How to Become a Book Sales Rep

A book sales rep is the liaison between book publishers and book retailers. The book sales rep negotiates the sale of books to bookstores. The bookstores, in turn, sell the books to the public. It can be a difficult task to become a book sales rep. However, it can also be well worth it.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Resume
• Bachelor's degree

1. Explore the qualifications you will need to become a book sales rep. Being well read and highly literate is a definite plus. Also, a bachelor's degree is a necessity for most book sales reps.

2. Plan to stay moving, as a book sales rep position will usually involve frequent travel. A book sales rep's territory will usually be quite large, covering as much as 3 or 4 states in total. It is the job of the book sales rep to visit all the book retailers in that area regularly.

3. Contact different book publishers to get an idea of what they are looking for in a book sales rep. Ask for advice, and send them your resume.

4. Be able to answer clients' questions about books, authors, sales statistics and a variety of other subjects, ranging from the practical to the obscure. Many sales reps take laptop computers with them to meetings with clients for easy access to research.

5. Check topusajobs.com to see which companies in your area are looking to hire book sales reps (see Resources below).

Tips & Warnings

• A book sales rep is slightly different from most other sales rep positions. It requires a rather different angle for selling. Often, a book sales rep will have to negotiate the sale of books that have not yet been released. It is not always as cut and dry as negotiating the sale of appliances or other proven products. Develop your creative skills as you pursue a job in this field.
• A book sales rep may end up working long hours in order to prepare presentations for prospective clients. Taking that into consideration, along with the frequent travel that is involved, consider whether this job is a good fit for your lifestyle.

Resources

• Sample book sales rep cover letter from jobbankusa.com
• Book sales rep positions at topusajobs.com

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