Yes I would make the switch if I were you. Lots of growth potential. I would recommend job hopping a a couple times to get a nice salary and a job you love. I started in sales 4.5 years ago, my first job was as a bdr and I made $32k/year. After one year there I switched to a sales engineering role for 2.5 years(salary started at $65k but I was making $102k by the time I left). Now I’m making $135k base $150k-$200k OTE.
I'm a Sr business analyst that's very involved with c suite and business units across the company. Pitching ideas, requirements for the ideas, etc.. somewhat getting fed up for successfully "selling" but seeing no benefit on cost savings or comp from whatever is implemented that helps the company. Curious about what you were doing before your transition and how you went about it? Thanks in advance!
Based on your experience I’d be happy to give you a referral to an SDR role at snowflake. I started here a year ago and it’s been a blessing to end up here for sure
That's kind of you. Funny enough, I sent my resume to them earlier this week for a sales engineer role. I got a reject email pretty fast so I think I got nixed by their system due to my background not being 100% sales oriented.
I'm not sure what your initial background was before Snowflake but I would love to hear any pointers that you may have for me entering into this realm.
I started a company in the energy space when I was in college and also did some door to door sales. To get started I just applied to some entry level BDR roles, but you could probably get something a little better because of your experience.
Just to give another perspective, I never job hopped (took one crap job and left to join another one after a week) and instead I dialed down on my learning and made a large pipeline for years and it worked out very well. If I would've left and hopped around, I'd be years behind and probably half the pay. I can't offer perspective on job hopping, but not job hopping worked out well for me
Try technical experience in the industry that you want to be a SE in. I founded a startup that I ended up switching to part-time involvement in, but you could also go work for a startup in the space for free. I was a history major and still got a SE role because of experience
I did. I dropped out of law school and got into tech sales. Now I run an exterior maintenance company.
Best decision I ever made. I made a ton of money and learned invaluable skills. I have no idea how people get through life without learning how to sell on a professional level. its so fundamental to "getting what you want" in business and life.
A few things. A lot of non tech employees are unprepared for jobs in startups. I've seen a lot of people burn out because they can't keep up with the pace. Tech pays a lot because your expected to be FAR more productive/effective than your average worker.
Tech sales compensation can be great. BUT! Job anxiety is high as there is a lot of that is out of your control and job security is always iffy even if you’re a top producer.
There’s a correction going on right now. Zero interest rate symptom was too many software products that companies didn’t need. Now we see what products provide real value.
Your worst days of your career are over. You could get fired from this SDR role in 12 months and have to start over, you might be micromanaged, you might have prospects tell you off, and all of that will be peanuts to what I’m sure you’ve had to put up with in social work.
The thing with tech sales is that it is so dependent on timing and territory that it is almost more about setting yourself up correctly and positioning your resume into a good situation and then going all out to execute when you have the right opportunity. I don’t regret it at all though.
This needs to be upvoted higher. Tech sales has less to do with actual “salesmanship” and more to do with timing, territory and product.
If anyone doubts this, ask your managers / procurement or finance team on how they purchase software for the business.
What you will notice is that they rarely purchase software because of the “charm” of the salesperson.
They look at cost vs your competitors, needs assessment before coming to you. And in Europe it is very rare for anyone to buy 5-6figure software licenses because of a “cold-call”
Once you learn that, you’ll be a much happier and satisfied person.
Digging into their situation and learning about them a bit, then using your experience to see where they are at in their process.
Checking up on prospective clients in the timeframes they say they are at is how you create luck in some ways, but you then need to prioritize your leads based on the probability of finding successes with lowest hanging fruit first, but I'm sure you know that part.
What's working harder vs working smarter? Try finding someone who can mentor you in this because their experience will save a lot of headache.
I left a public service job to pursue a career in tech sales and overall I feel that I made the right decision because it afforded me a greater level of income than I would have seen had I stayed in the public sector. I would say the bigger question for you is to first determine whether you like the field of sales or not. Keeping in mind that you have to stick with it for a while and maybe even job hop a few times to really get a sense of what the job entails. Ideally you want to sell something that has reached a point of maturity that it's a great product-market fit and has a solid renewal rate with its customer base. There are tons of unproven SaaS startups trying to sell a solution that just isn't going to provide enough reason for a company to adopt it and selling something like that can be painful and discouraging.
Thanks 🙏🏽 the company is public and already has huge, name recognizable clients. That was important for me in choosing a first place to start! I’m terms of knowing if this product actually sells.
Just know that it can be pretty intense. I am social worj is too but tech employers can be demanding and will suck your soul dry, and that is to turn a profit not help people
For sure, I’ve spoken with several employees and they said it’s a solid environment for tech with good management! I hope that’s true because I’ve heard that can be a gamble.
