salespeople

Salespeople is a plural form of salesperson—a person whose job is to sell products or services.

A less commonly used plural of salesperson is salespersons.

Another term for salesperson is sales rep (or sales representative). The terms salesman and saleswoman are still commonly used, but salesperson and sales rep are often used in their place.

Salespeople are often said to “work in sales”—in which sales refers to the type of occupation or the division or department within a company.

Salespeople can sell directly to customers or to other businesses or organizations. Sometimes, salespeople sell things in person, such as at a retail store or dealership. They also commonly sell things over the phone or by communicating with people online. In the past, it was common for some salespeople to travel door-to-door to make sales to people at home.

A salesperson who has to travel as part of their job can be called a traveling salesperson. 

The word salesperson is sometimes used in a somewhat figurative way to refer to someone who’s skilled at persuading people, especially in a business or professional setting, as if they are selling them a product.

Example: Salespeople are known for their ability to start a conversation with anyone.

The first records of the word salespeople come from the 1870s. The singular form, salesperson, is formed with the gender-neutral ending -person, which is often used in terms that traditionally ended in -man, such as businessperson (which can be pluralized as businesspeople).

The job of salespeople is to sell, and to sell they have to convince the customer to buy. For this reason, salespeople have a reputation for sometimes being aggressive or putting pressure on the customer, especially in retail settings, like furniture or electronics stores. Also contributing to this reputation is the fact that some salespeople are at least partly paid on commission—a percentage of sales that goes into their pay. Of course, this reputation isn’t always warranted—a lot of salespeople genuinely want to help you find the right product.

Still, a lot of people try to avoid salespeople when shopping due to feeling pressured. Relatedly, the term used car salesman is sometimes used in a figurative way to refer to someone considered a smooth-talking swindler.

What are some other forms related to salespeople? 

• salesperson (singular)

What are some synonyms for salespeople?

• salespersons
• sales reps
• sales representatives
• salesmen
• saleswomen

What are some words that share a root or word element with salespeople? 

• sale
• people
• businesspeople

What are some words that often get used in discussing salespeople?

• aggressive
• pressure
• customer
• traveling
• door-to-door
• commission
• product
• goods
• services
• deal

Salespeople is a neutral term, but salespeople may be viewed positively or negatively, based on a person’s experience with them.

"How can you equip your salespeople to have assured, issue-led conversations with prospective customers that give them the confidence to do business with you?" The value in communications comes from content – invest in those capabilities! https://t.co/6UBCna08D7

— Mike Orr (@mikeorr8) July 30, 2020

I’ve known farmers who were not great with people, or didn’t know how to run a farm, or were not particularly charismatic salespeople.

But I don’t know of any #farmer who has reached any level of success without determination and passion. pic.twitter.com/QPhbSybzP4

— Mbali Nwoko (@MbaliNwoko) July 30, 2020

People; “I HATE SALESPEOPLE”

Like… okay but who do you think is generating revenue for you? Magic genies?

— Josh Roth (@Josh_G_Roth) July 30, 2020

True or False? 

Salespeople only refers to people who sell directly to retail customers.