Sales teams have quotas and goals to meet, and sales directors help develop those goals, as well as strategies to employ to meet them. They are also responsible for developing a plan to grow the company’s client base. Sales directors are usually in charge of several sales teams or accounts. They are responsible for communicating with key stakeholders both within their own company and with customers. Sales directors also are accountable for forecasting sales results.
In addition to communication skills, sales directors should have a thorough understanding of their team’s products, in addition to a firm grasp on various sales techniques and methodologies. They should also stay on top of market trends and recommend changes in sales strategies to adjust to those trends. A sales director is in charge of coaching and mentoring the sales representatives or sales managers working on their teams.
Sample job description #1
Responsibilities:
- Fully immerse yourself in the business of the gaming industry, keeping up to date on industry developments, and translating that information into new business opportunities
- Weekly meetings with existing Client and/or Agency marketing decision makers within the digital media sphere to determine business needs and formulate successful integrated marketing and sales solution strategies
- Respond to Briefs/RFP’s to new and existing clients/Agencies
- Support North American Sales efforts through pre sales presentation preparation, audience research, in-campaign support, and post campaign analysis
- Make relevant recommendations on products based on market/client feedback and advertising opportunities
- Constantly seek new business opportunities, striving to generate a strong pipeline of revenue for the team and business
- Daily maintenance of reporting/CRM tools to update sales management on account activity
- Attend virtual meetings and (assuming a safe resumption of in-person events), client meetings, client entertainment events, and industry events, (as can be done safely)
- Develop your internal network across sales operations, editorial and marketing to ensure amazing solutions are created that deliver on client expectations
Skills and experience:
- You are a digital advertising industry professional, with a minimum of 5+ years of relevant industry experience and proven individual contributor digital ad sales experience
- A rolodex of digital marketing and media buying professionals – ideally with a focus on those that target a gaming and entertainment audience.
- Knowledge and experience working across digital display, programmatic, custom branded content, and social media solutions preferable
- You confidently and expertly deliver presentations and build relationships with clients
- Able and willing to travel domestically and internationally
- Extensive account/client management experience
- Successful in meeting and exceeding revenue goals
- Able to work independently and in integrated departmental teams
- Able to think and plan strategically; have strong negotiation skills
- Direct and comfortable giving and receiving constructive feedback
- Comfortable working in fast growing, rapidly changing environment
- Proficient in using reporting/CRM systems as well as Hubspot, G-Suite/MS Office such as Excel spreadsheets and PowerPoint presentations.
Sample job description #2
Sales Director will be responsible for cultivating BPO presence in the market and growing business development opportunities within the XYZ sector. It is expected that the successful candidate will bring significant experience and relationships in the XYZ sector. The successful candidate should be motivated by winning financial incentives as well as career growth.
A successful candidate will be responsible for sales including vertical BPO offerings (i.e., trust and safety, merch non merchandise, ecommerce operations, chargeback and PoS, trade) and horizontal BPO offerings (F&A, supply chain, Procurement, contact center and HR) within the CPG sector. 15+ years of post-qualification experience. Minimum 10 years in BPO preferably in a 3rd party BPO environment.
Key responsibilities include:
- Be responsible for following of allocated accounts
- Be responsible for the sales cycle from deal origination to closure (signed contract) and successful handover to the Operation Management
- Drive named account pursuit lists towards New logo hunting
- Bring an understanding of the marketplace and competitor offerings to drive ABC Company’s growth strategy and investments
- Be responsible for New logo sales and account acquisition
- Be responsible for significantly growing ABC Company’s presence and revenues
- Collaborate and develop 3rd party and advisor relations to build credible ABC Company’s voice in the geography and generate opportunities from this channel
- Propose – Submit and handle proposals with full ownership and accountability for the opportunity. Work closely with the sales enablement teams to ensure high quality of proposals
- Possess established and current relationships with COO’s, CFO’s, CEO’s, Customer Service Directors
- Bring substantial experience in working with C-Suite executives including discussions with Chief Operating Officers, Chief Marketing Officers, and Chief Financial Officers
- Ensure optimal deployment of resources to achieve business goals
- Architecture of proposals (RFP/RFIs) to evince client interest
Key skills required:
- Efficiency in computers – MS Office and Accounting applications like PeopleSoft, Oracle, etc.
