Old Fashioned And Sleazy

There is one thing that bugs me about the industry I work in, and thats the people that work in it! Now to be fair it's not everyone, it's more the senior salesmen/reps, MD's and other big cheese type charachters. The thing that bugs me is the old fashioned and sleazy lifestyle and the way they go about things.

The suits that work in our industry have a stereotypical image of flashy suits, flashy talk, regular binge and smoking sessions with clients and fellow reps and the regular 'keeping customers sweet' meals out paid for by the company. And it still exists today. It smacks of the old hat vision of the sales industry. Sleazy, cheesy, stuffy and undesireable.

This might be the generation gap talking, but I think it's unnecessary. There are a lot of people in this industry who do very little other than drive about the country, talk shite for a couple of hours then go to the local £50 per head resturant and work on getting a hangover. And if you want my personal opinion, most of the networking events and product launches are just an excuse for people to still feel influential and take advantage of a free bar paid for by the organisers. Take the newest networking event. Everytime one is announced there is always over-emphasis on the bar and smoking areas. Such importance placed on drinking facilities just reinforces the old fashioned attitudes most people in our industry still harbour.

I come from the new generation of sales. Personally, I think the way the younger generation sells is much fresher. Less emphasis on getting home and going to the pub and more effort on the customer and the job in general. There is still a sleazy repuation that hangs over salesmen in our industry, and it's those who could do something to change that image.