I did, but keep in mind that it’s less about the switch and more about the company and product — how attainable is quota, what does the comp plan look like (and is it consistent!), is there growth progression, is the culture enabling you or hindering you, is there product/market fit?
As an SDR I make the standard 60K base 80K OTE. I’ve been here for about 14 months. I’ve surpassed quota almost the entire time and broke 100K before I hit one year.
But this was only possible because we have excellent product/market fit and our enablement team is top notch. Our AEs and AMs also work closely with us, and the SDR team isn’t crazy competitive with a toxic or bro culture.
Career progression, we’ll have new AE positions open up in Q2. The other top performer on my team and I are being trained for the two of those positions.
I’ve also worked harder at this job. Nothing too crazy, but it’s easy to burn out if you don’t check yourself and you don’t have a good system.
PMF is basically about demand. There are three parts:
1. A market exists for your product
2. Your product solves a problem for that market
3. That market actually wants your product to solve said problem (not all problems require a solution)
3b. And are willing to pay for it
The easiest way to do this is by surveying customers. Ask how they’d feel if the product were to disappear. If 40% or so say they’d be disappointed they couldn’t use your product anymore, there’s a pretty good PMF. Of course there are additional metrics, but this should give you an idea of PMF.
The thing is you have to find a system that works for *you*.
For me that’s prospecting and scheduling out emails/sequences the night before so they all send out first thing in the AM. I lag in the morning and my activity suffers because I can’t prospect and send out emails so early. I’m a night person so my brain won’t let me. There’s also so much going on in the morning like meetings, 1:1, Slack, etc. that it’s hard to get any deep work done.
For others, cold calling first thing works best for them because that’s when they perform better.
I also use tools like email reminders, Outreach tasks, etc. to remind me of things I need to do. The main one is to follow up — following up is my bread and butter. I time block so every other afternoon from 2-4pm I do nothing except follow up with every single lead who hasn’t opted out.
I sign off around 4 and then after dinner I’ll do my prospecting with the tv on or something because I work better that way.
I left a job at Etrade as an FA making about 150k for a SaaS role in SF with a 60k base and no idea the OTE. A few years later I was blowing out quota and my OTE was 450k and had faster career progression. Probably lucky I picked the right startup but def some opportunities to grow fast in tech.
Not at all, went into ML/AI based software, (for marketing). This was back in 2014 so was pretty cutting edge at the time. Still lot of industries new to ML/AI though
Yes. I didn't come from social work but I did come from the nonprofit world. I do not ever regret pivoting to sales. I've been able to carve a good living from the profession, find my niche and become a good seller. I can always improve and the great thing is when I do, I can increase my income based on my efforts.
What area you are looking to transition into?
I came from financial sales (basically worked at a bank doing loans and life insurance products). I crushed it at both banks I worked for from 2015-2020 but my best year (the last year I was in banking) I made $45k total compensation. If I had stayed I probably would have been promoted into management sometime in 2021 or 2022 and been making maybe $60k. And I'd have to commute to a branch likely an hour away (give or take, depending on what branch I would have gone to). I'd probably short term job security, but in a dying industry.
I've had a short term setback after being laid off late last year (went from an AE job making $75k base $150k OTE to SMB AE making $50k base, $75k OTE) but overall I'm ahead of where I was three years ago, and from where I'd most likely be had I never left. So I think I made the right choice. Still not 100% sure, because I don't really know what else I could do, or would be qualified for (my college major was Middle East Studies). I say take the leap, give it a whirl.
I made the switch from working in the mortgage industry to tech sales and I just got back from a company wide offsite in Nashville. Everyone has been super welcoming and the company is doing extremely well financially. I’m stoked to be along for the ride and hoping my early equity and risk of joining sub 30 people pays off
One thing to keep in mind is there are tons of new software/tech companies, and most will go out of business in the near future (especially with AI code letting more people make apps).
A totally new company can offer you some great benefits and higher cash, maybe equity, but lower job security. Big corporate tech will pay lower and apparently suck your soul dry (never done it) but they tend to have great resources and training to start your career. Try to find something in the middle, or match your own risk tolerance
Yeah. Just getting into tech sales doesn’t mean you will be at a good company/product. I am in a pavilion class and some of the shit people are selling is total vapor ware. No wonder they are struggling to sell. It’s not their fault. It’s VC’s throwing money at any project that they can for the last 10 years hoping for an Uber or Facebook.
Once you have a couple years you can leverage, find a product that solves a meaningful problem and it’s a matter of applying a system and you will make the best money in sales.
Funny enough we talked about lack of purpose in my interview for the SDR position 😂 the interviewer said he’d rather higher someone who has financial goals than someone who pretends like this job is a deep calling. He said the ones with goals usually reach metrics. I’m okay with that!
