focus on people and on satisfying customers' needs is key in the occupations included in this field. These jobs entail the need to know suitable techniques for attending to the public and being able to give appropriate service that is tailored to their needs and expectations. Good examples are activities which offer assistance and guidance during functions, trips or at facilities, and those which provide advice in relation to products and services.

Management

The organisation, administration and control of a company or entity are the main interests of people related to the management field. Activities included in this field of interest vary from effective resource management, feasibility analyses and solving business problems to the development of skills and fostering of motivation in relation to human resources. Knowledge regarding specific techniques of strategic administration and business management are required to carry out these activities.

Technician

People who show an interest in the technical field find fulfilment in carrying out activities related to the design and manufacture of objects, machines, vehicles and/or infrastructures. These activities require the application of scientific and technical knowledge (laws of physics, calculations and mathematical formulas, properties of the materials, etc). Creativity is also necessary when coming up with optimal solutions for the functional requirements of the products to be designed. Therefore, the pragmatic application of scientific knowledge in order to develop solutions for the benefit of human beings is the main function of occupations in the technical field.

Customer Experience Manager

Product Manager

Expansion specialist

CRM consultant

ICT consultant

• Work hours

  A full-time workday is usually required. Due to the characteristics of the job, flexible hours and availability to travel are also occasionally required. However, many times working hours are long and irregular and depend on the need to meet established objectives.

• Salary

  The estimated gross salary for this profile is usually between 21,202 and 37,233 euros per year. The average salary is around 28,470 euros gross per year. However, many times a variable part is considered depending on the objectives achieved.
  
  Source: Report "Observatory of Jobs and Salaries of the Labour Market. Barcelona Activa", elaborated by ICSA Grupo. April 2015.

• Professional category

  Technician