Overview of the UK's sales industry

While competitive in nature, the sales sector in the UK has lots of opportunities for talented graduates, as well as the potential for high salaries

No matter what sector they operate in, if UK businesses are to thrive, they must successfully sell a product or service. Talented sales staff are integral to this success.

It can be tricky to uncover sales industry statistics as the sector is often grouped with other areas of the economy such as marketing or retail. However, according to Statista, as of the second quarter of 2024 there were approximately 930,300 sales, marketing and related associate professionals in the UK. In fact, it is estimated that roughly one in six employees are employed either directly or indirectly in a sales role.

There's high demand for sales professionals, especially in business hubs such as:

• Birmingham
• Bristol
• Leeds
• London
• Manchester.

What is a sales job?

The main premise of a sales role is to sell a company's product or service to customers. This usually involves:

• conducting sector research and keeping up with industry trends
• competitor analysis
• generating leads and uncovering new business opportunities
• promoting products and services and networking at industry events
• meeting clients and pitching to potential customers
• negotiating and making sales
• supporting existing clients and providing new customers with an after-sales service
• hitting sales targets and deadlines.

What are the different types of sales?

Employment opportunities in the sales industry can be grouped into:

• business-to-business (B2B)
• business-to-consumer (B2C)
• customer service
• direct/field sales
• export sales
• fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG)
• IT sales
• media and advertising sales
• medical/pharmaceutical/scientific sales
• online sales
• retail motor sales
• telesales.

Sales roles can be found in all industries, including retail, finance, transport and manufacturing. You could also consider estate agents, travel agents and recruitment consultancies for other sales-related jobs. Depending on your interests and area of specialism, you could be selling medical equipment, pharmaceuticals, IT software, a holiday, a car or a house.

The area of sales you choose to work in, and your role can have an impact on your earning potential. High paying sales jobs include sales director, sales manager and medical sales representative and high commission areas include:

• digital media sales
• financial advice
• luxury item sales
• medical device sales
• technology sales.

For examples of sales careers, see sales jobs.

Who are the main sales recruiters?

Many large companies - from car manufacturing and pharmaceuticals, to IT, electronics and TV, broadband and mobile services - employ graduates in sales and customer service roles.

Leading employers include:

• Amazon
• AstraZeneca
• Bloomberg
• BT
• Coca-Cola
• Danone UK
• EE
• Ford UK
• Fujitsu
• GSK (GlaxoSmithKline)
• KPMG
• Mars UK
• Mercedes-Benz
• Microsoft
• Mondelēz International
• Nestlé
• Nissan
• Philips
• Samsung
• Schroders
• Softcat
• Unilever
• Virgin Media.

What's it like working in sales?

Graduates can expect:

• varied working environments as sales departments are target-driven, challenging and very busy, while field work or medical sales involve long hours away from home, and telesales involves regular office hours or split shifts
• a basic starting salary of between £20,000 and £30,000 for a sales executive, with the chance to earn more for meeting targets - especially in companies where the level of commission is uncapped so there's the potential for high overall earnings for talented sales employees
• an emphasis on creating, building and maintaining profitable customer relationships, which requires a mix of soft skills including communication, diplomacy, confidence and the ability to deal with rejection
• to be judged by your results.

To find out more about typical salaries and specific industry roles, see sales job profiles.

Do I need a related degree to work in sales?

For many sales positions, your personality and aptitude for the profession may be viewed as more important than particular qualifications. In most cases, employers will consider candidates with any degree subject, although some will require at least a 2:1.

For specialised vacancies, such as those involving sales of engineering, IT or medical equipment, it's expected that you hold a related technical degree. If you're starting out in IT sales, a business or computer science degree may be preferred, otherwise you'll likely have to demonstrate commercial awareness and a strong interest in IT.