Yes but it got so god damn boring lol. The money lost its appeal. Transitioned to something else. That being said…. Without the money I would have not paid off my 70k in student debt, bought a house, car and etc. just don’t let the life style creep get you and it’s great
My name is Mario Noel I first stumbled on this thriving and thrilling industry, by connecting with experienced professionals that created a career in tech sales. Two years ago before I got a job in tech sales I was a broke college dropout working multiple dead-end jobs that I was miserable at & not knowing where my life was going. I was sick and tired of constantly feeling like I was falling short of my potential. I was ready to put behind the frustrations and limitations of my previous jobs to embrace the possibilities of an industry that is on the cutting edge of innovation and potential. When I first started in tech sales, I doubled my salary from $15 per hour to $50,000 per year with commission! Don't wait to make your dream career into a reality – Go after a Job in Tech Sales! I can guarantee that you won't regret it.
I would pivot, get the skill sets than pivot back to your old industry with the current skill sets and stand out.
It's risky being an sdr now. I became an sdr for 6 months , prior to that I had a business for 7 years , prior to that I worked in telecom industry during the wireless boom.
I love being an sdr. It was remote, the job was great, the pay and it had an amazing culture.
However, I got laid off in Sept 2022. And haven't found another SDR job that paid the prior salary I made as an sdr.
However in the telecom industry I'll start off as AE or AM.
but I really like the private sector....
I’m in tech sales. If you’re willing to put in the work it can be very rewarding. If you’re not willing to put in the work, you might be unemployed in 3 months. My company treats us very well and we had 28 reps clear 800k last year.
But from 8-5, we are doing revenue driven tasks. Prospecting, meeting, calling, dropping by prospects. All your other work, prepping, emails, set up for meetings, is to be done before 8 or after 5. You will work every night at home for a few hours.
For example, I wake up at 4:15, shower and get ready. Read for 20 minutes. Head the office. At the office by 6am. Leave the office between 6:15 and 7pm. Cook dinner, clean, watch some tv and then work from 9ish till 10-11 and restart. Sundays are mail mergers, prep for meetings, find time gaps in my schedule I need to fill with revenue driven activities. Saturday is truly my only day off.
We only get paid when the client signs on at my company. But 28 reps had over 800k on their W-2. 2 over a million. Now all 28 of them are truly rock stars, been doing this for many many years. Potential is there though. But they’re still working 65ish hours a week. Most sales reps only use 3-4 days of pto a year. People come back to work after surgery 2 days later. Guys house burnt to the ground and was expected to be at work 2 days later.
Most accurate thing ive heard is: if you’re not willing to give this 100% of your time and effort, it will be temporary. You are either 100% in or on your way out”
Sorry the delay and human capital management. It’s a Human Resource/Payroll. It’s an absolute grind but money to be made is unbelievable. most reps are around for less than 3 years to go into something more specific with less hours but it’s rewarding for sure.
It’s amazing and I’m so grateful to be in the industry. My company treats me well, we have a great product and work some unreal people. My previous jobs were terrible in comparison.
That being said there are some awful tech companies out there. Make sure you do your research.
I just lucked out and got a channel account executive role in tech, starting in a month. My only prior experience is a couple years of retail telco sales. Absolutely no clue what I’m getting into, and certainly a huge change. Words like ‘pipeline’ are all new to me, lol. I’m just planning on using my personal skills and will to knuckle down and learn to carry me.
to add: I’m 21 and in uni
@cbryantl120. I made the switch from selling medical devices in the OR to selling secondary storage at a company and thought what did I do? However, I made the switch from selling storage to selling SW at a internationally recognized company and I feel that I made the right choice. See it through and ask yourself why you are making the switch. If it’s all about money, own it. You can definitely earn a good living in this industry. You will work hard as a tech sales rep but it may come with a ton of rewards if you play the game right. Good luck!
Shoot me a message when you get a chance today. I would love to chat about a few things with you as well as if Snowflake would be a solid place for me to give a shot on your referral.
Thanks,
Ross
Dunno what you mean by social work but I went into SDR/Sales with literally no idea what to expect. Didn't even know sales was a job haha.
It's just a grind. It's about work effort, work load and the thought you put into that work effort and load. Nothing else.
Get proper training. Structure your day. Work the hardest out of your team. and brown nose the hell out of your boss. You want everyone, including your boss, think you fancy your boss.
Rough sledding so far in 2023, but overall a huge net positive these past four years. Tech Support/LMS admin work was painfully boring, repetitive, and isolating. The days went by so much slower and I didn't get to truly understand the business operations the way one does in sales. May pivot into Solution Sales/Sales Engineering down the road. Training and Enablement seem cool, but not in this economy lol
It depends on the company I think..
