Tips For Earning Big Commission Checks

Some careers especially those in sales pay you on a commission basis meaning you earn a percentage of the sale. If already work on a commission basis or you are thinking about a job that pays commission here are some tips for earning big commission checks.

Depending on the field you are involved in, whether you work for someone else, or whether you are a representative for a company will depend on the commission structure that you are paid by. There are a variety of commission structures used but here are the basic ones seen most often.

Straight commission means you receive a percent of the sales you make and if you don’t sell then you don’t make any money. Affiliate programs online use this method of paying their affiliates as so many car dealers and some electronics companies.

Base plus commission means you earn a base salary as well as a commission structure. The commission structure may be a percentage of each sale or it may be a percentage that is paid to you if you reach your budgeted sales. So for example you might earn $1000 a month base plus 10% commission on each widget you sell.

Companies that uses budgets often pay their managers a sales bonus based on the budgeted sales for the month. If the store makes budget or goes over budget the manager receives a commission check for a percentage of sales usually ranging from 1% to 3% of the over budget amount.

Draw against commission is a method where you receive what is called a draw or a guaranteed amount of pay each pay day. If your commission amount is above the draw you earn that. If your commission amount is below the draw you receive the agreed upon draw amount but are required to pay the balance back to the company. If your sales are down continuously you will find yourself unemployed.

To earn maximum commission checks you’ve got to have a plan and a goal. Your plan should include how you plan to build a regular clientele that comes back to visit you regularly and sends you referrals. Your goal should include what you want to earn a month and how you plan to reach that goal.

In sales one of the best ways to increase your commissions is to up sell the customer to a bigger better model or to sell them accessories. So for example if you sell electronics and a customer comes in looking for a MP3 player lower end you need to convince them that for x dollars more they can have all these additional features. In order to do this you must be very familiar with your products.

Selling accessories means selling add ons. For example, rechargeable batteries for a digital camera and a charger, or perhaps a case would be good accessory add ons to sell the customer. For an MP3 player you could sell a holder, case, or a better set of headphones. Again you will need to know your product.

Selling extended warranties is also a great way to earn bigger commissions. Many companies pay a nice percentage on extended warranties so be sure to utilize them.

Incentives can also help you earn bigger commissions. So let’s say customer A comes in and buys product B and you tell them if they refer a friend within 30 days they’ll earn a gift certificate for a specified amount. This encourages customer A to send friends in so they get free merchandise.

If you are earning your commissions as a member of an affiliate program online then you will need to design a website that motivates the visitor to click the links of your affiliate and then hopefully buy a product. The final motivating factor on the affiliate’s web site is beyond your control however if you have done a good job of selling the product on your pre-sale they will complete and you will earn your commission.

The wonderful thing about commissions is the power of your earnings is almost entirely in your hands. The harder your work and the smarter you work the more money you will make. So are you ready to earn those big commission checks?

Deon Melchior is the Editor and Publisher of Article Click. For more FREE articles for your ezine and websites visit ArticleClick.com. Article Click is a free content article directory. This means that as a publisher you may reprint the articles that are included in our site, as long as the article is unedited and the author box is included with it's live hyperlinks.