do sales/marketing people have sales/marketing educations?
 

In this industry, do the people doing all the sales and marketing for programs actually have an education to back them up or are most people just going on alcohol intake alone?

I do:thumbsup

I'm a few months away from my BBA....

Education helps to a certain extent, but that doesn't mean someone who doesn't have a business or marketing degree can't be a good sales person.

I'm about to start taking e-commerce classes @ a local college. Should help improve my skills and freshen up on a few things.

Do you figure that makes you one of the few or one of the many?

B40, I do agree.... some of the best sales people don't necessarily have the education.

It would still be interesting to know.

Sales is one of the few industries where you can have a limited education and make a ton of cash.

I do...

more than 2 decades worth...

~Bell


?? anyone hiring ??

Already I've gotten a few icq's saying "no, I don't have any education, but I have X years of experience..."

I understand if you don't want to come forward to outwardly admit you don't have any.

You don't have to. I just want your opinion on whether or not you think the majority of sales/marketing people in the biz have any education in the field.

I went through school for Marketing :)

DH

Few people in this business have any education of any sorts..

Not necessary, It's based on experience.

Wouldn't someone with experience help in this department? When you going to buy some add space on AAB?


:)

Going to school can teach you some things....some marketing theories and how to develop marketing plans etc...

But the other things can't be taught...

Like I can give you a manual on how to fix cars, but that doesn't make you a good mechanic...you need the hands on experience...

The logical thing to do, is to learn the text book stuff, and then get some experience applying the things you've learned :)

i do

ive taken some marketing classes.

i do.

i can target, segment and penetrate lol

Life is based more on trial and error more then anything.

My father always told me 'If at first you don't succeed, try try again.'

Its my major in college ;)

It is an advantage to have a formal background in sales and marketing, but what really counts are the talents and skills of the person. A lot of successful people who are in sales/marketing have a communications background.

No schooling just experience. I'd love to go back to school though.

I have a Bachelor of Commerce in Marketing (as well as a BA in English) and I have to say it's not really that relevant to internet porn except in very general terms. I think someone would be better served by doing a course specifically in sales (rather than marketing), especially in direct marketing, backed up with some basic statistics.

I have one too :thumbsup

I dont have any degrees but I have been the CEO of both an advertising agency and a PR agency. I have been in "sales" and "marketing" roles all my life.

As stated in replies to this thread, its not the degree, which is pure theory, its getting out there and gaining experience.

Pal of mine owns a well known agency and I have seen lots of new recruits coming from Uni with their degrees under their arms and they do not have a clue, yet becuase they have the degree they think they are worth "high" salaries. Ive never met so many clueless "marketing" people.

Definition

Salesperson = some who can talk the back legs off a donkey, well that is what people think a good salesperson can do, a good salesperson has 2 ears and one mouth, first rule of thumb, use them in the right order.

Marketing person = someone who can not only come up with the new ideas to move a program forward, but also should be able to implement the plan at all points under limitations of budget constraints.

Typical I had a 3 way conference call with 2 guys the other day selling me a new "credit facility" for our new software, these 2 would not listen to me and I could not get a word in edgeways, they simply reminded me of a double act trying to sell me double glazing, because of this lack of style in the sales pitch it has cast doubt in my mind to weather they can deliver, they sounded to desperate for my business.

Well there is my rant for Monday morning



:thumbsup

And sadly they wont get your biz. Why? Why put your trust on the shoulders of nervous people?

i do

several business and management courses in high school and jc. No degrees though

BradM you are soooooo right and its not like I have no back up plan, they really want my business, but they cast doubts in my mind.

"2 ears and 1 mouth"

Seems no one has told them this.

:thumbsup

It is all about commitment and dedication to ones job, no matter what field that is in. Then again, I think there is no way around education if you are going to be a nuclear scientist. Alright, to come back on track, if a person is interested, and I am talking INTERESTED, they are doing to educate themselves along the way.

In places such as novlety and Movie distributorships I have found that most do not have sales and marketing educations. Most of them have that natural talent ot personality for selling. But, when you get in to the powerhouses like Hustler and the big movie Companies like Vivid, most of them there do. It depends on where you want to do the sales.
My Degree is not in sales and marketing, but I fell in to it and now am Promotional director with a movie company and do sales as well.
I have found in this Industry that many companies are willing to take a chance on someone who has the drive without having the degree.

I have a degree that provided me the essential tools, but with each product/service that you are marketing, you have to learn the ropes. Marketing Cosmetics and Wedding Gowns, didn't prepare me for "Adult". It's a learning process.

I went to University first and got a general BA. Then I went to college and graduating from a Marketing/sales/Advertising program

I took business in UNI but I never finished.. started in the school of life. What I do have to back it up is 15 years of customer service/operations management/corperate trainer/Project Management and real life business experience. <---- yah know? the stuff schools can't teach you all of the time.

i doubt

Im not speaking for everyone but for me I feel anything after highschool is a waste of time. You might learn a thing or two but nothing you couldnt learn on your own. It takes up way to much time and produces way to little results. Henry Ford dropped out of the fourth grade and look what he created (ford motors) All you need is a major passion, some time and you could do anything you want without ever going to college.

Most people don't . They are only people with a lot of contacts who get new customers ... anybody with couple hundread ppl on ICQ that have a personality can do that .

Yet 1/10 persons that drop off of high school become successfull .

I have a painting and printmaking degree.even though its not in the sales field it was very much the same. you have sell people on your bad(sometimes good) art and make it sound like its a masterpiece,this takes skill and vocabulary to make peeps beleive in yer product.i think sales is either in ya or not,yer born with it.everyone else gets pissed from rejection and gives up.

Me, Mike and Thiago have a double major in Marketing and Advertising. Milena has a major in Journalism.

I honestly think its not needed, but VERY appreciated. Practice and experience is indeed very important but knowing the theory can´t hurt! It enables a company to not make common mistakes and solve problems based on case studies, etc.

:2 cents:

Bruno Dickman :thumbsup

Alot of salespeople in this industry tend to be order takers ,that are afraid of the phone. I was in sales for a long time before adult . If I was interviewing sales people ,my first question to them would be how many books on the subject of sales do you have and read ? If they said none I would say thanks for coming and wish them well. The man who taught me to sell , taught me its a on going education. This was a man making 200k a year selling, still read books on sales to see what nugget of knowledge he could mine. I have over 50 books on the subject of sales.

Marketing & Ecommerce Major