# [2006] How much money can a timeshare Salesman make?



## TJK

This might sound ridiculous, but at the age of 52 I'm considering a change of profession to be a timeshare salesman. Anyone have an idea of salary?
Thanks,
Tom


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## brockville

Yes, it does seem a little crazy. I don't know anything about YOU personally. However, after our experience with time-share realtors - I would rank them in the 'used car salesman' category of trust. Just my opinion! Good luck.


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## Eric

Maybe that says something about the types of places you vacation at. Just my opinion ! Good luck 



			
				brockville said:
			
		

> Yes, it does seem a little crazy. I don't know anything about YOU personally. However, after our experience with time-share realtors - I would rank them in the 'used car salesman' category of trust. Just my opinion! Good luck.


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## shagnut

You can make huge money.  I was offered a job at Bluegreen (when I went on a tour) shaggy


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## Dave M

There are some timeshare salespeople that make good money, but the majority of them have to hustle just to pay bills. The turnover rate is high - even among the top programs such as Marriott, perhaps because it takes a certain talent to do well.


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## PhuketThailand

*Sales Executive Salary*

I went from making over $70K working in Tokyo to making $100K selling t/s for Marriott.  Yeah it isn't the standard but if you come into the industry with solid knowledge.  As the Admin guy said yeah if you come in with at a Marriott program MVCI, RITZ or RENASSANCE program you will have great success due to brand awareness that other properties are trying to build.  I was much younger though when I made this transition, however, it is a quality of life decision.  Where do you live? And where would you be willing to move to in order to find your start?  I shifted from Tokyo to Las Vegas to get me started and now the rest is history as they say.  I found a business out of my t/s experience here in Thailand.  So you never know what life will offer you and when is all I have to say.


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## JLB

I considered the same thing, similar age, etc., and even called on a few ads.

I was in direct sales for 10 years and won all the trophies.

Good TS salespeople make $100,000-plus, but they are a very small percentage.  The majority bounce around from job to job.

I decided not to, based on personal pride and integrity. Knowing what I know, I could not be true to myself and sell timeshare.  I'd rather sell soft frozen lemonade.  :whoopie: 

But I would not mind setting up a resale program for a resort or chain, or something like that, where I could be helping people.


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## tim

JLB, when I see you in Branson, can I buy some of that soft frozen lemonade for my kids?  Tim


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## JLB

No you can't buy any, but like that pizza maker who gets to take home the mistakes (in the tipping thread), we bring home what we don't sell from 5 gallon buckets that we open.  If guests to the Margaritaville Dock whine enough we take it out of the freezer, whip it up in the blender, and serve it.

It is almost as good as the original product, which never gets frozen solid.

Give us a heads up and we will try to have it on hand.

In high school and college, I was a pizza maker, and I did bring home _mistakes_.  I laughed when I saw that in the tipping thread, because I used to do that, and because if we are on the road and don't want to wait for a pizza to be made, I will whip into a Pizza Hut and ask if they have any mistakes, one without green peppers!



			
				tim said:
			
		

> JLB, when I see you in Branson, can I buy some of that soft frozen lemonade for my kids?  Tim


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## BocaBum99

*So you want to be a timeshare salesman....*

I have done some research on what it takes to be a good timeshare salesman working for the resort developer.  Here is what I've concluded.

First, the compensation.  Timeshare sales is pretty much a winner take all sales job.  Only the best get paid a lot.  And, the best are heavily recruited by all resort developers.  Most get almost nothing.  Timeshare sales is like real estate sales in that you work on a 100% commission plan.  Some developers have benefits plans that are pretty good.  But, that is meaningless if you aren't making any money.  Many do have a weekly minimum of about $200-225 that is offered as a non-recoverable draw.  So, you get that minimum if you don't sell enough for that week.

The work week can be pretty short if you are really good.  You get 1 to 3 tour opportunities per day for the most part.  More at the busier resorts such as Las Vegas.  The base commission is usually around 4-6%.  If the average timeshare sale is $15000, then a base commission of 6% will net you $900.  If you made 1 sale per week and you worked 48 weeks a year, you would make about $43,200.  That is about the average of what a timeshare salesman makes.  Or course, they only get paid if the deal gets past the period of recission.  So, your close rate has to be higher to allow for recissions.

Let's break it down to an average work week.  During a week, let's say you get 2 tours a day.  At many resorts, that's a good day.  During the slow season, you could be sitting around twiddling your thumbs waiting for tours to come in.  And, when it gets that slow, the marketing department starts sending in anyone they can to keep sales busy.  That can really suck.  You learn to hate the term OPC.

Okay, so you get 10 tours a week.  You only have to close 1 per week and have it stick.  Then, you have your $43,200 base salary locked down.  If you don't do 1 sale per week, you will get washed out or you will quit for lack of income.  You should know it's not that easy making 1 sale per week.  And, severe depression can set in if you aren't making sales.  Lots of rejection in this job.

Okay, now this is where timeshare sales can get really lucrative.  After the base commission, they start putting in accelerators into your comp package.  After certain minimum thresholds during a current month, they start throwing in bonus comp. and that bonus is retroactive to the first dollar of commission that month.  So, let's say that the first level is $50000, the second is $75000 and the 3rd is $100000 and the 4th is $125000 to make it easy and the 5th is $150000.  Let's say they give you 2% extra commission for every tier you hit.  This is when you start really making money.

If you hit the $150000 level in the month, your commission rate is 6% base plus 2% plus 2% plus 2% plus 2% plus 2%. That means for every deal you did that month, you get 16% commission.

Let's turn that into dollars per month assuming a 4 week month.  You do 10 tours per week, if you close 2 per week or 20% close rate at $15k, you sell $120000 so for the month, your commission rate is 12%.  Now, you are making $14,400 for that month.  So, your annual rate jumps up from $43,200 to $172, 800.

Now, let's say you are at a 30% close rate.  Your monthly gross is $180,000 in revenue and you are at the 16% rate, so you net $28,000 for that month or an annual rate of $345,600.

Do you see how the accelerators work?  The key metric for assessing a timeshare salesman is their APG or average per guest.  In the first case, the APG is $1500 ($15000 sales per week, 10 tours)  which is barely the minimum acceptable level for a timeshare salesman.  The second has an APG of $3000 ($30000 sales per week, 10 tours).  That's decent.  The third is $4500.  That is a superstar.  There are a few out there.  I know one who has an APG of $5000.  He makes well over $300,000 per year and he only works about 25 hours per week.  What they also don't tell you is that those with the highest APG get their tours first.  So, if you are at the back of the line, you may not get 2 tours in a day.

