What Do Parts Salespersons Do (including Their Typical Day At Work)

Job Description

Parts Salespersons sell spare and replacement parts and equipment in repair shop or parts store. They also receive and fill telephone orders for parts.

Other tasks include:

• Fill customer orders from stock and place orders when requested items are out of stock.
• Receive payment or obtain credit authorization.
• Read catalogs, microfiche viewers, or computer displays to determine replacement part stock numbers and prices.
• Prepare sales slips or sales contracts.
• Determine replacement parts required, according to inspections of old parts, customer requests, or customers’ descriptions of malfunctions.
• Assist customers, such as responding to customer complaints and updating them about back-ordered parts.

We asked Parts Salespersons how satisfied they are with their job. Here is what they said.

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62% of them said they were satisfied with their job and 37% said they find that their job makes the world a better place or helps to make someone else’s life better.

Typical Day At Work

On a daily basis, Parts Salespersons prepare sales slips or sales contracts. They maintain and clean work and inventory areas.

A typical day for a Parts Salesperson will also include:

• Read catalogs, microfiche viewers, or computer displays to determine replacement part stock numbers and prices.
• Receive and fill telephone orders for parts.
• Assist customers, such as responding to customer complaints and updating them about back-ordered parts.
• Determine replacement parts required, according to inspections of old parts, customer requests, or customers’ descriptions of malfunctions.
• Receive payment or obtain credit authorization.

We asked some Parts Salespersons a few questions to find out what else does their work day look like. Here is what we found.

	Do you have telephone conversations everyday in this job?	100% said yes
	How important is it to work in a team in this job?	74% said very important
	Do you have group discussions everyday in this job?	70% said yes
	Do you talk or work with customers everyday in this job?	94% said yes
	Do you have to deal with angry customers everyday in this job?	18% said yes
	Do you have to make decisions everyday in this job?	61% said yes

Other responsibilities

Besides their typical day, Parts Salespersons also repair parts or equipment. They may also examine returned parts for defects, and exchange defective parts or refund money.

On a weekly to monthly basis, Parts Salespersons Demonstrate equipment to customers and explain functioning of equipment. They might also Measure parts, using precision measuring instruments, to determine whether similar parts may be machined to required sizes.

In addition, they Place new merchandise on display.

Although specific duties may vary, many of them Manage shipments by researching shipping methods or costs and tracking packages.

To some Parts Salespersons, it is also their responsibility to Assist customers, such as responding to customer complaints and updating them about back-ordered parts.

Working life

More than 40 hours per week

Regular schedule like a 9 to 5

In a typical work week as a Parts Salesperson, you can expect to work more than 40 hours per week.

Is this right for me

People who are suitable for this job tends to like starting up and carrying out projects. They like leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business..

They also like following set procedures and routines. They like working with data and details more than with ideas.

You can read more about these career personality types here.

Explore other careers

http://www.bls.gov/OOH/sales/retail-sales-workers.htm

https://nrf.com/

http://www.rila.org/

http://www.nada.org/