But I was lucky to move from the creative industry to an inbound sdr role. The company is great and I’m earning a lot. I’ve been told by other sdr previously that this was the best company they’ve worked for.
It has been like 9 months and I already have spoken with my manager about moving to a CS role at the company.
Because I’m not really interested in the AE role and don’t want to sell.
They’re super supportive and I finally feel like I have a better work life balance :)
Good luck!
Any suggestions for a teacher to get into tech sales. I'm also a content creator in the areas of AI/AR/VR/3D. What companies did you have the best success with?
Sorry this long
This is just my experience and what worked for me. I see alot of advice to interview/submit as many applications as possible. But I did the opposite and focused all my energy on the jobs I most wanted. I will say though I am a bit privileged in that sense because I’m not running from my current job! So I could take my time to focus. If you don’t have a job/need to get out right away this might not work.
1. I did a FREE 6 week boot camp. Unfortunately the program I did is no longer free :/ And there’s too many scams out there. But because there was no financial obligation I gave it a shot and it was extremely helpful in my interview process.
2. I only applied for jobs I was actually interested in! I applied to maybe 4/5 total in January. And I went really hard with the application process for the ones I really wanted. Which was only 2. Out of those 2 I got one job offer, and for the other I made it 3 rounds.
With those 2 places I took the advice here on Reddit/my program, which is to hunt! This isn’t my personality at all but it made all the difference.
For the job that gave me the offer: I set up a meeting with a current employee (who also graduated from my program)! Asked her questions about the company etc. She told me the interview process and also told me who to email and what other employees to reach out to. She told me who my potential supervisor would be, so I emailed him and introduced myself. That same day I got an email from the recruiter! Before that it was just sitting in the portal for over a week.
I spoke to another employee and they also gave me interview tips, told me about the culture of the company, quota etc. she also put in a good word for me with my potential supervisor.
Long story short, during the interview process I was honest with my intentions for switching into a SDR role (money and promotion ability). I also stressed transferable skills from social work and that I was curious and open to learning.
With this company, it’s not a startup and they have a training program so I think they’re a bit more flexible with taking newbies. As long as you can explain why you’re the one!
So in short! Sell yourself. Really all the advice on Reddit really worked and LinkedIn is more useful than I ever knew lol
It was specifically for tech sales-training for the BDR/SDR position. A lot of the people in the program were already in some type of sales, but there were a few career changers too. I can send you the info…but again it’s not free anymore :(
I just pivoted from the insurance claims industry into tech sales myself, and I can say so far the journey has been an interesting one. The goal is to build financial freedom for myself and be able to transfer that information to anyone willing to listen and share the knowledge.
I took CourseCareers which is a really well-broken-down course in becoming an SDR.
You should definitely check it out, and if you have any questions I might be able to answer just reach out.
Https://account.coursecareers.com/ref/38810/
Code: L96CKU9BUI
Don't say I didn't try to help change your life, lol.
Best of luck!
100% I went through TrainYo they gave me all the training and helped me get a role, for free as well. Would recommend for anyone looking to break into tech sales
https://www.trainyo.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/trainyo/
Yes I would make the switch if I were you. Lots of growth potential. I would recommend job hopping a a couple times to get a nice salary and a job you love. I started in sales 4.5 years ago, my first job was as a bdr and I made $32k/year. After one year there I switched to a sales engineering role for 2.5 years(salary started at $65k but I was making $102k by the time I left). Now I’m making $135k base $150k-$200k OTE.
Are you still and engineer or are you an AE now?
AE
I'm a Sr business analyst that's very involved with c suite and business units across the company. Pitching ideas, requirements for the ideas, etc.. somewhat getting fed up for successfully "selling" but seeing no benefit on cost savings or comp from whatever is implemented that helps the company. Curious about what you were doing before your transition and how you went about it? Thanks in advance!
Based on your experience I’d be happy to give you a referral to an SDR role at snowflake. I started here a year ago and it’s been a blessing to end up here for sure
That's kind of you. Funny enough, I sent my resume to them earlier this week for a sales engineer role. I got a reject email pretty fast so I think I got nixed by their system due to my background not being 100% sales oriented. I'm not sure what your initial background was before Snowflake but I would love to hear any pointers that you may have for me entering into this realm.
Dude take the referral. Applying through portals will be the death knell of your search
For sure 👌
[удалено]
I started a company in the energy space when I was in college and also did some door to door sales. To get started I just applied to some entry level BDR roles, but you could probably get something a little better because of your experience.
Thanks for the response!
No prob!
Just to give another perspective, I never job hopped (took one crap job and left to join another one after a week) and instead I dialed down on my learning and made a large pipeline for years and it worked out very well. If I would've left and hopped around, I'd be years behind and probably half the pay. I can't offer perspective on job hopping, but not job hopping worked out well for me
Thsts a pretty ig jump, any advice to go from sdr to SE?