Now timeshare salesman are the best salesmen in the world.  The timeshare sales job at the resort is the World Series of sellling.  You need to get a couple to make the 2nd or 3rd largest purchase in their life without knowing anything about you ahead of time and without looking under the hood or doing any due diligence.  That requires sales skill.  What other job requires that level of difficulty?

The best resorts have personality tests that they require each potential candidate to take before they allow them to take the job.  That makes sense.  The type of people they are looking for are those who are NOT analytical.  Those who live on the edge.  The test has questions like, "do you want to be a rock star?"  "If nobody were looking, would you cheat on a test?" "Have you ever cheated on a test?"

Given the rejection rate and high turnover rate, there is a mandatory pep rally every single day to reward those who are doing well and to help motivate the troops.  The best sales guys can get into the "zone"  where they start closing everyone they see.  Then, all of a sudden, it stops and they have a several week drought.  It's definitely an up and down job.  To get you in the door, they sell you on making a ton of money, but the reality is almost nobody does.  Remember, the same people recruiting you into the job sell timeshares for a living.  Would you expect anything less?

So, if you think you can become a great timeshare salesman because you know a lot about timesharing.  You should stop right there and consider a different career.  The absolute best timeshare salesman say very little about the product.  They spend all of their time trying to find what moves you emotionally and links those emotions to their product.  They paint a picture of that dream vacation and they show you how through their product you can get that over and over again.  If you can do that, you can be successful.  If you can't, then you will make more money licking stamps at the post office.


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## BocaBum99

shagnut said:
			
		

> You can make huge money.  I was offered a job at Bluegreen (when I went on a tour) shaggy



By the way, this is a timeshare salesman's ploy to throw you off their scent and get you back for wasting their time.  There are lots of tactics they use for revenge.  They keep you there for 2-3 hours to waste your time since they can't get another tour for a couple hours anyway.  They may as well torture you so you will never want to come back.

Obviously, what you did was share with your timeshare salesman how much you knew about timeshares.  They immediately determined they were going to get goose egg out of you and turned the conversation around to having you do what they do.  They pump you up and make you feel like you could actually do it.  Well, you can't.  Not unless you possess the sales skills I describe above.

The more you know about the product, the worse you will do.  Because at the end of the day, what you are selling at the resort developer is product that is overpriced by at least 100%.  If you told the whole truth about the product, you would never sell one.   You need to sell emotion.  You sell the guilt that a grandparent feels for neglecting their children when they were growing up.  And then, you tell them that by buying this product, they can make it up to their grandchildren.

You show them that they can renew their vows every single year in Hawaii after a 20 year career that put their marriage on the rocks.  People have dreams.  Vacations really can help them achieve it.  This human need is real.  The great timeshare salesman can show them how to get it by buying their product today.


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## Steamboat Bill

BocaBum99 said:
			
		

> Now timeshare salesman are the best salesmen in the world.  The timeshare sales job at the resort is the World Series of sellling.  You need to get a couple to make the 2nd or 3rd largest purchase in their life without knowing anything about you ahead of time and without looking under the hood or doing any due diligence.  That requires sales skill.  What other job requires that level of difficulty?
> 
> So, if you think you can become a great timeshare salesman because you know a lot about timesharing.  You should stop right there and consider a different career.  The absolute best timeshare salesman say very little about the product.  They spend all of their time trying to find what moves you emotionally and links those emotions to their product.  They paint a picture of that dream vacation and they show you how through their product you can get that over and over again.  If you can do that, you can be successful.  If you can't, then you will make more money licking stamps at the post office.



Wow...what a great answer.

Perhaps TJK should consider selling cars like Lexus, MB, BMW, etc....it seems easier and more rewarding


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## BocaBum99

Steamboat Bill said:
			
		

> Wow...what a great answer.
> 
> Perhaps TJK should consider selling cars like Lexus, MB, BMW, etc....it seems easier and more rewarding



You can't make as much money selling those brands.  Most of the time, those jobs are just escorting people around, wearing nice clothes and being generally pleasant.  At the end of the day, the product sells itself.  The marketing of the company does the entire selling job for you.  So, just about anyone can do it.

I forgot to mention something that dramatically increases the level of difficulty in the timeshare sale.  First, nearly 100% of the guests who come before you have absolutely no intention of buying.  Most have a predetermined script for how they will say "no" to you.  After all, they are there simply for the free gift.  Second, you have to do it in 2-4 hours.

If I start a business selling any consumer product over $10000, the first thing I will do is advertise to timeshare salesmen and create a comp plan with huge accelerators in it.  All I need to know is their APG.  It will be instant success.


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## rapmarks

Boca, I know at Christmas mountain you can't keep your job if you only sell one timeshare a week.  Our neighbor was their top salesman, he had just received an award for selling 16 million when he had a major stroke at age 43.  He has come a long way back and he tried to go back in sales but they wouldn't keep him on because he didn't reach his quota.  I believe the number is a cetain dollar amount.

Also, they get huge bonuses when they sell over a certain amount.  I recently came across the guide as my daughter tried it for two months, and it is a sliding scale.  

I know a lot of people who went into the business at age 50 or even 60.  They a pparently are very successful, but it is strange how it changed some of them.  They became deplorable people (and they probably were that way before but the easy money magnified it in them). 

It is interesting that one neighbor moved up from Ilinois last year and their 21 year old son moved up too.  He could not hold a job, went through 20 jobs in 8 months, and then tried selling timeshares in May.  he is making a lot of money and still doing it.


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## BocaBum99

rapmarks said:
			
		

> Boca, I know at Christmas mountain you can't keep your job if you only sell one timeshare a week.  Our neighbor was their top salesman, he had just received an award for selling 16 million when he had a major stroke at age 43.  He has come a long way back and he tried to go back in sales but they wouldn't keep him on because he didn't reach his quota.  I believe the number is a cetain dollar amount.
> 
> Also, they get huge bonuses when they sell over a certain amount.  I recently came across the guide as my daughter tried it for two months, and it is a sliding scale.
> 
> I know a lot of people who went into the business at age 50 or even 60.  They a pparently are very successful, but it is strange how it changed some of them.  They became deplorable people (and they probably were that way before but the easy money magnified it in them).
> 
> It is interesting that one neighbor moved up from Ilinois last year and their 21 year old son moved up too.  He could not hold a job, went through 20 jobs in 8 months, and then tried selling timeshares in May.  he is making a lot of money and still doing it.



Timeshare economics are very well defined and understood across the entire industry.  What is important is the APG.  The APG must be over a minimum like $1500.  If you are selling a property with a low sales price, you need to make more than one sale to stay at the minimum APG.  Brand names like Hyatt, Marriott, etc, need a higher APG given their higher sales and marketing costs.  But, their prices are higher, so it can be a bit easier.

