Recently, a company sought a sales professional to start a new territory from scratch. They wanted someone with solid industry experience who could hit the ground running but were only offering a less-than-average base salary with the promise of a bigger commission structure sometime down the road.
Here’s the first snag: candidates with the desired experience are often already working in established territories. They can accurately forecast their commissions for the year due to ongoing projects. These professionals are understandably reluctant to leave their current positions and start from scratch, as it often takes many months, sometimes even years, to start earning decent commissions again. Leaving an established territory means they’d be going backwards in pay for a year or more.
Moreover, this company didn’t have an established commission structure; they intended to “tailor” it to the person they hired. If a candidate doesn’t understand the commission structure, it’s tough to convince them to accept the offer. Typically, only those with nothing to lose, such as someone unemployed, very desperate to leave their current company, or someone with no experience, would accept such an offer.
So, if you’re hiring a salesperson, think twice before expecting them to start a new territory from scratch. Would you want to leave your current job to go backwards in pay for a year or two with the hope of possibly earning more in the future? Instead, provide them with either some existing business or guaranteed income for the first year and ensure you have a clear and understandable commission structure in place.
In regards to commissions, In my 27 years of experience, I’ve rarely seen a commission structure that makes sense to the average person. They are extremely complicated and would take an attorney or CPA to help decipher it. Often times, salespeople just hope that their company is being fair and calculating their commissions correctly. And if they start making “too much” money in the eyes of the higher-ups or more than their boss, the commission structure gets lowered, diminishing much of the incentive.
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At AJ Augur, we play a vital role in guiding candidates through the job search process within the plastics industry. We address these common questions candidates ask plastics recruiters with transparency and clarity, providing honest insights about the challenges and opportunities of each role. Doing so helps candidates make informed decisions while building trust and establishing positive candidate experiences.
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