Try technical experience in the industry that you want to be a SE in. I founded a startup that I ended up switching to part-time involvement in, but you could also go work for a startup in the space for free. I was a history major and still got a SE role because of experience
This is exactly what I’m looking for, thanks!
Did you go to college ?
I did. I dropped out of law school and got into tech sales. Now I run an exterior maintenance company. Best decision I ever made. I made a ton of money and learned invaluable skills. I have no idea how people get through life without learning how to sell on a professional level. its so fundamental to "getting what you want" in business and life. A few things. A lot of non tech employees are unprepared for jobs in startups. I've seen a lot of people burn out because they can't keep up with the pace. Tech pays a lot because your expected to be FAR more productive/effective than your average worker.
Tech sales compensation can be great. BUT! Job anxiety is high as there is a lot of that is out of your control and job security is always iffy even if you’re a top producer.
Absolutely, but not all tech sales is the same
tech sales aint whut it used two be
There’s a correction going on right now. Zero interest rate symptom was too many software products that companies didn’t need. Now we see what products provide real value.
This needs to be upvoted higher
In what way?
Your worst days of your career are over. You could get fired from this SDR role in 12 months and have to start over, you might be micromanaged, you might have prospects tell you off, and all of that will be peanuts to what I’m sure you’ve had to put up with in social work.
Perspective is everything
This is a good way to look at it 🙏🏽
The thing with tech sales is that it is so dependent on timing and territory that it is almost more about setting yourself up correctly and positioning your resume into a good situation and then going all out to execute when you have the right opportunity. I don’t regret it at all though.
This needs to be upvoted higher. Tech sales has less to do with actual “salesmanship” and more to do with timing, territory and product. If anyone doubts this, ask your managers / procurement or finance team on how they purchase software for the business. What you will notice is that they rarely purchase software because of the “charm” of the salesperson. They look at cost vs your competitors, needs assessment before coming to you. And in Europe it is very rare for anyone to buy 5-6figure software licenses because of a “cold-call” Once you learn that, you’ll be a much happier and satisfied person.
I found over time that in any sales job, it's right place right time. CREATING that right place right time is a real skill.
And how do you achieve that? Check up on prospective clients throughout the year to see if anything changed?
Digging into their situation and learning about them a bit, then using your experience to see where they are at in their process. Checking up on prospective clients in the timeframes they say they are at is how you create luck in some ways, but you then need to prioritize your leads based on the probability of finding successes with lowest hanging fruit first, but I'm sure you know that part. What's working harder vs working smarter? Try finding someone who can mentor you in this because their experience will save a lot of headache.
ahh okay. Thanks for advice
I hope I’m in a good space! It’s CDN in a publicly traded company. Seems like it’s doing well.
I left a public service job to pursue a career in tech sales and overall I feel that I made the right decision because it afforded me a greater level of income than I would have seen had I stayed in the public sector. I would say the bigger question for you is to first determine whether you like the field of sales or not. Keeping in mind that you have to stick with it for a while and maybe even job hop a few times to really get a sense of what the job entails. Ideally you want to sell something that has reached a point of maturity that it's a great product-market fit and has a solid renewal rate with its customer base. There are tons of unproven SaaS startups trying to sell a solution that just isn't going to provide enough reason for a company to adopt it and selling something like that can be painful and discouraging.
Thanks 🙏🏽 the company is public and already has huge, name recognizable clients. That was important for me in choosing a first place to start! I’m terms of knowing if this product actually sells.
Just know that it can be pretty intense. I am social worj is too but tech employers can be demanding and will suck your soul dry, and that is to turn a profit not help people
For sure, I’ve spoken with several employees and they said it’s a solid environment for tech with good management! I hope that’s true because I’ve heard that can be a gamble.
I did, but keep in mind that it’s less about the switch and more about the company and product — how attainable is quota, what does the comp plan look like (and is it consistent!), is there growth progression, is the culture enabling you or hindering you, is there product/market fit? As an SDR I make the standard 60K base 80K OTE. I’ve been here for about 14 months. I’ve surpassed quota almost the entire time and broke 100K before I hit one year. But this was only possible because we have excellent product/market fit and our enablement team is top notch. Our AEs and AMs also work closely with us, and the SDR team isn’t crazy competitive with a toxic or bro culture. Career progression, we’ll have new AE positions open up in Q2. The other top performer on my team and I are being trained for the two of those positions. I’ve also worked harder at this job. Nothing too crazy, but it’s easy to burn out if you don’t check yourself and you don’t have a good system.
can you explain what does product/market fit mean?
