New analysis of more than 25,000 UK sales job adverts finds a target-first approach to operations, with employers significantly more likely to prioritise revenue and pipeline generation than client retention, satisfaction or long-term relationship building.
Nov 02: The research, conducted by the global leader in corporate sales, leadership and management training, Sandler, highlights how sales teams are being pressured by decision makers to hit targets and generate revenue, while the long-term relationship building that underpins great sales practice takes a back seat.
The study, which analysed sales jobs across platforms Totaljobs and Reed, found that 58% of sales job listings in the UK highlight targets, compared with just 19% that mention relationship building. This means that of the 25,143 sales listings analysed, only 4,651 require people to be able to build client relationships.
The pressure on revenue goes further than just the language used to describe the role. Phrases about how success is measured appear far more often in terms of sales output than client outcomes: 24% of listings (5,964) mention revenue and 23% (5,648) mention pipeline, compared with just 8% (1,906) mentioning retention and 7% (1,664) mentioning customer satisfaction.
Anneli Thomson, UK Managing Director at Sandler, comments: “Targets play a vital role within every sales team, but what goes into a job advert tells candidates what a business really values. When targets are mentioned three times as often as building relationships, it sends a clear message about what salespeople are being asked to prioritise.
“Great selling starts with understanding what the client needs. If the way we recruit and measure success only rewards the next deal, we shouldn’t be surprised when the client’s best interests get squeezed.”
Client-focused language is not absent from sales adverts. Phrases such as ‘customer needs’ and ‘consultative’ do appear, but the data suggests that ads say the right things while setting out success in terms of revenue and pipeline.
Anneli concludes: “The good news is that this is fixable. Businesses that measure what matters, including retention, satisfaction and the quality of client relationships, tend to see stronger long-term results. Salespeople who are trained to put the client first don’t sell less, they sell better, and repeatedly.”