Sales jobs typically come with some type of base salary, but the real money lies in additional commissions earned each year. Most sales professionals can hardly make a living off their base pay, yet a good salesperson can earn over six-figures annually. According to Glassdoor.com and Forbes, there are some companies where employees earn much more at their sales jobs than most others.
- Oracle – The average Annual Sales Commission is $77,362.
- Cisco Systems – The average Annual Sales Commission is $74,823.
- Thomson Reuters – The average Annual Sales Commission is $65,273.
- EMC – The average Annual Sales Commission is $56,986.
- CareerBuilder – The average Annual Sales Commission is $52,690.
- IBM – The average Annual Sales Commission is $51,929.
- Hewlett-Packard – The average Annual Sales Commission is $51,689.
- Edward Jones – The average Annual Sales Commission is $45,781.
- Microsoft – The average Annual Sales Commission is $44,883.
- ADP – The average Annual Sales Commission is $41,128.
High commissions are not necessarily tied to experience, experts say. In addition to your length of experience, the commission pay also depends upon the company, the geographic location, how quickly you ascend the ranking ladder, and how good you are at your job. Not surprisingly, many of the top-paying sales jobs lie in technology, which is a very fast-paced and competitive industry. Innovative and creative problem-solvers and fast learners are needed and well-compensated. You need to be hungry for knowledge, ready to address complex client needs, and intellectually curious. It’s a tough category of sales jobs, but if you have the drive and the perseverance, the rewards will come.