Anyone out there work on commision

[HEyHEY]

I went out with some collegues tonight, two of them work at an advertising firm (Nothing souless, mostly for theatre and such) they both make over $50,000 but it's all commission. %20 of everything. I know them both well so they aren't lying. Their firm is looking for a new guy, and they will try to set me up. This seems like a good gig, but no base salary just %20 commission. Anyone have some input? I don't wanna quit my $20 an hour job to go to nothing for sure.

[MI Cherie]

1. Commission only ...

Kind of a scary thought.

I've been considering real estate. But, no sure thing (in a ??? economy) and only commission? :scared:

Do you have to pay for insurance? Do they offer a draw? Will you have to rent desk space? Pay for training or classes? Travel? How much will it cost you to do business? (Deductable!)

Are there any benefits or perks offered? Bonuses? Better working conditions? Shorter commute? Flexible hours? Meet fun & interesting people? Be more creative?

Sorry I have more questions than answers!


;)

[HEyHEY]

3. no no that's good

I needed to ask some more qustions

[MI Cherie]

4. OK... here's some more ???

Do you have a back-up plan? Any savings? Other income?

Do you have a family to support? A family that can support you? (Financially as well as emotionally?)

What about living expenses? A mortgage? Car payment? Credit card or loan debt? Utilities? Expensive tastes?

Have you ever worked in sales? Prospecting? Are clients readily available? What about competition? Future advancement?

How long have you worked at your present job? Do you like what you do and the people you work with? How many jobs have you held? Do you move frequently?

Do you thrive with change? Can you handle uncertainty? Are you self-confident? Do you have "thick skin"? Can you handle rejection?

Does the opportunity to earn more challenge you? Are you excited to learn (and earn) what you are really worth?

[HEyHEY]

6. haha

SOunds like an add for a telemarketing job! ;-) haha.
I'm 24, no family, just finished college, in this field, have three years sales experience in the family business, (printing office supplies) thanks again, good questions

[TreasonousBastard]

2. Been there.

The money might be a little more, but I'd assume you've got paid vacations, pension, regular hours, employee protections, etc. now. Except for the national health, I don't know much about the differences between Candian and US employee benefits and protections, but I would assume salaried employees are fairly well protected up there. Gotta factor that stuff in.

Working on commission it's entirely up to you if you make it, no matter how much support you may or may not get from the company. You can't have a bad day, gotta make the appointments, gotta deal with rejection. Lots of rejection. Assuming this is sales, you have to learn sales. Sales is a profession like any other, and there is a LOT to learn if you're going to do it right.

There are plusses, besides the money, like a certain amount of independance and very different relationships with the people you're dealing with. But, you have to look at it as running a business of your own, and you could find yourself working a lot harder than you do now, no matter what those two say. It takes a long time to build and maintain a clientele

Whatever you do, don't look at it as just getting a higher paying job, but go for it if you think you'd like to do it.

[newyawker99]

7. Congrats TreasonousBastard!! 200 posts

:toast:

[Heddi]

5. I was in newspaper sales and worked

for commission only.

when the economy is good and people are advertising, I made *ALOT* of money.

However, after 9/11 (all the way through December 2002 when I quit), the money went down.

Luckily, while 98% of my income came from commissions, sales bonuses, etc, I did get a paltry $200-a-week base salary.

For the majority of the weeks post-9/11, I just made my base plus maybe $100 in sales.

Sales is very tough, and very competitive, and sales people are being cut left and right. If you've never had sales experience---HIGH VOLUME SALES EXPERIENCE---I'd say this is not for you. Generally people who are on commission-only are bringing in MILLIONS of dollars in sales and getting a decent cut in it.

Unfortuantely, most places aren't generous with your job if sales start to go down. Once you hit a 'high mark' you're expected to keep breaking that high-mark. Sales Managers don't care about advertisers 'downsizing" or "closing their business temporarily". If your clients suck, then your job sucks, your pay will suck and you will most likely lose your job.

That's why I got out of advertising. I was tired of feeling so......so much pressure EVERY DAY just to make $1 more. Perhaps if I cared about the product it would have been different----but I was burned out and tired of being worried that I may have 2+ weeks of "low numbers" and end up losing my job...

so I got into nursing, where at least the stress is for a good cause(which, btw, a hospital near me is paying a $20k sign-on bonus and $65k a year for brand new out of school nurses----check into nursing school if you want to make high bucks without having to whore your soul) :)

Good luck, though, in whatever you do!

[HEyHEY]

8. Ah, it looks like something is gonna happen!

My friend just called and said she had a meeting with her boss. He wants to interview me....I'm so nervous about this! So, I did what any 24-year-old ambitous yet scared young man would do. I called my Dad. Dad had a lot of questions to ask before I accept the job (provided I get it). He said, "remember, you don't have to accept it." But he got a bit down on me cause he really wants me to continue with my journalism. But hey 24-year-old journalist = $30,000 a year. This job is around $50,000 and I can still work on my portfolio freelance style....oh I don't know! :shrug: :think: