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Overview of the UK Sales Industry

The UK sales industry is huge and it is estimated that about 1 in 6 employees according to the latest Crown Statistics are employed either directly or indirectly in sales. And sales skills are becoming harder and harder to source. What a great time to be in sales!

According to the 2003 Learning Skills Council's survey (LSC National 2003 (IFF/IER) Survey 2003: Main Report) 'sales vacancies' represent 17% of all outstanding vacancies and 14% of 'Hard to Fill' vacancies. Proving that sales vacancies are becoming harder to fill year-by-year and probably goes to explain why the basic salaries in sales have increased sharply in the last 5 years.

A strong sales team is imperative to succeed in today's highly competitive commercial world. In a recent sales survey of close to 1,000 sales professionals (www.survey2007.co.uk) some 62% felt that sales was the most influential division of their business and their influence on business direction had increased exponentially over the last 5 years.

UK Sales Industry Statistics - Download the most comprehensive UK Sales Survey. Sales Salary Survey and other sales statistics. The most comprehensive information available on the UK sales industry. UK sales survey. Irish Sales Survey. UK sales industry statistics

Download the State of Sales in the UK, Report 2007

Austin Benn (www.austinbenn.co.uk) undertook an extensive survey of sales professionals in spring 2007. The headline findings were as follows:

* Almost half of all respondents admitted to lying at interview, with "reasons for leaving" and "earnings" being the most likely topic to embellish.

* Only 23% of female respondents were in senior management roles compared to 46% of male respondents.

* 76% of all respondents admitted to using the Internet for personal use every day.

* 54% of female respondents earned over 25k. 81% of male respondents earned over 25k!

* 44% of sales professionals would stay in their current role if they won the lottery jackpot.

* 32% of respondents didn't receive any training throughout 2006.

* The major thing that sales professionals would look for in a new role is the opportunity to grow and develop.

* Female respondents were twice as likely to be satisfied with their career/role.

* Only 20% of all respondents had more than 5 years service with their current employer.

* 60% felt they could do their bosses job better!

* 43% did not take their full holiday entitlement last year.

* Being respected was the single biggest motivator in all respondents, far more than money!

To download a free copy of the full survey results click here

Sales Industry Statistics

Aaron Wallis is a leader within the UK sales recruitment industry and has researched and commissioned some of the largest surveys of UK and Irish sales professionals over the last few years. This information is free to download to our employer and candidate clients and provides a powerful and fascinating insight into the minds of sales professionals.

Our most recent survey was launched in late July 2009 and was live for 6 weeks. The survey contained 70 questions and covered all aspects of sales from remuneration through to sales targets to key motivators to work-life balance and everything in-between.

The survey was fully completed by 644 sales professionals and partially completed by a further 140. This has enabled us to provide a powerful insight into the 'State of Sales in the UK in 2009'. The aim of the survey was to give us all greater understanding on how to manage and motivate our sales teams through tough financial times and beyond.

The survey was similar to another that was commissioned by our Managing Director, Rob Scott, back in 2007 so it has been a great exercise to compare attitudes and perspectives between the buoyant economic times of 2007 and the tougher ones of 2009.

It is our intention to run the survey again in 2012 where it will be once again fascinating to see how trends and changes have impacted upon the minds and motivations of our UK sales force.

The State of Sales in the UK is available free of charge to download by following the link below:

Irish Sales Industry Statistics

In conjunction with Niall Kelly and our friends at salesjobs.ie we also undertook a comparison with the Irish Sales Industry. SalesJobs.ie conducted the survey with a similar number across Eire and the downloads of this survey are available here:

The State of Sales in Ireland - A Comprehensive Overview of the Irish Sales Industry

Irish and UK Sales Industry Comparisons

In late 2009 we combined the two surveys together to create a fascinating comparison of the two surveys. The resulting report can be downloaded free of charge here.

The State of Sales in Ireland and the UK - A Comprehensive Comparison of the UK and Irish Sales Industries

We look forward to working with you

To submit a vacancy to Aaron Wallis please complete the short form below and we’ll be in touch soon.

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Further Surveys - Take Part in the 2012 UK Sales Survey

In conjunction with numerous partners it is our intention to commission a similar survey in early 2012. To take part in the survey, and to be the first to receive the resulting reports, please complete the short form below. You will automatically receive our ‘regular (but not too regular - about 5 times per year) SalesPeak’ newsletter which contains similar useful information for UK sales professionals.

Use of the Survey Information (the legal bit)

The State of Sales in the UK information is Copyright © Aaron Wallis Recruitment and Training Limited, 2009. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work is vested in Aaron Wallis Sales Recruitment and the document is issued in confidence for the purpose only for which it is supplied. The information contained in this survey can be reproduced in whole, or in part, and used for any means on the proviso that Rob Scott and/or Aaron Wallis Sales Recruitment is cited as the author of the work and a reference is given to www.aaronwallis.co.uk. Use of the report and the statistics within the report is free for education and training purposes.

We Welcome Academic Use and Academic Study of the Report Findings

Use of the report and statistics have been used extensively by undergraduates and students. We welcome academic study of the report and would love to hear your findings and thoughts - please email info@aaronwallis.co.uk . However please do ensure the correct referencing of the survey and ideally point to the full source on www.aaronwallis.co.uk.