A sales administrative assistant provides administrative and customer-oriented support to a sales team. Basic administrative skills, computer skills, and strong communication skills are required. Additional skills include lead qualification, people skills, and record-keeping. The job varies by industry and company. It can be a good entry point to learn about sales and potentially move into a sales role.
A sales administrative assistant is a support professional who works in a sales department. In some cases, the assistant reports directly to the department manager. However, in larger sales departments, it is not uncommon for this type of sales assistant to be assigned to a specific group of salespeople, providing the team with a wide range of administrative and sometimes customer-oriented support. If you are interested in learning more about what it takes to become an administrative sales assistant, here are some things you should know.
All of the skills associated with any type of administrative assistant position also hold true when it comes to providing administrative support in a sales environment. Generally, the basic requirements for any administrative assistant job will also be true for the sales-related job. Most companies will require a minimum of a high school education, competent computer skills, strong organizational skills, and a demonstrated talent for communicating effectively with the people of the company.
To become a sales administrative assistant, it is recommended that you take classes that help you improve basic administrative skills, including working with databases, presentation software, and preparing letters. While some of these skills are acquired in high school classes, many people master them by taking courses at a local vocational school or community college. It’s also not uncommon for people to accept an entry-level office position elsewhere in the company, giving them a chance to learn the nature of the company as they hone those basic skills.
Along with these basic administrative assistant skills, there are several other important talents that are required to become a sales administrative assistant. This includes the ability to qualify leads for the sales force, strong people skills that make it easy to engage with prospects, and a willingness to conduct on-site or electronic demos at a salesperson’s request. Record keeping using software developed for sales tracking purposes is also considered an important skill in this type of work.
It is important to note that the exact tasks associated with sales administrative jobs vary from industry to industry, as well as from company to company. Some will require a fair amount of interaction with potential customers, as well as existing customers where there is opportunity to sell the customer additional goods or services. Others are strictly internal, while others may be called upon to accompany salespeople to conventions, conferences, or onsite visits to a potential client. You can become an administrative sales assistant working in a sales department that handles retail and wholesale business. The assignment can be for a single salesperson or you can support the entire sales team.
In many ways, the decision to become an administrative sales assistant is an excellent way to enter the world of sales. Using this skill can make it possible to learn and master some of the basics of selling, such as understanding the difference between a qualified and an unqualified lead, how to define a prospect, the nature of upselling, and how to understand the sales cycle. Since the sales administrative assistant will work closely with the sales team, exposure to all of these tools and terminology can educate the assistant and possibly pave the way for moving into a salesperson role.
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