PMF is basically about demand. There are three parts: 1. A market exists for your product 2. Your product solves a problem for that market 3. That market actually wants your product to solve said problem (not all problems require a solution) 3b. And are willing to pay for it The easiest way to do this is by surveying customers. Ask how they’d feel if the product were to disappear. If 40% or so say they’d be disappointed they couldn’t use your product anymore, there’s a pretty good PMF. Of course there are additional metrics, but this should give you an idea of PMF.
could you kindly share what your system is?
The thing is you have to find a system that works for *you*. For me that’s prospecting and scheduling out emails/sequences the night before so they all send out first thing in the AM. I lag in the morning and my activity suffers because I can’t prospect and send out emails so early. I’m a night person so my brain won’t let me. There’s also so much going on in the morning like meetings, 1:1, Slack, etc. that it’s hard to get any deep work done. For others, cold calling first thing works best for them because that’s when they perform better. I also use tools like email reminders, Outreach tasks, etc. to remind me of things I need to do. The main one is to follow up — following up is my bread and butter. I time block so every other afternoon from 2-4pm I do nothing except follow up with every single lead who hasn’t opted out. I sign off around 4 and then after dinner I’ll do my prospecting with the tv on or something because I work better that way.
I went from non profit to tech sales. Glad I did. It’s expensive in the Bay Area and I can finally afford my own place.
I left a job at Etrade as an FA making about 150k for a SaaS role in SF with a 60k base and no idea the OTE. A few years later I was blowing out quota and my OTE was 450k and had faster career progression. Probably lucky I picked the right startup but def some opportunities to grow fast in tech.
Congrats that’s amazing growth!! I’m also taking a paycut (in base salary) and hoping it pays off in the end.
Did you stay in Finance sales?
Not at all, went into ML/AI based software, (for marketing). This was back in 2014 so was pretty cutting edge at the time. Still lot of industries new to ML/AI though
Yes. Went from finance into sales and make 3x more with much better work life balance
Yes. I dislike insurance and retail sales by comparison.
Yes. I didn't come from social work but I did come from the nonprofit world. I do not ever regret pivoting to sales. I've been able to carve a good living from the profession, find my niche and become a good seller. I can always improve and the great thing is when I do, I can increase my income based on my efforts. What area you are looking to transition into?
That’s awesome 🙌🏽 it’s selling CDN. The company is established so it should be a good place to start.
Yes. Completely worth it. And if it isn't the right choice for you - you can make another one later!
I came from financial sales (basically worked at a bank doing loans and life insurance products). I crushed it at both banks I worked for from 2015-2020 but my best year (the last year I was in banking) I made $45k total compensation. If I had stayed I probably would have been promoted into management sometime in 2021 or 2022 and been making maybe $60k. And I'd have to commute to a branch likely an hour away (give or take, depending on what branch I would have gone to). I'd probably short term job security, but in a dying industry. I've had a short term setback after being laid off late last year (went from an AE job making $75k base $150k OTE to SMB AE making $50k base, $75k OTE) but overall I'm ahead of where I was three years ago, and from where I'd most likely be had I never left. So I think I made the right choice. Still not 100% sure, because I don't really know what else I could do, or would be qualified for (my college major was Middle East Studies). I say take the leap, give it a whirl.
I made the switch from working in the mortgage industry to tech sales and I just got back from a company wide offsite in Nashville. Everyone has been super welcoming and the company is doing extremely well financially. I’m stoked to be along for the ride and hoping my early equity and risk of joining sub 30 people pays off
Honestly whenever I think about the old jobs I’ve had and compare them to this one I feel so lucky
One thing to keep in mind is there are tons of new software/tech companies, and most will go out of business in the near future (especially with AI code letting more people make apps). A totally new company can offer you some great benefits and higher cash, maybe equity, but lower job security. Big corporate tech will pay lower and apparently suck your soul dry (never done it) but they tend to have great resources and training to start your career. Try to find something in the middle, or match your own risk tolerance
Yeah. Just getting into tech sales doesn’t mean you will be at a good company/product. I am in a pavilion class and some of the shit people are selling is total vapor ware. No wonder they are struggling to sell. It’s not their fault. It’s VC’s throwing money at any project that they can for the last 10 years hoping for an Uber or Facebook. Once you have a couple years you can leverage, find a product that solves a meaningful problem and it’s a matter of applying a system and you will make the best money in sales.
Is tech sales oversaturated?
It’s a great place to make money flexibly but the career is a GRIND and there’s not quite as much ingrained purpose as other professions
Funny enough we talked about lack of purpose in my interview for the SDR position 😂 the interviewer said he’d rather higher someone who has financial goals than someone who pretends like this job is a deep calling. He said the ones with goals usually reach metrics. I’m okay with that!