Front line sales is psychological warfare.  The battle is who is going to sell whom?  Are the buyers going to sell the sales guy that they can't buy now?  Or, are the sales guys going to sell the buyers to take one home today?
7-9 times out of 10, the buyer wins by not buying.  But, 1-3 times out of 10, the sales guy wins.

From the timeshare sales guy point of view, the buyers are the liars.  And, for the most part, it's true.  Most won't come out and say that they are only there for the free gift, even though that is the case most of the time.

I think what changes people who go into timeshare sales from another career are the emotional highs and lows that they experience on a daily basis.  It is an emotional sale, so it's easy to get wrapped up in all the emotion.  And, the incentives are great and the rejection is massive.  So, a person can't help but be changed by it.  Well, only while they are in it.  It must be similar for psychologists who deal with depressed people.


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## Steamboat Bill

BocaBum99 said:
			
		

> It must be similar for psychologists who deal with depressed people.



Perhaps there should be a law against "Free Gifts" for timeshare tours.

A psychologist or a patient can't receive a free gift for a consultation.


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## JLB

I called on two ads last Spring.

The first call I had to talk to a greedy, materialistic, spiffy, obnoxious, arrogant sales manager wench from ----.

The second one showed a bit of class, a desire to take a look at someone with a sales background, but without previous timeshare sales baggage (his words).  He talk about developing innovative approaches.

I decided that if I could not talk about what we value from timesharing, like being able to share vacation time with our families, then really wasn't all that interested.  In Branson I figured a lot of the prospects might be older than the Orlando crowd, and sharing vacation time with kids and grandkids might hit a hot button.

Of course, I would have to take up smoking, so that I could go hang out with all my buddies while I was waiting for the next peep.  Then, of course, there's the investment in the gold jewelry.  :whoopie: 

I chuckled at some of Mr. Bum's comments, because that's what I used to do.  It maybe wasn't their first or second or third largest purchase, but in an hour it was my job to get people to purchase a membership in something they had never heard of before, from someone they had never met before, to do something they had never considered doing before and that would change the way they had been doing something all their adult lives.  And do that convincingly enough that they did not cancel (3-day) and they made their payments regularly (reserve).  I believe I was the only one in the company that every got paid any of their reserve.

Oh, oh.  I feel that knot in my stomach coming back.  :annoyed:


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## Steamboat Bill

JLB said:
			
		

> I chuckled at some of Mr. Bum's comments, because that's what I used to do.  It maybe wasn't their first or second or third largest purchase, but in an hour it was my job to get people to purchase a membership in something they had never heard of before, from someone they had never met before, to do something they had never considered doing before and that would change the way they had been doing something all their adult lives.  And do that convincingly enough that they did not cancel (3-day) and they made their payments regularly (reserve).  I believe I was the only one in the company that every got paid any of their reserve.



ok I will take a guess at your previous profession:

1. Some type of insurance salesman (viatical, disability, lonmg term, etc)
2. Some type of exercise/diet club
3. Scientology


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## JLB

Answered privately.



			
				Steamboat Bill said:
			
		

> ok I will take a guess at your previous profession:
> 
> 1. Some type of insurance salesman (viatical, disability, lonmg term, etc)
> 2. Some type of exercise/diet club
> 3. Scientology


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## BocaBum99

JLB said:
			
		

> I called on two ads last Spring.
> 
> The first call I had to talk to a greedy, materialistic, spiffy, obnoxious, arrogant sales manager wench from ----.
> 
> The second one showed a bit of class, a desire to take a look at someone with a sales background, but without previous timeshare sales baggage (his words).  He talk about developing innovative approaches.
> 
> I decided that if I could not talk about what we value from timesharing, like being able to share vacation time with our families, then really wasn't all that interested.  In Branson I figured a lot of the prospects might be older than the Orlando crowd, and sharing vacation time with kids and grandkids might hit a hot button.
> 
> Of course, I would have to take up smoking, so that I could go hang out with all my buddies while I was waiting for the next peep.  Then, of course, there's the investment in the gold jewelry.  :whoopie:
> 
> I chuckled at some of Mr. Bum's comments, because that's what I used to do.  It maybe wasn't their first or second or third largest purchase, but in an hour it was my job to get people to purchase a membership in something they had never heard of before, from someone they had never met before, to do something they had never considered doing before and that would change the way they had been doing something all their adult lives.  And do that convincingly enough that they did not cancel (3-day) and they made their payments regularly (reserve).  I believe I was the only one in the company that every got paid any of their reserve.
> 
> Oh, oh.  I feel that knot in my stomach coming back.  :annoyed:



You should give it a go then.  If you're good at it, it's an easy job and a ton of money.

I couldn't do it.  I'd get eaten alive by the buyers.  I'm better at the consultative sale rather than the emotional sale.  Resales are more my cup of tea.


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## Dave M

BocaBum99 said:
			
		

> ...timeshare sales can get really lucrative.
> ....
> 
> You do 10 tours per week, if you close 2 per week or 20% close rate at $15k, you sell $120000 so for the month, your commission rate is 12%.  Now, you are making $14,400 for that month.  So, your annual rate jumps up from $43,200 to $172, 800.
> 
> Now, let's say you are at a 30% close rate.  Your monthly gross is $180,000 in revenue and you are at the 16% rate, so you net $28,000 for that month or an annual rate of $345,600.


Nice post, Boca.

Top line salespeople at least one of the major chains can easily do $3-5 million in sales a year. With bonuses, they can max out at 11% or 12% commission on that so top people can easily make $350,000 - $500,000. There may only be a few dozen at that level but they are there. 

In telesales, top people do between $1.5Mil and $2+Mil a year in sales and the commission can be as high as 14%. The math still works out quite nicely.

A top salesperson might make over $40K for one month and might have another month making between $1,000 and $5,000 for the month, so there is a big swing.


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## TJK

Thanks to all for your help. Like most everything else, I thought that if you are passionate about something and work hard at it, you can be successful. We feel that timeshare ownership has increased our vacation experiences so much by allowing us to stay in luxurious condos for the price of an average hotel room, that convincing your average Joe of that fact wouldn't be so difficult. But you're right, most people that attend these tours already have their "No, no, no" speech prepared and are just there for the gifts. We've done it ourselves! I think if I could make at least $50K, that would work, but those 6 figure numbers would sure be great. Desisions, decisions.
Thanks again for all your responses.
Tom


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## rapmarks

I mentioned in an earlier post that our neighbor's son had kept the job as a timeshare salesman after not keeping other jobs.

