Become a Freelance Sales Agent in the UK

Preface

I became a freelance sales agent by accident, having risen to management status in sales and having been through a spate of redundancies, it was a case of ‘the higher you rise the further you fall’. I got fed up with my fate being in the hands of others.

In searching for a solution to this problem, my thoughts naturally turned towards self-employment. Having just reared a family my capital was very limited so starting my own company making or leasing out widgets and so forth was out of the question. An evaluation of my skills showed that my main experience lay in my lifetime experience in sales. But how was I to capitalise on these skills without working for someone else?

A chance occurrence happened at this point. A previous colleague revealed that his company were seeking a sales agent in my area. As I was unemployed at the time I had nothing to lose by attending the interview. I was most impressed by the company and its products and was offered the agency.

Realising that it would take some time to get established, cover my expenses and make a profit, I set myself an extremely tight budget. I arranged a small overdraft with my bank and accepted the agency. As luck would have it I walked into a major order for the product almost immediately and was hooked on becoming a sales agent.

That was some fifteen years ago. I wish I could say it has been easy all the way but it has not. There have been good and bad times but that is true of life in general. I am not earning a fortune but I have something I prize above all else, my independence. I am now out of the rat race. I am not judged by whether my face fits into an organization or how I get on with the boss. I am judged by how much I sell. If I don’t sell I don’t eat. It is as simple as that.

I could earn considerably more if I worked harder but, approaching retirement age, I am starting to wind down. That is why I wanted to write this book, to pass on some of my experience to anybody who is thinking of becoming a freelance sales agent but is afraid of the unknown.

Terry James & David Boden, Authors & Sales Agents

Contents

• Becoming a sales agent
• Why the principal needs you
• How to set up as a sales agent
• Selling yourself to the principal
• Carrying out checks on the principal
• Negotiating the formal agreement
• Running your agency
• Developing your customer base