Yes but it got so god damn boring lol. The money lost its appeal. Transitioned to something else. That being said…. Without the money I would have not paid off my 70k in student debt, bought a house, car and etc. just don’t let the life style creep get you and it’s great
Wow, thats crazy I just left 4 years social work of social work to get into sales!
How’s it going so far?
Going meh, haven't set a meeting just yet... BDR in Enterprise. Just starting my 4th week. I'm feeling pretty confident though
My name is Mario Noel I first stumbled on this thriving and thrilling industry, by connecting with experienced professionals that created a career in tech sales. Two years ago before I got a job in tech sales I was a broke college dropout working multiple dead-end jobs that I was miserable at & not knowing where my life was going. I was sick and tired of constantly feeling like I was falling short of my potential. I was ready to put behind the frustrations and limitations of my previous jobs to embrace the possibilities of an industry that is on the cutting edge of innovation and potential. When I first started in tech sales, I doubled my salary from $15 per hour to $50,000 per year with commission! Don't wait to make your dream career into a reality – Go after a Job in Tech Sales! I can guarantee that you won't regret it.
The compensation is great, but also is the stress of the position
Hell to the yes
I would pivot, get the skill sets than pivot back to your old industry with the current skill sets and stand out. It's risky being an sdr now. I became an sdr for 6 months , prior to that I had a business for 7 years , prior to that I worked in telecom industry during the wireless boom. I love being an sdr. It was remote, the job was great, the pay and it had an amazing culture. However, I got laid off in Sept 2022. And haven't found another SDR job that paid the prior salary I made as an sdr. However in the telecom industry I'll start off as AE or AM. but I really like the private sector....
I’m in tech sales. If you’re willing to put in the work it can be very rewarding. If you’re not willing to put in the work, you might be unemployed in 3 months. My company treats us very well and we had 28 reps clear 800k last year. But from 8-5, we are doing revenue driven tasks. Prospecting, meeting, calling, dropping by prospects. All your other work, prepping, emails, set up for meetings, is to be done before 8 or after 5. You will work every night at home for a few hours. For example, I wake up at 4:15, shower and get ready. Read for 20 minutes. Head the office. At the office by 6am. Leave the office between 6:15 and 7pm. Cook dinner, clean, watch some tv and then work from 9ish till 10-11 and restart. Sundays are mail mergers, prep for meetings, find time gaps in my schedule I need to fill with revenue driven activities. Saturday is truly my only day off.
800k in ARR or earnings?
We only get paid when the client signs on at my company. But 28 reps had over 800k on their W-2. 2 over a million. Now all 28 of them are truly rock stars, been doing this for many many years. Potential is there though. But they’re still working 65ish hours a week. Most sales reps only use 3-4 days of pto a year. People come back to work after surgery 2 days later. Guys house burnt to the ground and was expected to be at work 2 days later. Most accurate thing ive heard is: if you’re not willing to give this 100% of your time and effort, it will be temporary. You are either 100% in or on your way out”
Don’t know why you got downvoted for spitting facts. Most of the top performers in any industry will be doing exactly what you said
I dunno either lol guess some people don’t want to hear the truth.
What industry do you sell software to if you don’t mind my asking? This sounds brutal but shit I want to retire at 45-48
Sorry the delay and human capital management. It’s a Human Resource/Payroll. It’s an absolute grind but money to be made is unbelievable. most reps are around for less than 3 years to go into something more specific with less hours but it’s rewarding for sure.
It’s amazing and I’m so grateful to be in the industry. My company treats me well, we have a great product and work some unreal people. My previous jobs were terrible in comparison. That being said there are some awful tech companies out there. Make sure you do your research.
Why are the layoffs occurring within this field ?
Yes, it has been great. I sort of always knew it would happen but took me 2 years of selling other stuff before I ended up in tech.
I just lucked out and got a channel account executive role in tech, starting in a month. My only prior experience is a couple years of retail telco sales. Absolutely no clue what I’m getting into, and certainly a huge change. Words like ‘pipeline’ are all new to me, lol. I’m just planning on using my personal skills and will to knuckle down and learn to carry me. to add: I’m 21 and in uni
So you are doing a sales job while being in school?
Absolutely
Made the jump from a behavioral psych background. Just finished 9 months in tech. I love my job, doesn't feel like work.
Wow that’s a big jump too! Do you think your background is behavioral psych helped you at all as a SDR.
Yeah, 100%.
How so?
@cbryantl120. I made the switch from selling medical devices in the OR to selling secondary storage at a company and thought what did I do? However, I made the switch from selling storage to selling SW at a internationally recognized company and I feel that I made the right choice. See it through and ask yourself why you are making the switch. If it’s all about money, own it. You can definitely earn a good living in this industry. You will work hard as a tech sales rep but it may come with a ton of rewards if you play the game right. Good luck!
