Prosperity has just finished its annual Salary Survey, and I thought that the following information might be of interest to both my clients and sales candidates in terms of how the sales sector has evolved over the last year.
Salaries in the media / advertising sales sector have definitely risen over the past number of years; a graduate starting out in a telesales role can command basic salaries of up to €25k (5 years ago, raw graduates would have been looking at starting salaries of as low as €18/20k) with the potential to bring this up to €35/40k when commissions and bonuses are factored in.We have even seen roles offering €30k basic salaries for candidates with a strong academic background and only 6 months telesales experience, so the media / advertising sales sector can be said to offer lucrative opportunities for hungry graduates with a flair for sales.
The same can definitely be said for the mid, senior and executive level roles where there is a definite shortage of quality experienced candidates - these are candidates with media/advertising sales experience as opposed to sales experience in other sectors. Candidates are now in a far stronger position to obtain the best deal possible for themselves due to this supply and demand issue. A candidate with 2 years media/advertising sales experience looking for a business development/account management role can reasonably expect to achieve a basic salary of €35-40k with commissions and bonuses generally taking this to or above €50k.
A strong media/advertising sales person with 4 or more years experience moving into their first management role can realistically expect a basic salary of €45-55k whereas sales managers in the industry, with 5 or more years experience and who can bring revenue growth and contacts to a potential employer now command basic salaries north of €60 with on target earnings structures taking overall remuneration packages into the realm of 6 digit sums. At the very high end of the spectrum a proven sales manager with 2 to 3 years experience at this level looking to take on a sales directors role or a sales director looking for a fresh challenge can without doubt pitch themselves to employers at the €80k mark and above, with overall packages with some employers coming in around €120k or more.
The industry is very candidate friendly at this point in time in terms of the salaries on offer. This is mostly due to market place competitiveness and the lack of candidates with genuine relevant experience. Hungry sales executives with an eye for business development and growing revenue streams, and proven media and advertising sales professionals who have a strong account base, can genuinely earn very good salaries in the current industry climate as most companies operate uncapped commission structures allowing the sales person unlimited earnings potential. Where the industry does fall short in comparison to other sectors within the sales industry can be in the benefits packages offered to candidates with most media/advertising sales companies only now coming around to offering additional benefits like health insurance and pensions and above average holiday allowances as a means to attract and retain staff.
All in all, if a graduate wishes to maximise his or her earning potential through a sales role or an experienced media/advertising sales professional is looking for their next move, the industry has many exciting and highly rewarding career opportunities where success really does PAY.
To view current sales jobs: http://www.prosperity.ie/category_job_search_24/sales_jobs.html
Jess Delahunt - Prosperity.ie