- Knowledge of complex accounting and reporting systems
Process specific skills:
Business Skills
- Big-deal experience – Person should have proven experience in closing deals with ACV > $5M and TCV > $20M
- Balance multiple, concurrent deals to achieve challenging growth targets
- Broad functional knowledge within the specific sector and able to connect with a variety of executive level stakeholders on their specific pain-points
- Effectively identify and translate client needs into ABC Company services. Develop an understanding of customer’s business needs, matching them with ABC Company’s capabilities, and developing winning proposals for ABC Company
- Work effectively across the ABC Company organization and partner with the appropriate team members to demonstrate the depth and breadth of ABC Company’s solutions
- Be a key intermediary between the service delivery team and the customer
- Astute at identifying and qualifying leads, be able to develop strong relationships at potential client organizations and have the proven ability to convert these relationships into commercial engagements in situations where little to no previous relationship existed
- Effectively and proactively managed client’s expectations, built deep client partnerships, and developed excellent communication and executive presence to connect at all levels in the organization
- Experience in selling long term complex multimillion dollar products, services, or solutions within the specific markets
- Ability to communicate confidently at the C-level to build meaningful internal and external relationships
Soft Skills
- Strategically minded and able to create a consultative and solution-minded sales environment
- Aggressive, high-energy style who is motivated by winning
- A “quick study” and “self-starter” – leads with an impatience for the status quo and a true sense of urgency. A forward thinker constantly focused on shaping the organization to meet and anticipate both near and long-term business issues
- Demonstrated ability to work in a multicultural global environment
- Strong Communication and Interpersonal Skills
- Advanced presentation skills, coupled with solid executive presence and the ability to establish immediate credibility
- Good people management skills – highly professional in dealings with clients and co-workers
- Ability to deal with unexpected and/or delicate situations calmly and with sound judgment
- Ability to manage multiple projects and meet deadlines under pressure
- Ability to communicate effectively at all levels
- Demonstrated ability to work in a multicultural global environment
Sample job description #3
Job overview
We are looking for an exceptional Director, Mid-Market Sales to help us expand our sales organisation across North America. You will play a key role in driving customer acquisition.
What you will bring to the team
- Minimum 5 years of B2B SaaS sales experience in a quota-carrying capacity
- Proven and demonstrable track record of meeting and exceeding revenue targets
- Experience navigating sales processes with Mid-Market Companies
- Used to building relationships with C-Suite, VP and Director level roles in HR, Operations, and Finance
- Ability to successful execute outbound sales activities and competent in finding and planting pain
- Obsessive pipeline management
- Hungry, accountable, intelligent, curious, ambitious, resilient, customer-centric, and a team player
- Be fastidious using a Sales CRM (we use HubSpot)
What you will be doing
- Build your target accounts list in your allocated vertical and map key personas across HR, Operations, and Finance
- Work with Marketing/Revenue Enablement/Sales Development to support your Account-Based Sales plan
- Run consultative discovery calls with inbound and outbound opportunities to uncover pain and desired outcomes while discussing the ABC Company value proposition
- Execute product demos, proof of values, build business cases, and close
- Working inside of HubSpot to manage your pipeline and execute follow-up tasks
- Achieving and exceeding your revenue target – quarter on quarter
- Reporting in to and working closely with the VP of Sales
- Leveraging tools like Zoominfo, InsightSquared, Mediafly, and Hubspot
Overview of a working week
Other than company stand-ups, forecasting meetings and a call/deal coaching 1:1 your time will be spent
- Prospecting
- Selling
- Negotiating
- Closing
- Training
- Reviewing your forecast, pipeline and territory
- Recruitment and coaching as we scale
Good to have
- MEDDICC, SPIN, BANT, or Challenger sales methodology
- Experience leading and building sales teams
Average salary and compensation
The average salary for sales director is $95,800 in the United States. Position salary will vary based on experience, education, company size, industry, and market.
| Location | Salary Low | Salary High |
|---|---|---|
| Phoenix, Arizona | $95,250 | $128,900 |
| Los Angeles, California | $107,500 | $145,450 |
| Denver, Colorado | $89,550 | $121,200 |
| Washington, DC | $109,100 | $147,650 |
| Miami, Florida | $89,150 | $120,650 |
| Orlando, Florida | $82,250 | $111,250 |
| Tampa, Florida | $83,050 | $112,350 |
| Atlanta, Georgia | $87,150 | $117,900 |
| Chicago, Illinois | $100,150 | $135,500 |
| Boston, Massachusetts | $108,300 | $146,550 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota | $86,300 | $116,800 |
| New York City, New York | $114,000 | $154,250 |
| Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | $92,850 | $125,600 |
| Dallas, Texas | $90,400 | $122,300 |
| Houston, Texas | $89,550 | $121,200 |
| Seattle, Washington | $104,250 | $141,050 |
| National Average | $81,450 | $110,150 |
Sample interview questions
- What do you like about sales? What don’t you like?
- What sales techniques do you think are most effective?
- What makes you an effective leader?
- How do you stay current with industry trends?
- How do you best motivate your team?
- What metrics do you use to measure the success of a sales team?
- What strategies do you use to generate leads?
- What is your decision-making process?
- How would you handle a sales team member who isn’t meeting their quotas?
- How do you delegate tasks among your sales team?
- How would you handle a conflict between a sales team member and a client?
- How would you handle a tight deadline?