They just let him go as well as hosts of others, summer season is over.  His roommate made $7000 commission last month and was still let go because of not enough productivity.  tough job!


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## BocaBum99

Probably the best aspect of being a great timeshare salesman (I think since I am not) is the freedom it gives you.  If you are one of the best, you can quit your job at any time and then go wherever you want.  Timeshares tend to be in the best locations.  So, that's the extra kicker.

Think about it.  All you need to do to get a job is go to ANY timeshare resort in any location.   Tell them you would like a job.  You fill out the application with your name, address and telephone number and the only other thing you put on the application is you sold timeshares for X, Y and Z and your APG is $5000.  

The only thing holding you back from starting the next day would be the real estate license you may need to sell timeshares there.

You will be making 10's of thousands of dollars per month and working only 25 hours per week.


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## Steamboat Bill

BocaBum99 said:
			
		

> All you need to do to get a job is go to ANY timeshare resort in any location.   Tell them you would like a job.  You fill out the application with your name, address and telephone number and the only other thing you put on the application is you sold timeshares for X, Y and Z and your APG is $5000.
> 
> The only thing holding you back from starting the next day would be the real estate license you may need to sell timeshares there.
> 
> You will be making 10's of thousands of dollars per month and working only 25 hours per week.



I doubt if Marriott or Westgate would call for references to check into the APG....this job indeed is for good poker players.


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## TJK

*Fletch*

Too bad Fletch isn't around this board anymore. I heard he's a Marriott timeshare salesman and could probably be very insightful on this topic.


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## JoeMid

TJK said:
			
		

> Too bad Fletch isn't around this board anymore. I heard he's a Marriott timeshare salesman and could probably be very insightful on this topic.


5-2-1 is too much these days, you can do better like 2-1-.25


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## sobefox32169

I work now and for the last tens years at the same resort, many of my owners are my repeat clients and all the stereo typical adjectives are what you make of it... be yourself have fun and believe you are doing the best for yourself and your clients each and every sale. Never LIE, your will have to keep ahead of the customers because you will get chargedback your commission if they have to give back the money. 
Don't get caught up with the hype or negativity. This can be a career like any other.. forget the pie in the sky figures, it is something I don't see or hear from my area and I am in the Florida/Beach/Orlandol area, unless you are a manager or Project Director everything is based on marketing, location, and make sure the developer checks clear the bank and has an ethical company. Be able to have a referral business that makes you the most money...  I love the business would have a hard time going back to the real world.. Life in any job is what you make it...


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## Malibu Sky

Ok, I know there must be some t/s salespeople "lurkers" out there....what is the real scoop??


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## Steamboat Bill

At least sobefox made a post...I would love to hear from others.

Although I own 4 TS and sold 2, I have only been to 2 TS presentations: DVC (very good, professional and honest) and Westgate (very hard sell with lots of trickery). 

I only bought directly from Disney (very good sales agent) and got everything else on resale for over 50% discount off developer prices.


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## T_R_Oglodyte

BocaBum99 said:
			
		

> ... Think about it.  All you need to do to get a job is go to ANY timeshare resort in any location.   Tell them you would like a job.  You fill out the application with your name, address and telephone number and the only other thing you put on the application is you sold timeshares for X, Y and Z and your APG is $5000.



That's generally true for all sales professional.  If a person is truly good at selling, they can always get a job.

As Zig Ziglar oft said, the most secure job there is in the world is selling on full commission.  If you can sell, the company for whom you work will never lay you off, because your position can always be jsutified.  

And if they are stupid enough to lay you off, there will aways be a competitor ready to pick you up.


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## pgnewarkboy

Steamboat Bill said:


> Perhaps there should be a law against "Free Gifts" for timeshare tours.
> 
> A psychologist or a patient can't receive a free gift for a consultation.



Doctors receive free gifts and trips for prescibing medication to you that might kill you.  Sales is sales.  People are people.  My guess is that if you are a great sales person you could make a ton of money selling almost anything - but you have to go the all commission route because that is where the risk is the greatest and the money is the greatest.  You have to be a person that is willing not to take NO!!!!! for an answer.  If you have the smarts, the charm, the persistence, and the ability to persuade commission sales can be great.  Oh, btw, it is extremely helpful to be selling a hot item.  I don't think timeshares are hot right now.


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## TUGBrian

thread is from 06 and was dug up by someone who wanted to promote their business.


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## 1950bing

Why in the world would you want to put yourself through that? Just look at the horriable rep. that field has! Lying to people all day long ! Telling them anything just for a sale! Get a real job and live longer. I'd rather work in a sewer!
I have never met a TS salesman that didn't think that everyone needs at least one !


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## cgeidl

*Lots*

If the salesman stays on the script-Sell the company,sell the strongest trader which will get you anywhwere the sum can be huge. Doesn,t need to lie just not give all the truth and avoid answering questions which would reveal the truth. Wehave been to about 15 TS meetings over the years and bought at the firsy but not since, Our other weeks were much less and better for trading.
I had one TS salesman tell me he made over 175,000 the year before and closed over 25% of his meetings. ALso let us go with gift in less than 30 minutes. We always start the meeting with-We are here to buy if you can match the @1250 per week cost we paid for our Hawaii weeks and maintenance fees less than $500. Thensome get rid of us quick while others go thru the whole routine including the second,third,and even 4th rep.
We always say when we come we will be leaving at the latest in the usul promised no more than 90 minutes. Only once were we denied the gift and I called the sales manager and he said the gift was waiting for us. We told him where to deliver it and he did.One TS slaesman actually spent most of the time asking us how to buy a cheap Hawaii week.


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## mrscott

*Take Advice from experienced reps only!*

My suggestion is to listen to people who have actually sold timeshare for a legitimate period of time (several years +). I worked with several reps who made in excess of $300k per year - consistently! YES, only a small percentage makes this kind of money, but I made over $100k for several years as well. The job is only about 20-30 hrs per week! Off by noon or 1pm, $0 marketing cost to rep, clients provided, spiffs, trips etc... So my advice, IF YOU CAN SELL AND ARE GOOD WITH RAPPORT BUILDING, you probably will not find a more lucrative career without an advanced degree and years of experience in some profession!

So many people want to be the "advisors" and slam the industry, integrity, product etc but at the end of the day, most of the people I work with net as much as doctors and lawyers without the headaches or malpractice insurance costs, working 1/3 the hours.

Sell a solid brand, work hard and learn your craft. Be honest and have the motivation to help people relax more. Many reps who make huge commissions do tend to mislead and fabricate, however, no need to be a liar, just settle for $180k instead of $350k!!! and sleep well at night.


