Well, as a long-time multi-line salesperson/manager I can give you a few hints that might help but, most importantly, you have to get rid of some pre-conceived ideas about what sales is all about. There are as many types of sales as there are jobs (almost) so it's hard to get too specific without more details.

Forget about the 'everybody's your buddy' or the 'everyone's in competition with me and will steal my commissions' mindset. Neither will help you. People are just people and come in all varieties.

If it's a retail type of position such as in a store selling consumer parts in your specialty, for example, make sure they know you understand upselling. Upselling is the concept of 'adding on' to a sale to increase the bottom line and, in the process, also seeing that your customer has everything they need to benefit by what you sell them. It's also called add-on sales. A salesperson who understands this, is way ahead of the pack of the 'Oh, yeah, I know how to sell' group.

If you sell something make sure that whatever goes with it in the course of installing or using it, is offered to the customer as something they'll need or want to have on hand. This can be anything from a hammer and nails to a tool to cut pipe, if needed, for a plumbing job. It can be little stuff like a roll of tape to a wheelbarrow to dump the grass clippings into from the mower you just sold them. Think use, convenience, needed tools, customer satisfaction because you'll save them numerous trips and hold ups when doing the job.

One thing I always look for in a salesperson is enthusiasm. Not the hail fellow well met type...a genuine enthusiasm to learn more about the products, company, and so on.

The difference between a clerk and a salesperson can be boiled down into knowledge and ability to apply that knowledge to helping the customer. One rings up a cash register, the other turns browsers into buyers.

Hope something here helps. Wish you all the best.

BTW: don't let anyone tell you straight commission sales is the bottom of the barrel. Can be sometimes...and people are shuttled through some of them like fodder for the mill. Remember this: some of the highest paid people in sales are selling big ticket items, maybe only one a year, but their commision is better than the total of many work for the man types combined. If you have the confidence to do commission sales and get with a quality company that pays well for your results, it's a-okay. Some folks can't work if they're worried about the next paycheck...for them, a salary or salary plus commission deal is better. Know your personality, research companies carefully, and go with the best.

Sandi Bowman

P.S. The way to handle the 'sell me that lamp' ploy is to ask questions about the product of the customer to narrow down their desires.