Women Who Sell With Amber Ellis
‘Women Who Sell’ is all about showcasing women who sell, and are thriving and challenging stereotypes. We feature real perspectives of what it’s like, the barriers and the breakthroughs.
Here, Amber Ellis, Head Of Sales at Heka shares her take.
What is your job title?
Sales Lead at Heka - a flexible wellbeing benefit!
How did you get into sales and what makes it the career of your choice?
Well… I fell into it! After finishing my Masters in Performance Art, someone I knew asked if I’d like to interview for a Marketing & Promotions role for a hospitality venue. I started the role in October 2018 and ended up playing a big part in Christmas Party bookings for that year.
Having never done sales before, if memory serves me correctly, I secured circa 50k in Sales for mid-week events as weekends were already booked prior to me joining. Not to mention sales revenue from marketing events I have organised. So, you can say my sales career started here and by January I was their Business Development Manager and my career has continued to grow from that point.
Why I stuck with it as a career, is that Sales just felt very natural to me. I’m a people person, I love chatting, forging new relationships and meeting new people. I’ve been very selective with every career move as for me, being in sales, it’s absolutely essential that I 100% believe in what I’m selling because then I can continue to be genuine & authentic. 6 years later, I still get excited by every win, but the key reason that Sales is the career for me is because I love seeing the impact I can have on the businesses I love working for.
Are there any barriers you have faced as a woman working in sales, and how have you overcome them?
Where do you start with this one? (Asking for a friend!) Jokes aside, I view my career in 2 parts. My career in Hospitality and my career in b2b sales (in the world of wellbeing benefits).
In hospitality, the brands I worked for had male-heavy management teams. Something I’ll never forget was when one business was going through a transition and we had a senior leader join for a short period. During that time, he told me “You should wear a dress and heels to sell more”. I said no, I don’t need to wear a dress and heels to sell, and took great satisfaction in telling him my sales numbers at the end of that month (which were way over target).
Another, I know is common from speaking with other women (in any role) is the age-old ‘Is it your time of the month’. Where this frustrates me is when women speak with the same passion and fire as their male counterparts, yet for males it’s okay, and for women - it must be our time of the month. Or, we’re seen as ‘bossy’ or being a ‘bitch’. How I overcame this… I never watered myself down. I originally typed ‘I believe’, but scrapping that, I KNOW my passion and vocalising my thoughts & ideas is one of the core reasons why I’ve been able to progress to where I am now.
Now, in other situations aside from mansplaining etc, I’d say the biggest challenge I faced was in the ‘second part of my career’ in b2b sales.
It was sadly a toxic workplace, with people on constant eggshells. I put my all into work, and no matter what I did, I felt our Founder didn’t like me. When challenging thoughts/processes with solutions and data-led suggestions, I was always spoken to badly. Whereas my male counterparts could say the exact same, and it was heard. I will never forget a very senior member of the team calling my mobile post a meeting just to apologise for how sh*tty I must have felt, and said that he (the Founder) can’t handle it because I’m a woman and it damages his ego. I overcame this by accepting that things wouldn’t change, and moving to a company where I felt valued and was heard.
I have to take this opportunity to highlight our Heka Co-Founder, Alex. I remember during my probation meeting Alex saying, “I’m not him, you can voice anything”. Alex wants to hear my thoughts / opinions / ideas and he probably doesn’t know that working with him during my first few months at Heka massively built my confidence back up to where it used to be - if not more!
What do you like the most about being a woman in sales?
As a woman, I find that I’m able to approach conversations with a natural sense of empathy and connection. This goes a long way in creating trust based relationships that last, but most importantly are genuine. Whilst knowing this was my ‘superpower’, over time I learnt how important it is to push that further. When you have these relationships, it is so much easier to be more of a challenger salesperson and ask the tough and direct questions. Or to ask those questions that challenge your prospect to stop and think in a different way. Honing in on this has helped me become a much more successful salesperson. I also absolutely love challenging the norm of what a ‘sales person’ is. I’m a young woman and yes… I know my stuff!
I love (and hate) when I’m on a call and feel like I’m being dismissed, but as soon as I demonstrate my knowledge on their situation, there’s a switch and we can get back on track! Also, Sales is still seen as a dirty word that puts people off when you reach out to them. We’re not just pushy people who will do anything to hit numbers. Salespeople’s time is often dismissed/undervalued. We get ghosted, ignored after tons of effort or can be spoken to rudely.
Again, another learning over 6 years in Sales is to value my time. If it’s clear there’s not a fit, I genuinely won’t continue to try and sell to you. I take back that time to find new people who are a fit. What makes me smile is being told regularly by prospects that they love my approach, and that makes me really proud to be a woman in sales.
What advice do you have for a woman wanting to get into sales and those wanting to advance?
Oooo. High-level in one sentance… my advice is to lead with curiosity and confidence.
Have a learners mindset. If you are challenging how things are done / ideas/changes you want to make, when challenging - always come with solutions. Where possible, have those solutions be data-led. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and take risks. Know and feel confident that your voice, perspective and approach are all valuable assets.
Finally, don’t hesitate to celebrate your wins and speak up about your accomplishments. This is something I struggle with, but make your impact known! & if you work somewhere where you aren’t valued - move to somewhere where you are. You don’t have to fit a certain stereotype to succeed!!!
If you would like to get involved with the blog series and share your story as a woman in the sales industry, we’d LOVE to hear from you. And head over to Women Who Sell’s LinkedIn for more content.