----------



## DRTVEGAS

VERY accurate job description.  I worked in the field for 12 years.  Was a "superstar" for many of those years.  And yes, it is an up and down life...lol


----------



## DRTVEGAS

Ha!  Not so!  I worked at Marriott's premier T/S resort and was a top producer there.  But before I was hired, EVERYTHING about my resume and background was thoroughly checked.  I like that about Marriott and told my clients so.  Knowing that fact actually improved my sales closing percentage, because people wanted to know they were dealing with a straight-shooter (which I am).


----------



## TSellerLV

*I Sell Timeshare*

I see that many of the posters are curious about how much we make and what the career advantages/disadvantages are to transitioning into life as a timeshare sales representative. By all accounts we are all realtors. As we are licensed through the real estate division like any other realtor. Our training is different however as we have less tests and materials to cover in training. Think of it this way. As a whole owner of real estate you need a professional trained in all of the details of your transaction but as a "fractional" owner of timeshare your sales rep would need less training in dealing with the details. It is a lesser complicated and lesser expensive alternative to buying a vacation home. Now back to me...I work for Bluegreen. One of the best programs out there. I used to work for Wyndham but spent most of my time defending the program to owners I sold who could never get in to use it when they wanted to. I learned later that it was something to do with the fact that 2 million owners often fought to get in to about the same number of resorts we have at BG with 220,000 owners. Do the math. Wyndham was an excellent company but they made it a point to let you know that they didn't need you and that you were expendable at every sales meeting. I was so refreshed to attend BG sales meetings where the staff and execs were happy to inspire you, celebrate your sales and victories, support you in your growth, and never gave up on reps that weren't making good numbers. There is one guy here that hasn't sold in 3 months...THREE MONTHS! He is in the draw terribly but they refuse to give up on him. I have not had that problem. My year to date is $58,000 and it's only coming up on April. I suspect I will make over $200k this year. People are not lying when they tell you it takes a specific skill set to work in TS. You have to have a thick skin. Be able to take the rejections with the victories. The customer is always right. NEVER pressure a customer. Desperate sales reps constantly do this and shoot themselves in the foot and it does a disservice to your potential client. If you decide to sell TS you absolutely have to believe in the company you work for. If you are with a shady developer or a crappy company then it's your own fault if it's hard to sell crap paper. Human beings can smell desperation. But a calm, well dressed, confident sales person can sell a $40k package to someone in bankruptcy! Because the desire for the product will be so high that they will FIND a way to buy it. However, you have to be comfortable enough in your job and as a person to try to recommend that they not over purchase. Your first duty is to your client and to the company SECOND! Remember...it's YOUR license with the real estate division that will be suspended for "pitching heat" as we call it or just plain LYING. I am in such a comfortable position that I only recommend what my clients can use so they pay the smallest maintenance fees and lowest cost for their package possible. With that disposition, you may not sell the $40k package all the time but just imagine selling a $6000 package half of the time and making it completely affordable for common people to enjoy the luxury of vacationing like a millionaire! VERY rewarding! Not to mention after 40 tours in a month that would be well over $200k in volume or $30k + in earnings for the month. I have been here for over a year and have only made less than $17k once and that was $11k on a slow month. It is definitely not the norm. You have to come to work confident and happy. Do your check up from the neck up and whenever you get your guest you have to shed your desire to sell them and just get to know them. We are all living on this planet at the same time. Take that as the blessing it is. Enjoy your company. And if they enjoy you, they will be more open to take an honest look at your program. This is how I excel. Most cannot. The stresses and pressure of every day life make it hard to adjust your bad attitude to an attitude of gratitude. So if you have a firm grip on your emotions, a love of people, and great knowledge of the good, bad, and ugly sides of timeshare, then you will be successful. But you first must DECIDE to be.


----------



## Passepartout

Then the thread was resurrected again from 2010. Then a year ago. It seems to happen every so often then quietly go back into hibernation.


----------



## MuranoJo

TSellerLV's post was refreshing.  Thanks for posting.  Wish that attitude could be indoctrinated into some of the other timeshares, wherever.


----------



## ScoopKona

I've never made it a secret that I once sold timeshares. I liked the program so much, I bought one and paid full freight for it. (Although, I got the commission, and all the rebates, and all that.)

But I paid the same amount that everyone else pays. Hyatt is an ethical company. Yes, they're still cheaper on the resale market. But buying one actually helped my sales career. "I bought such-and-such unit for such-and-such week, and here's how I used it last year." So I made everything back in increased sales.

It is, for the most part, a fun job. You get to talk to a lot of different people from a lot of different walks of life. I pitched to major league baseball players, hot rod racers, doctors, lawyers, CEOs, pilots, you name it. 

And it was an EASY job. Because if you know the program backwards and forwards, roughly half the people who attend the presentation will want it, and half of those people can afford it. 

The only downside was dealing with timeshare mooches (an industry term, not my term). There are some incredibly negative people out there, who are going to try to make your life as miserable as possible for the entire presentation. I don't even know why such people go to presentations. They obviously are incapable of having fun. They should stay at home. "They couldn't have fun in a cathouse with a fist full of fifty dollar bills," was a popular assessment of these people.

And frankly, you would not BELIEVE the amount of people who told me that they have cancer. Apparently, one third of all Americans are battling stage IV cancer right now. Because roughly one in three tried that excuse on me. They couldn't tell me if they had sarcoma, carcinoma, or lymphoma. They didn't know what an oncologist does for a living. But by golly they had the cancer. They had LOTS of cancer. And thanks so much but we won't be buying anything cuz we gots the cancer but good. Both of us. The kids and the cat, too. Cancer all around.

It was an unusual day if one of my tours didn't play the cancer card. Some days EVERY tour played the cancer card.


----------



## Roger830

ScoopLV said:


> The only downside was dealing with timeshare mooches (an industry term, not my term). There are some incredibly negative people out there, who are going to try to make your life as miserable as possible for the entire presentation. I don't even know why such people go to presentations. They obviously are incapable of having fun. They should stay at home.



I'm at the point now where I'm tired of saying "NO" multiple times before I can get my parking pass.  

I'm OK with telling her, "If it furthers your career, I'll attend and buy nothing, or not attend and buy nothing. Your choice."

We're retired, so we have plenty of time to play their game. 

That doesn't make us mooches or miserable people, but we should be rewarded to be "room fill" like any temp employee.


