Taylor Smallwood recently graduated from college with a degree in marketing. She had taken a sales class her senior year and found she liked learning more about customer problems and creating solutions that might add value. As she searched for job openings online, she began to gravitate toward sales roles. She was surprised by the wide variety of job titles listed. Which role would be best for her? After hours of searching, Taylor settled on three that seemed most interesting. All three jobs were in Chicago, her top choice for relocating. All three were entry-level positions. She printed off the three postings to review them.

Job 1:

In this job, the successful applicant would perform the administrative functions needed

to ensure customer needs are being met; support the outside sales force by ensuring

the delivery of timely price quotes and accurate order processing; and update customer

contracts, coordinate warehouse deliveries, and answer phone calls from customers

requesting sales information.

Job 2:

Responsibilities for this job include conduct research and lead generation daily to iden-

tify and qualify potential customers; record all information on potential customers in the

CRM system; participate in team planning sessions to make sure quality opportunities are

identified; participate in industry events such as trade shows.

Job 3:

The successful applicant will meet with existing customers, develop product knowledge,

and deliver sales presentations. Emphasis is placed on creating a positive experience for

customers to ensure customer satisfaction.

Taylor studied the job postings carefully, trying to figure out what she should do. Each job

was slightly different. What would be the best job for her skill set? She decided to call her

former sales professor to gather some information on these different types of sales roles.

1. What sales role is best reflected by Job 1?

2. What sales role is best reflected by Job 2?

3. What sales role is best reflected by Job 3?