For The Job Seeker Deciding Between A Career In Either Inside Or Outside Sales

Inside Sales Jobs:

In most instances, inside sales positions involve heavy volumes of cold prospecting via the telephone or via mass emailing attempts to target clients.

However, I have seen companies use this term to describe quite the opposite. Instead, they use the term "inside sales" to describe what is really pure account management. That means the position isn't heavily focused on finding new business.

Hiring companies often list desired qualities of the ideal inside sales applicant including, "hungry," "aggressive," and, "not afraid to close a deal."

These arguably unflattering adjectives apply to inside sales because selling over the phone or via mass emailing has become increasingly more challenging. This sort of inside sales job quickly turns into a scenario with no chance for any type of positive outcome.

If the jobs are pure cold-calling positions, companies will usually try to recruit younger salespeople by focusing the total compensation package, instead of an at- or below-market base salary.

This "total comp" focus is usually followed by an inflated OTE number ("on-target earnings," the total predicted money made by the sales representative if he or she hits all the quota goals). A company that inflates OTE possibilities usually uses a "We want someone who sees the bigger picture" spiel.

Here's a hint: only interview for inside sales jobs if you know the company or the position pays a secure base salary with full benefits.

However, seeing the term "inside sales" in a job description doesn't always signal a trap.

Benefits of Taking an Inside Sales Job:

You are around a manager and can train, grow and immerse yourself into the culture of the organization.
Due to the entry-level nature of the job, you'll probably be around peers your own age who share a similar interest in sales.
For the right person, the consistent prospecting via the phone and the web can quickly lead to a leadership role within the organization.
I've seen 25-year-olds earn significantly more responsibility handling both basic sales representatives and the more important clients, whose continuous business results in large commission checks for the young all-star.

Those who make it out of the trenches alive quickly morph into VPs and Regional Managers.