----------



## ronparise

ScoopLV said:


> The only downside was dealing with timeshare mooches (an industry term, not my term). There are some incredibly negative people out there, who are going to try to make your life as miserable as possible for the entire presentation. I don't even know why such people go to presentations. They obviously are incapable of having fun. They should stay at home. "They couldn't have fun in a cathouse with a fist full of fifty dollar bills," was a popular assessment of these people.
> 
> 
> It was an unusual day if one of my tours didn't play the cancer card. Some days EVERY tour played the cancer card.



Theres a real disconnect between what the "parking pass" people say and the  you are saying here. 

The folks whose job it is to fill the sales room will argue  that this is a free lunch that all owners are entitled to. That its important that everyone be up to date on the recent changes to the club.  They will continue to tell me this even after I let them know that Ive been blacklisted and I know that sales does not want to see me, and that they will call me in the morning to cancel.
Ive even been met in the lobby by the sales manager who turned me away. 

So its easier to just say yes to the meeting and wait for my cancellation call.

So its not that I said yes to get my bribe, I said yes to speed up the check in process. 

Sales should have to man that check in desk themselves,and screen us themselves.  Ie sit the desk on Monday and make their own appointments for Tuesday,

Oh and cancer is the one thing that we can say to back some salesman  off.  The thought is that even a timeshare salesman wouldnt try to sell to a dead man. but maybe not..I know I tried to sell a mutual fund to a widow at the funeral home


----------



## vacationhopeful

ScoopLV said:


> I've never made it a secret that I once sold timeshares. I liked the program so much, I bought one and paid full freight for it. (Although, I got the commission, and all the rebates, and all that.)
> ...<snip>...
> It was an unusual day if one of my tours didn't play the cancer card. Some days EVERY tour played the cancer card.



Yes, your job was frustrating and eventually, you went to work somewhere else. And I hope you were happier in your new career.

I go on vacation to relax and sleep in. I am exhausted to no end by getting everything ready for my workers while I am gone. I try to foresee the 1000 things that MIGHT need attention before I get back, because I don't want to handle them from 1000 miles away or be forced to return home days earlier. 

On my last trip, I got 5 hours added onto my original airport & flying time of 7 hours. I had 2 connecting flights AFTER I was already boarded the plane. Peanuts were the ONLY food as I traversed across BOTH Atlanta airport and Las Vegas (unplanned) airport. I left PHL (6AM) to go to PHX. I arrived PHX at 4:30PM (local time). The airline "gave me" a $200 flight coupon --- AND (SURPRISE the next day) they also CANCELLED my booked returned trip because I didn't make my original ATL-PHX flight (it was your stupid original PHL-ATL plane that was late which is why you had new boarding passes already printed for me and the other 7 loss passengers). And this was for a 5 night trip.

And then the HANGTAG staff wants me to spend 4+ hours for an Owner's Update to tell me the NEW EXCITING Club Pass program --- and to call me every morning, to beg again. Or to hassle me, if I got to the lobby to print something off the computer (like directions).

So if is easier to go, take the $100 (remember, I only got $200 for 5 additional hours of airline prisoner time) and annoy their staff if their management has a BAD business plan.

And yes I have cancer, too. Do you want to SEE my scars for the incision and the 25 staple marks from my surgery May 2014?


----------



## Ron98GT

TSellerLV said:


> I see that many of the posters are curious about how much we make and what the career advantages/disadvantages are to transitioning into life as a timeshare sales representative. By all accounts we are all realtors. As we are licensed through the real estate division like any other realtor. Our training is different however as we have less tests and materials to cover in training. Think of it this way. As a whole owner of real estate you need a professional trained in all of the details of your transaction but as a "fractional" owner of timeshare your sales rep would need less training in dealing with the details. It is a lesser complicated and lesser expensive alternative to buying a vacation home. Now back to me...I work for Bluegreen. One of the best programs out there. I used to work for Wyndham but spent most of my time defending the program to owners I sold who could never get in to use it when they wanted to. I learned later that it was something to do with the fact that 2 million owners often fought to get in to about the same number of resorts we have at BG with 220,000 owners. Do the math. Wyndham was an excellent company but they made it a point to let you know that they didn't need you and that you were expendable at every sales meeting. I was so refreshed to attend BG sales meetings where the staff and execs were happy to inspire you, celebrate your sales and victories, support you in your growth, and never gave up on reps that weren't making good numbers. There is one guy here that hasn't sold in 3 months...THREE MONTHS! He is in the draw terribly but they refuse to give up on him. I have not had that problem. My year to date is $58,000 and it's only coming up on April. I suspect I will make over $200k this year. People are not lying when they tell you it takes a specific skill set to work in TS. You have to have a thick skin. Be able to take the rejections with the victories. The customer is always right. NEVER pressure a customer. Desperate sales reps constantly do this and shoot themselves in the foot and it does a disservice to your potential client. If you decide to sell TS you absolutely have to believe in the company you work for. If you are with a shady developer or a crappy company then it's your own fault if it's hard to sell crap paper. Human beings can smell desperation. But a calm, well dressed, confident sales person can sell a $40k package to someone in bankruptcy! Because the desire for the product will be so high that they will FIND a way to buy it. However, you have to be comfortable enough in your job and as a person to try to recommend that they not over purchase. Your first duty is to your client and to the company SECOND! Remember...it's YOUR license with the real estate division that will be suspended for "pitching heat" as we call it or just plain LYING. I am in such a comfortable position that I only recommend what my clients can use so they pay the smallest maintenance fees and lowest cost for their package possible. With that disposition, you may not sell the $40k package all the time but just imagine selling a $6000 package half of the time and making it completely affordable for common people to enjoy the luxury of vacationing like a millionaire! VERY rewarding! Not to mention after 40 tours in a month that would be well over $200k in volume or $30k + in earnings for the month. I have been here for over a year and have only made less than $17k once and that was $11k on a slow month. It is definitely not the norm. You have to come to work confident and happy. Do your check up from the neck up and whenever you get your guest you have to shed your desire to sell them and just get to know them. We are all living on this planet at the same time. Take that as the blessing it is. Enjoy your company. And if they enjoy you, they will be more open to take an honest look at your program. This is how I excel. Most cannot. The stresses and pressure of every day life make it hard to adjust your bad attitude to an attitude of gratitude. So if you have a firm grip on your emotions, a love of people, and great knowledge of the good, bad, and ugly sides of timeshare, then you will be successful. But you first must DECIDE to be.


What?