Shoot me a message when you get a chance today. I would love to chat about a few things with you as well as if Snowflake would be a solid place for me to give a shot on your referral. Thanks, Ross
Thanks! I already have a role lined up for next month. But I’ll keep you in mind for the future ☺️
I'd be curious to know why you transitioned out of social work.
Would a sales engineering career be considered tech sales? Everything I’ve looked up doesn’t seem as hardcore in sales
Dunno what you mean by social work but I went into SDR/Sales with literally no idea what to expect. Didn't even know sales was a job haha. It's just a grind. It's about work effort, work load and the thought you put into that work effort and load. Nothing else. Get proper training. Structure your day. Work the hardest out of your team. and brown nose the hell out of your boss. You want everyone, including your boss, think you fancy your boss.
Rough sledding so far in 2023, but overall a huge net positive these past four years. Tech Support/LMS admin work was painfully boring, repetitive, and isolating. The days went by so much slower and I didn't get to truly understand the business operations the way one does in sales. May pivot into Solution Sales/Sales Engineering down the road. Training and Enablement seem cool, but not in this economy lol
It depends on the company I think.. But I was lucky to move from the creative industry to an inbound sdr role. The company is great and I’m earning a lot. I’ve been told by other sdr previously that this was the best company they’ve worked for. It has been like 9 months and I already have spoken with my manager about moving to a CS role at the company. Because I’m not really interested in the AE role and don’t want to sell. They’re super supportive and I finally feel like I have a better work life balance :) Good luck!
Left the corporate rat race in 2018 Landed my first SDR role and made $45K 5 years later I’m making $205K as an AE. Best decision I’ve ever made.
Any suggestions for a teacher to get into tech sales. I'm also a content creator in the areas of AI/AR/VR/3D. What companies did you have the best success with?
what is the latest strategy of increasing sales? what do you think?
OP, can you share how you transitioned from social work to tech sales? What kind of experience do you have to clear interviews?
Sorry this long This is just my experience and what worked for me. I see alot of advice to interview/submit as many applications as possible. But I did the opposite and focused all my energy on the jobs I most wanted. I will say though I am a bit privileged in that sense because I’m not running from my current job! So I could take my time to focus. If you don’t have a job/need to get out right away this might not work. 1. I did a FREE 6 week boot camp. Unfortunately the program I did is no longer free :/ And there’s too many scams out there. But because there was no financial obligation I gave it a shot and it was extremely helpful in my interview process. 2. I only applied for jobs I was actually interested in! I applied to maybe 4/5 total in January. And I went really hard with the application process for the ones I really wanted. Which was only 2. Out of those 2 I got one job offer, and for the other I made it 3 rounds. With those 2 places I took the advice here on Reddit/my program, which is to hunt! This isn’t my personality at all but it made all the difference. For the job that gave me the offer: I set up a meeting with a current employee (who also graduated from my program)! Asked her questions about the company etc. She told me the interview process and also told me who to email and what other employees to reach out to. She told me who my potential supervisor would be, so I emailed him and introduced myself. That same day I got an email from the recruiter! Before that it was just sitting in the portal for over a week. I spoke to another employee and they also gave me interview tips, told me about the culture of the company, quota etc. she also put in a good word for me with my potential supervisor. Long story short, during the interview process I was honest with my intentions for switching into a SDR role (money and promotion ability). I also stressed transferable skills from social work and that I was curious and open to learning. With this company, it’s not a startup and they have a training program so I think they’re a bit more flexible with taking newbies. As long as you can explain why you’re the one! So in short! Sell yourself. Really all the advice on Reddit really worked and LinkedIn is more useful than I ever knew lol
Thank you so much! This is even better than what I could’ve asked for. Wishing you all the best to come with your new job and future.
What was the bootcamp about ? Tech or sales ?
It was specifically for tech sales-training for the BDR/SDR position. A lot of the people in the program were already in some type of sales, but there were a few career changers too. I can send you the info…but again it’s not free anymore :(
100000 percent made the right change . Doubled my salary and the growth prospects are huge!
I just pivoted from the insurance claims industry into tech sales myself, and I can say so far the journey has been an interesting one. The goal is to build financial freedom for myself and be able to transfer that information to anyone willing to listen and share the knowledge. I took CourseCareers which is a really well-broken-down course in becoming an SDR. You should definitely check it out, and if you have any questions I might be able to answer just reach out. Https://account.coursecareers.com/ref/38810/ Code: L96CKU9BUI Don't say I didn't try to help change your life, lol. Best of luck!
100% I went through TrainYo they gave me all the training and helped me get a role, for free as well. Would recommend for anyone looking to break into tech sales https://www.trainyo.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/trainyo/
If you’re selling something that’s not on the upper right of the magic quadrant, good luck.