Wednesday, 4 June 2014

Sales Performance & Pay Rises – Sales Survey 2014

Having gone through the results of the 2014 Sales Survey, both sales performance & pay rises were of keen interest. They both reflect the current state of the UK economy and how it continues to grow with pay rises on the up and more people up on target.

To receive a full free copy of the 2014 UK Sales Survey please follow this link – 2014 UK Sales Survey Report

It’s no secret that sales workers are ambitious and very persuasive and perhaps this is why more reported that they’d received a pay rise in the last year than what the media regularly reports.
The study wanted to highlight pay rises from 2007 to 2013 and an impressive 40% of sales professionals were awarded a pay rise during 2013 compared to just 15% that received a rise in the previous year.

Only 4% of workers received a pay rise during 2007, and 5% were awarded in 2008, which looks quite coincidental as the flickering flame of recession we know now had its roots in 2007. A pitiful 2% received a bonus in 2009, which is perhaps understanding bearing in mind the state of the UK and global economy at the time. It does seem that sales work is becoming a bloodthirsty and aggressive sport, fighting the battle to achieve their targets. The sales professionals were asked about their current performance and were instructed to answer honestly as they didn’t want a full 726 opting for the ‘I am up on target’ option (and being in denial) or lying to gain a cheeky ego boost!


However:

  • 31% were up on target.
  • 20% were down on target.
  • 26% believed they were merely touching their target.
  • 23% were not in a targeted role so this question didn’t apply to them.
More people were up on target, which correlates nicely with the outstanding pay raise rates of 2013.

Although a pay rise and ‘being on the ball’ may be a measure of success to some, not everyone feels ‘a pat on the back’ is enough recognition for their hard and time-consuming graft. The 2014 study was curious to find out how individual’s measured their success:

 
  • 14% of people measured their own performance by receiving formal recognition from their bosses and peers.  As well as being noticed from awards, certificates and league tables
  • 18% of people measured performance by gaining client recommendations and feedback.
  • 35% of people measured their performance on targets.
  • 18% of people measured their personal growth as a key to their performance.
  • 8% of respondents measured performance by the size of their commission cheque and;
  • A further 8% strongly measured their performance by material wealth.
In conclusion, it appears that the ‘T word’ really is the boss of success, and targets are a great way to keep sales teams motivated and focused on the job.



Written by Liam Oakes
Liam is the Office Manager at Aaron Wallis and has been with the company for 3 years after having a career with the RAF; Liam has helped hundreds of Sales Professionals secure a new Sales role and ensures that Aaron Wallis runs smoothly.

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