Do you have a Real Estate Salesperson License or a Timeshare License? 

http://www.leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-645.html

As a Timeshare Sales Agent, your licensed under NRS 119A, Time Shares, not under NRS 645, Real Estate.

http://leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-119A.html

Specifically, the definition of a Salesman and those authorized to use the term are defined in: NRS 645.040 & NRS 645.044.

http://leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-119A.html


Do you belong to the Las Vegas Board of Realtors?  If you are not a member of the board, your not a Realtor, and should not be holding yourself out as such. Your a Timeshare Sales Agent.  Only individuals licensed as a Broker or Salesman can join the Board of Realtors.

http://www.lasvegasrealtor.com/becomerealtor/

http://www.ehow.com/how_2156889_join-national-association-realtors.html


Calling yourself a Real Estate Agent, Real Estate Licensee, Real Estate Salesperson, or Realtor, when you hold a Timeshare License and are not licensed as a Salesperson/Broker and/or a member of the Board of Realtors is no different that calling yourself a CPA or Attorney, when you are not one.  It is not only unethical, it is illegal.


----------



## ScoopKona

vacationhopeful said:


> And then the HANGTAG staff wants me to spend 4+ hours for an Owner's Update to tell me the NEW EXCITING Club Pass program --- and to call me every morning, to beg again. Or to hassle me, if I got to the lobby to print something off the computer (like directions).



I've never had to deal with such malarkey, ever. And I take two or three timeshare vacations each year. 

I politely decline, sometimes telling them I have absolutely no interest in whatever lure they're using this week. And that's that.

The main reason I'm still not in sales is because after we moved, there wasn't any program like Hyatt's in my location. I'm not going to bother trying to sell something that doesn't work and I don't believe in. 

I went to a couple timeshare companies in town and decided that I wasn't going to lie through my teeth for a living and changed careers. I was also glad to be rid of the indignant, surly, miserable blowhards who made it their life's mission to make my hour-and-a-half with them the worst hour-and-a-half of my life because they decided to take the mini-vacation or prize of the week. Roughly one in 10 people are like that. The other 90% of the tours were very pleasant. As I said before, it's an easy, fun job -- most of the time.


----------



## TSellerLV

I am in fact a licensed real estate agent as well and sell commercial real estate aside from TS. Thank you for your assessment however. For some reason there are a plethora of angry little people who thrive on going into boards to try to make people feel insignificant, wrong, or bad about themselves. I pray for people like you. But if your little display of TS License knowledge made you feel like a man or intelligent in any way, then more power to you.


----------



## chriskre

TSellerLV said:


> I am in fact a licensed real estate agent as well and sell commercial real estate aside from TS. Thank you for your assessment however. For some reason there are a plethora of angry little people who thrive on going into boards to try to make people feel insignificant, wrong, or bad about themselves. I pray for people like you. But if your little display of TS License knowledge made you feel like a man or intelligent in any way, then more power to you.



I am a real estate agent in Florida and in your defense being called a Realtor just means you paid the National Association of Realtors their extortion fees.   Any real estate agent can do this.   In our state you must be a licensed real estate agent and take the exact same prelicensing course as anyone else on the business just to sell a timeshare.  

Bluegreen is a great product so it doesn't surprise me that you are able to make a nice living selling their points.  Count me as a happy BG owner.  Good luck and keep selling.  


Sent from my Kindle Fire using Tapatalk 2


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## ronparise

TSellerLV said:


> I am in fact a licensed real estate agent as well and sell commercial real estate aside from TS. Thank you for your assessment however. For some reason there are a plethora of angry little people who thrive on going into boards to try to make people feel insignificant, wrong, or bad about themselves. I pray for people like you. But if your little display of TS License knowledge made you feel like a man or intelligent in any way, then more power to you.



No need to feel bad about yourself and but you didnt say you were a Realtor®.

If you are I think you either violate the Code of Ethics on a regular basis, or you have seen enough to know what Linda is talking about.  The   exaggerations, mis-information and outright lies that I have been presented with as absolute truth is staggering

Personally I dont care what you do or did in a sales room...Hell, Id rob a bank if I thought I could get away with it, but if you are a Realtor®, you are violating the code of ethics when you lie or exaggerate and when you dont disclose the existence of the secondary market where your customer can see the exact same property you are selling for a fraction of the cost

From the Realtor Code of Ethics

"When serving a buyer, seller, landlord, tenant or other party in a non-agency capacity, REALTORS® remain obligated to treat all parties honestly"

"REALTORS®, when seeking to become a buyer/tenant representative, shall not mislead buyers or tenants as to savings or other benefits that might be realized through use of the REALTOR®’s services."

"REALTORS® shall avoid exaggeration, misrepresentation, or concealment of pertinent facts relating to the property or the transaction."

"REALTORS® shall be honest and truthful in their real estate communications"


----------



## chriskre

I've sat thru a few Wyndham and Bluegreen updates.
I will say that they are very different experiences.
BG being much more truthful IMO.

No they don't get into all the TUG nuggets but then again
you are only there for 60 minutes so they only cover the
highlights.  Anyone can use google these days.
There is really no excuse for ignorance.  :ignore:


----------



## ISellTime

TJK said:


> This might sound ridiculous, but at the age of 52 I'm considering a change of profession to be a timeshare salesman. Anyone have an idea of salary?
> Thanks,
> Tom



I read through some of these posts and it is funny how people not in the industry give advice and explain how much they think timeshare sales reps make.
Most reps make minimum wage or close to that. Top reps make millions per year. Yes millions... You must be working at a top site...hawaii, vegas to make that kind of money and also be working in in-house, not frontline which all reps start out in frontline unless you have an inside connection. The reps making usually 500k and above pitch a lot of heat and get away with it until too many lawsuits happen. An excellent but not top rep can make 100 to 180k on average.


----------



## T-Dot-Traveller

ISellTime said:


> I read through some of these posts and it is funny how people not in the industry give advice and explain how much they think timeshare sales reps make.
> Most reps make minimum wage or close to that. Top reps make millions per year. Yes millions... You must be working at a top site...hawaii, vegas to make that kind of money and also be working in in-house, not frontline which all reps start out in frontline unless you have an inside connection. The reps making usually 500k and above pitch a lot of heat and get away with it until too many lawsuits happen. An excellent but not top rep can make 100 to 180k on average.



Up to you to decide if that is good compensation for an eternity in :
HE - double hockey sticks  - (Canadian Version)

for regularly breaking - THE COMMANDMENT - thou shalt not ....

LOL


----------



## Passepartout

If you have honor and integrity, you might make minimum wage. In order to be 'successful', you would have to sell outright lies and at the very least, half-truths, while smiling and acting like your ''marks' are true friends. Oh, and never mentioning their right of rescission. And do not be bothered by selling something worthless that many can't afford and can't get rid of. When they come back to the place where they were fleeced, and spit in your face, smile and tell them how happy you are to see them again, just like old friends.

