By Sue McMurray
When it comes to navigating a professional sales career, women statistically outperform their male counterparts, according to the Institute of Sales Professionals. They have higher closing rates and achieve sale targets more often.
Yet within that talent pool, only about one in every four sales professionals is a woman, and that percentage is much smaller when looking at leadership roles.
To educate WSU students about the challenges and opportunities women face when entering the sales profession, the WSU Sales and Women in Business clubs hosted the Women in Sales networking event last spring.
Industry professionals from five sales sectors share insights
During the event, five corporate sales leaders shared their reasons for choosing sales careers, the personal fulfillment they have experienced, and strategies for success. Speakers included Sylvia Johns from Marsh McLennan Agency, Sarah Anderson from TTI Group, Tara Whitford and Sarah Collins from TK Elevator, Korey Schramm from Cintas, and Linda Nihoul (’71), a retired certified financial planner.
The speakers split up to lead students in timed round table discussions focusing on gender differences in the workplace, leveraging networks, and building a personal brand.
Nihoul and Collins led the discussion on gender differences in the workplace. They said in their experience, women can be viewed or treated differently than men in the workplace because of family responsibilities, attire, or even word choice.
“The reality is—what you look like matters,” Collins says. “Dress for success, and make people think about who you are and what you do, not about your appearance.”
Nihoul brought a list of words that convey strength. Every professional should be able to list their personal values when asked, she says.
“Successful women think differently,” Nihoul says. “Empower yourself by using strong words like ‘frugal’ versus ‘cheap.’ Words like ‘super,’ ‘I’m sorry,’ and ‘bye bye’ can come across as weak.”
Logan Sparber, a marketing major who attended the event, says understanding gender differences in the workplace could help him be a better business leader. “I wanted to develop perspective about something I’ve never thought about before,” he says.
Finance and accounting major Manisha Parsana participated in the event to fulfill the Carson Career Amplifier program’s professionalism requirement. She also was interested in learning more about workplace culture and opportunities to build community.
Strategies to build networks, teamwork, and leadership
Anderson, Whitford, and Johns led the leveraging networks session. They emphasized the value of having a mentor, building a network through social media and communication, and establishing a leadership style based on transparency and honesty.
Anderson suggests using social media platforms and apps to gain connections, and Johns says intentionality is a great strategy when building a LinkedIn profile.
“I use LinkedIn to market myself as someone studious and engaged in my community,” Johns says. “I post achievements and volunteerism that make my platform both personally and professionally appealing.”
The speakers suggested workplace relationships and knowing a company’s values and goals can be leveraged to build strong teamwork and leadership.
“At TK Elevator, I had to develop leadership that felt authentic to me,” Whitford says. “People will respect you if you are transparent and authentic.”
Ways to develop a strong personal brand
The network leveraging advice aligned seamlessly with Schramm’s suggestions during the personal brand session, especially regarding social media profiles.
“Make sure your profile is current and includes a photo,” she says. “Know who the CEO is and what the buzzwords are of the organizations you’re interested in. Use those buzzwords on your résumé, and craft it to match the job you’re looking for.”
Schramm described several strategies to convey unique skills to an employer. One is the STAR method where interviewees describe a specific situation, task, action, or result to answer interview questions. Another is the “six degrees of separation” concept. When applied to sales, it means six social connections stand in between a sales professional and a target client.
She also referenced an analogy in which three balls illustrate the importance of prioritizing tasks and responsibilities while keeping a balanced perspective. A wooden ball is akin to a project error that makes a disruptive “thud” but won’t kill someone’s career. A rubber ball represents noncritical tasks that can be dropped and rescheduled, and a glass ball represents a critical task or project that could make or break someone’s career.
Corporate sales events help develop future workforce
This year, the Women in Sales event coincided with Women’s History Month events at WSU. Women in Sales occurs annually and is one of several events the Center for Professional Sales program provides for students to gain career insights from corporate sales professionals. In turn, participating corporations get access to students they might eventually want to hire.
“Having events that highlight the unique challenges women face in sales is important because although we have come a long way, women remain underrepresented in sales roles,” says Bitty Balducci, Carson assistant professor of marketing. “This event brought together successful women across industries to share their wisdom with the next generation.
To learn more about participating in student events or other mentoring opportunities, email ccb.development@wsu.edu.
