Timeshare and vacation ownership. what are they about? What is it like to have a career in this industry? What does it take to have a six figure income and stay employed in the industry?
I am not writing these articles with the intention of recruiting anyone as I am not a sales recruiter. I have an MBA in real estate development and management and my favorite hobby in business is employee turnover. I just don’t like it The turnover in the vacation ownership/timeshare industry is horrible.
My MBA side of my brain tells me that turnover is expensive and not exciting or positive for anyone involved. You’ve probably also heard that dissatisfied customers or employees can do more harm to a business in the long run than satisfied customers and employees can do to improve your bottom line.
If something frustrates or angers you, the best thing to do, rather than anger management or psychotherapy, is to take action. So here I am.
Most contract sellers to sell vacation ownership or timeshare need a real estate or timeshare sales license. If you have the time and money, the most comprehensive real estate license will allow you more career options and I highly recommend further education in any field if you want to be successful and stay in the industry.
What happens when a person gets a job selling timeshare or vacation ownership. At this time in the industry, potential guests or prospects are marketed and invited to a sales presentation. Most of these guest invitations include an incentive or gift for the participant’s time. People love freebies, incentives, and lots of it. We are greedy, bargain hunters. The industry knows this and depends on us to fill the sales centers for presentations.
As a salesperson, the presentations you will give will often range from 90 minutes to 3 hours, depending on the company you work for. With timeshare or vacation ownership sales, the only factor is that the guest or participant you’re trying to sell has come to see your resort and product with the intention of getting a freebie, leaving quickly, and most have no intention of buying anything.
Selling to people who have not come to buy anything and many times who have an agreement not to buy no matter what you have, no matter how good it sounds, and no matter how affordable it is. This is a very different way of selling than working in a retail store where people have come specifically to buy something and intend to take it home.
Employee turnover in the timeshare and vacation ownership sales industry is enormous. It is awful. Employers spend an incredible amount of money to find vendors and vendors come into the business and are shocked by the rejection and how hard it can be to sell people their vacations and they run away. A successful timeshare seller must be perceived by the guest as authentic and sincere. Companies should have more comprehensive sales training to help develop employees’ skills so they can stay on the job.
I attended a financial seminar and they discussed “Employee Asset Value”. My question is, “If employees are your greatest asset, how much money and value are you adding to your competitors’ bottom line when they leave you and go to work for your competitors?” If companies finally calculate these numbers, they will have to pay more attention to keeping their employees and not letting them fail and leave.