Jim


----------



## easyrider

Many people, especially tuggers, forget, that in order to buy a resale timeshare, someone has to buy one from the developer first. Selling anything that requires more than taking an order is a very honorable profession. There is much to consider when selling high end items. Only 20% of the people doing any sales actually make really good money and only 20% of that 20% which is the top 4% earn considerably good money.

Would anyone say the things that are said about timeshare sales people when comparing them to realtors ? I doubt it.

Bill


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## pedro47

Wow, this thread was originally started in September  2006. The life of a timeshare sale person never expires.

Because his lips are moving and they can never stop.


----------



## breezez

BocaBum99 said:


> *So you want to be a timeshare salesman....*
> 
> I have done some research on what it takes to be a good timeshare salesman working for the resort developer.  Here is what I've concluded.
> 
> First, the compensation.  Timeshare sales is pretty much a winner take all sales job.  Only the best get paid a lot.  And, the best are heavily recruited by all resort developers.  Most get almost nothing.  Timeshare sales is like real estate sales in that you work on a 100% commission plan.  Some developers have benefits plans that are pretty good.  But, that is meaningless if you aren't making any money.  Many do have a weekly minimum of about $200-225 that is offered as a non-recoverable draw.  So, you get that minimum if you don't sell enough for that week.
> 
> The work week can be pretty short if you are really good.  You get 1 to 3 tour opportunities per day for the most part.  More at the busier resorts such as Las Vegas.  The base commission is usually around 4-6%.  If the average timeshare sale is $15000, then a base commission of 6% will net you $900.  If you made 1 sale per week and you worked 48 weeks a year, you would make about $43,200.  That is about the average of what a timeshare salesman makes.  Or course, they only get paid if the deal gets past the period of recission.  So, your close rate has to be higher to allow for recissions.
> 
> Let's break it down to an average work week.  During a week, let's say you get 2 tours a day.  At many resorts, that's a good day.  During the slow season, you could be sitting around twiddling your thumbs waiting for tours to come in.  And, when it gets that slow, the marketing department starts sending in anyone they can to keep sales busy.  That can really suck.  You learn to hate the term OPC.
> 
> Okay, so you get 10 tours a week.  You only have to close 1 per week and have it stick.  Then, you have your $43,200 base salary locked down.  If you don't do 1 sale per week, you will get washed out or you will quit for lack of income.  You should know it's not that easy making 1 sale per week.  And, severe depression can set in if you aren't making sales.  Lots of rejection in this job.
> 
> Okay, now this is where timeshare sales can get really lucrative.  After the base commission, they start putting in accelerators into your comp package.  After certain minimum thresholds during a current month, they start throwing in bonus comp. and that bonus is retroactive to the first dollar of commission that month.  So, let's say that the first level is $50000, the second is $75000 and the 3rd is $100000 and the 4th is $125000 to make it easy and the 5th is $150000.  Let's say they give you 2% extra commission for every tier you hit.  This is when you start really making money.
> 
> If you hit the $150000 level in the month, your commission rate is 6% base plus 2% plus 2% plus 2% plus 2% plus 2%. That means for every deal you did that month, you get 16% commission.
> 
> Let's turn that into dollars per month assuming a 4 week month.  You do 10 tours per week, if you close 2 per week or 20% close rate at $15k, you sell $120000 so for the month, your commission rate is 12%.  Now, you are making $14,400 for that month.  So, your annual rate jumps up from $43,200 to $172, 800.
> 
> Now, let's say you are at a 30% close rate.  Your monthly gross is $180,000 in revenue and you are at the 16% rate, so you net $28,000 for that month or an annual rate of $345,600.
> 
> Do you see how the accelerators work?  The key metric for assessing a timeshare salesman is their APG or average per guest.  In the first case, the APG is $1500 ($15000 sales per week, 10 tours)  which is barely the minimum acceptable level for a timeshare salesman.  The second has an APG of $3000 ($30000 sales per week, 10 tours).  That's decent.  The third is $4500.  That is a superstar.  There are a few out there.  I know one who has an APG of $5000.  He makes well over $300,000 per year and he only works about 25 hours per week.  What they also don't tell you is that those with the highest APG get their tours first.  So, if you are at the back of the line, you may not get 2 tours in a day.
> 
> Now timeshare salesman are the best salesmen in the world.  The timeshare sales job at the resort is the World Series of sellling.  You need to get a couple to make the 2nd or 3rd largest purchase in their life without knowing anything about you ahead of time and without looking under the hood or doing any due diligence.  That requires sales skill.  What other job requires that level of difficulty?
> 
> The best resorts have personality tests that they require each potential candidate to take before they allow them to take the job.  That makes sense.  The type of people they are looking for are those who are NOT analytical.  Those who live on the edge.  The test has questions like, "do you want to be a rock star?"  "If nobody were looking, would you cheat on a test?" "Have you ever cheated on a test?"
> 
> Given the rejection rate and high turnover rate, there is a mandatory pep rally every single day to reward those who are doing well and to help motivate the troops.  The best sales guys can get into the "zone"  where they start closing everyone they see.  Then, all of a sudden, it stops and they have a several week drought.  It's definitely an up and down job.  To get you in the door, they sell you on making a ton of money, but the reality is almost nobody does.  Remember, the same people recruiting you into the job sell timeshares for a living.  Would you expect anything less?
> 
> So, if you think you can become a great timeshare salesman because you know a lot about timesharing.  You should stop right there and consider a different career.  The absolute best timeshare salesman say very little about the product.  They spend all of their time trying to find what moves you emotionally and links those emotions to their product.  They paint a picture of that dream vacation and they show you how through their product you can get that over and over again.  If you can do that, you can be successful.  If you can't, then you will make more money licking stamps at the post office.



Sounds like my past job as a Navy Recruiter.   I was in the top 10 for 3 years.   Painting a picture of desire, finding people’s want, need and their emotional buying motive and selling how we were going to give you the need to achieve your want to allow you to feel xxxx.

I just wish I made that kind of money at it.   If I did I wouldn’t have quit.

Timeshares sales peeps don’t bother me unless they flat out lie.


----------



## bluehende

easyrider said:


> Many people, especially tuggers, forget, that in order to buy a resale timeshare, someone has to buy one from the developer first. Selling anything that requires more than taking an order is a very honorable profession. There is much to consider when selling high end items. Only 20% of the people doing any sales actually make really good money and only 20% of that 20% which is the top 4% earn considerably good money.
> 
> Would anyone say the things that are said about timeshare sales people when comparing them to realtors ? I doubt it.
> 
> Bill



While not as bad as TS salespeople, i have a few pretty sleazy stories about realtors from our sale of two houses recently.


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