BY SONYA MELOFF
- A typical sales person’s compensation model is 50% salary, 50% variable at plan, especially for roles that require both new business development AND account management (higher base/lower commissions is expected for “farming” roles, and lower base/higher commissions is often offered for “hunter” roles)
- A strong sales person will want uncapped commission potential (we hear story after story of companies trying to limit commissions payable on huge deals brought in—plan ahead for this occurrence because it is guaranteed to cause disturbance and potential employee turn-over)
- There should be a clear sales target that is extremely attainable with a reasonable effort (not super-human)
Remember: outside sales people will require expense reimbursement related to business travel and client engagement—these expenses should be accounted for in your cost of sale analysis while developing the commission plan
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