As you become more experienced you might want to think about becoming a member of an organisation such as the Institute of Sales Management (ISM). You'll find industry recognised ISM qualifications at Levels 2-7 of the Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF), with ISM Level 6 equivalent to a university degree and Level 7 a Masters degree.

Explore your study options and consider sales training courses.

What top ten skills do sales employers want?

Recruiters typically look for candidates with:

• excellent communication skills to clearly explain what you're selling but also to listen to what your clients want from their services or packages. This listening needs to be free of personal assumptions, judgements and beliefs. A major part of active listening is to treat others with the respect and attention you'd like to receive in a conversation, so they feel their requirements are understood, and will be adhered to
• effective time management as you will have a lot of client visits to juggle and may be working to deadlines to get things signed off in time
• honed presentation skills as you'll usually have one shot at meeting potential clients and showing them what you can do, and a great presentation is what could swing it for you
• confidence and persistence as not everyone will say 'yes' and want what you're selling. Having faith in yourself and the product in the face of resistance and rejection, is vital. But never confuse confidence with arrogance
• a resilient attitude as reacting positively to knock backs is essential. You may have put a lot of time and effort into landing a deal, but it didn't work out. You have to be resilient, dust yourself off and believe that you will land the next one
• good customer service skills as if the customers don't like you, it's unlikely they will buy from you. In a sales role you'll interact and converse with a variety of people, so you need to be personable. Coming across as authentic and engaging will endear you to others and gain their trust
• ambition and drive are particularly important when it comes to meeting your targets
• networking and relationship-building abilities are important to allow you to make new leads and keep existing customers coming back
• initiative to work independently, as well as being part of a team as it's likely that you'll be speaking to customers on your own, so you need to be comfortable in doing so
• entrepreneurial spirit because demonstrating that you can craft opportunities where they may not obviously exist and see these through to execution and delivery, shows that you have a natural talent for selling. Something as simple as trading on eBay can go a surprisingly long way in showing you're able and agile enough to create your own breaks.

Where can I get sales work experience?

Employers taking on sales staff value any work experience that allows you to develop your customer service skills and ability to communicate. Jobs in retail, hospitality or telesales are available on a part-time basis - for example, working as a retail sales assistant.

Some larger companies, such as Microsoft, Nestlé, Nissan and Unilever, offer summer placements or one-year industrial internships in sales or customer management. Other recruiters offer sales, marketing or general management internships that can provide a fast-track to graduate sales positions for successful applicants.

Explore what's currently available and search for sales work experience.

How do I find a graduate sales job?

Large companies across a variety of industries offer sales graduate schemes, including Mondelez International, Nestlé and Volkswagen. Other companies offer sales, marketing or general schemes where you could be given the opportunity to rotate between the different departments.

You should check employer websites for details of how to make an online application.

Graduate sales positions, like a sales executive, can be found through specialist sales recruitment agencies or job sites. For example, if you're searching for a medical sales position in pharmaceuticals or healthcare then visit CHASE.

If you're decisive and results-orientated with plenty of business ideas, self-employment is another option. While being an entrepreneur has its challenges, those with sales skills and an abundance of self-belief may find this route fits in perfectly with their ambitions.

To explore sales jobs offered by leading recruiters, search graduate jobs in sales and discover how to answer sales interview questions.

What are the key issues in the sales industry?

• A lack of soft skills in the UK workforce is making sales roles increasingly difficult to fill. Communication skills, relationship building and problem solving skills are vital in salespeople, but recruiters are struggling to find candidates with the right mix of skills.
• There's a war over talent, with qualified, skilled candidates being lured into other industries where earning a decent salary isn't dependent on hitting sales targets or on supplementing it with commission.
• More needs to be done to alter the perception of sales careers among younger generations who often don't appreciate the scope of sales careers.
• Advancements in technology and artificial intelligence (AI) have resulted in a number of tasks becoming streamlined. While this might be a positive thing for sales managers (as it frees up their time) it could lead to a decrease of entry-level roles, limiting the talent moving up through the ranks.