Do you want to progress your sales career in the automotive industry? Whether you’re just starting out or are an experienced automotive industry sales professional, this guide provides essential insights into the career options open to you and what you need to do you achieve them.
I’ve been helping UK automotive industry sales professionals progress their sales careers for over 24 years and know what it takes to be a great sales person and land your dream sales job. I wanted to share my knowledge and insights with any aspiring sales people. In this article I’ll focus on Business to Business (B2B) Sales roles – my area of specialisation. Taking a look at the different directions you might want to consider and I’ll give you my top tips on how to achieve your sales career goals.
B2B Sales Career Paths in the Automotive Industry
B2B or Business to Business sales careers are plentiful in the automotive sector. From account management or farmer roles to new business development or hunter roles there is something for all types of sales person. Many jobs combine both hunting and farming in different ratios. You may aspire to be a sales leader or prefer to stand-alone sales positions. In this article I’ll look at all the options out there. Firstly let’s look at some of the B2B sales role available in the UK automotive industry with different types of employer:
Vehicle Manufacturers (OEM’s)
Vehicle Manufactures need strong sales people. B2B Sales roles with them could focus on selling new or used vehicles – either for the retail market (via dealers) or for the fleet market (via leasing companies or direct to end-user businesses). Whether your preference is for passenger cars, commercial vehicles, agricultural or motorcycles – there are sales positions in all these areas. You can find positions available both on-headcount (employed directly for the OEM) or off-headcount (employed via a 3rd party agency or supplier).
Retail Sales Roles
Retail focused sales roles usually involve working with dealers to maximise vehicle sales. Positions could include Area Sales Manager, Zone Sales Manager, District Sales Manager, Regional Sales Manager. There are also positions that focus on manufacturer pre-owned/used car programmes for example Used Vehicle Remarketing Manager.
These positions suit those with strong communication, organisational and management skills. You’ll be required to build effective working relationships with dealers, set targets, assess performance and provide guidance and direction.
Fleet / B2B Sales Roles
Fleet sales jobs for vehicle OEMs include Fleet Sales Managers, Contract Hire & Leasing Managers or Rental Sales. These positions are often field-based roles working within a defined territory. You may be tasked with selling directly to end-user fleet businesses, rental businesses or via contract hire/leasing businesses such as those found in the FN50.
These positions tend to suit people with a strong sales ethic – who enjoy a target driven environment involving prospecting for new business, opening doors and building incremental sales. As fleet sales are generally processed via a 3rd party – such as a leasing company or finance provider you will also need to have a thorough understanding of the buying options and products available to fleet buyers.
Financial Services
Automotive Financial Services offer a host of sales career opportunities. You might work for a Lender (bank), Captive Finance Business, Broker, Insurer, Fleet Management Provider, Warranty Provider or Leasing & Contract Hire Business. In recent years the options have extended to include ‘mobility products’ such as monthly rental. The products and services you might sell go beyond vehicles and often include Fleet Management Services covering every aspect needed to maintain a business’ fleet from vehicle acquisition and maintenance to accident management and software solutions.
Many of these roles suit more numerate sales people with an understanding of automotive finance/leasing/contract hire products. Many positions require employees to adhere to FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) regulations. You may need to be trained/qualified appropriately and/or go through compliance checks.
Technology / Software / SaaS Businesses
One of the fastest growing sectors for automotive industry sales roles is the technology sector. New developments from Software as a Service (SaaS) and AI providers brings growth in sales opportunities in this area. From Dealer Management Systems, Fleet Management Systems, Websites to Online Marketplaces – the range of businesses in this sector is huge. There is a constant stream of start-ups or challengers in this space offering ever more evolved software solutions.
Jobs with these types of organisation lend themselves to people with a strong understanding and passion for software and technology. You’ll need to be able to articulate the benefits of the software or system you are selling. Roles will also often require excellent new business development skills. However tech businesses also look for account managers/customer on-boarders whose roles will focus on looking after customers, seeking incremental businesses and minimising customer loss.
Aftermarket
The automotive aftermarket includes a wide range of products and services for the repair, maintenance and customisation of vehicles. This includes: vehicle parts, chemicals, tyres, finishing products, workshop equipment or accessories. Businesses operating in the sector may serve the independent aftermarket and the OEM’s (original equipment manufacturers). Your customers could be distributors, buying groups, motor factors or end user business.
Aftermarket jobs tend to attract people who enjoy selling a tangible product rather than a service or concept. Positions could be new business or account management focused – of a combination of both.
Low Emissions
The move towards net Zero has opened up many new sales career opportunities. Areas include EV Charging Networks and solutions, EV fleet management & Salary Sacrifice Schemes and low emission vehicle manufacturers. In the EV charging sector there are large numbers of sales job opportunities as businesses vie for a share of this lucrative market. Many of these businesses are targeting businesses with large fleets offering on-site EV charging solutions. There is also a steady stream of start-ups and scale up low emission vehicle manufacturers be it BEVs (battery electric vehicles), PHEVs (plug in hybrid vehicles), FCEVs (fuel cell electric vehicles powered by hydrogen) or E-REVs (extended-range electric vehicles with an onboard generator).
Your suitability and likelihood of success in each of these areas will depend on your skill set, personality and previous experience. So focus in jobs / sectors where you’re most likely to have success. Whichever sales job you aspire to – preparation is key. Read on for my advice on how to reach to automotive industry sales career goals.
How to reach your automotive industry sales career goals
Hopefully the example careers have inspired you. So if you want to start (or progress) your automotive industry marketing career here’s my checklist to securing your dream sales job:
Make a plan
Decide where you’d like to take your career. You may want to set yourself short, medium and longer term goals. Consider your skill set and which areas of sales you’re likely to be best suited to. Are you a hunter, a farmer or a sales leader? Are you better suited to selling a tech based service or a more traditional product?
Seek Advice
Once you have an idea of where you want to take your automotive sales career, I recommend talking to as many people as possible to learn more about the career options. Try and speak to someone who is in a role you aspire to get to.
Get Educated / Qualified
Whilst many sales roles do not require formal education or qualifications, if you aspire to a role which would benefit from this then take steps to get educated. This could range from studying for a degree to gaining FCA approval (required for certain job functions such as senior management).
Write you CV
If you’re ready to move your career forward, it’s vital to get your CV in shape. I recommend creating a strong ‘working document’ CV and then tweaking / amending it to each specific job application you make. Read my full CV advice – including a step-by-step video and free downloadable CV templates.
Start Applying for Jobs
Be focused and specific regarding which jobs you apply for rather than having a scattergun approach. Only apply for jobs where you are a strong fit (at least 80%) to the skills and experience being asked for. Think about what value you can add for each role – does your skill set and experience match what is being asked for? Is the position of genuine interest to you? Could you easily answer the question ‘Why do you want this job’?
Register with a Specialist Recruitment Agency
A specialist automotive industry recruitment agency such as Copeland Automotive Recruitment will be able to help you find suitable automotive industry sales jobs. Julia Pennington has been helping people progress their automotive industry sales careers for over 24 years. Learn why employees choose Copeland.
Get Interview Ready
If you prepare well for any interview you’ll greatly increase your chances of success. We offer all our candidates advice with interview preparation and techniques. Here are a few articles to help: Interview Preparation; Interview Presentations; Competency Based Interviews.
Next steps
If you’re ready to find your next sales job in the automotive industry, Copeland Automotive Recruitment can help. We have over 24 years’ experience finding automotive industry sales professionals their dream jobs. Learn more about our specialisms.
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