A lot of Nigerians would rather earn their living as a sales Intermediary, than work in the corporate world, a sales intermediary at Balogun market, Lagos, Ola Abiodun, tells me.
Abiodun defined sales intermediary as an individual or company that behave as middlemen between parties for investment deals, business deals, negotiations, insurances, among others.
Becoming a sales intermediary
Abiodun avers that one does not need a school certificate to become a sales intermediary, adding that, “All that is required is your sweet tongue. You need to be able to convince a potential client that you can help him/her get the best deal.
“You should also be able to approach different store owners. It may be difficult at first to convince a shop owner, but with time, you will be able to earn their trust, providing you are a trustworthy person. Some of the shop owners may even employ you as a sales person and place you on a monthly salary.
“You should also be able to stand for a long time and be able to approach people. Shyness cannot be in your dictionary as you need to be able to talk to as much people as possible. The more people you bring to a particular shop, the more money you earn,” he states.
Abiodun harps on the need for one to be trustworthy. ‘No shop owner would want to work with you, if you are not a trust worthy person,’ he states.
Profitability
For Obinna Okoh, a sales intermediary at Balogun market, “you can make a lot of money, when you are friends with shop owners that sell different products ranging from clothes, shoes, hair to boxes.
“The reason is that the possibility that you will meet someone who want to buy either of these products is high. Don’t forget the more people you bring to a shoe, the more money you make.”
Okoh averred that one can earn as high as N500 for every customer he brings to a shop. “So imagine you bringing up to 20 customers to just one shop (as you know, Balogun market is a very busy market), that means you have earned N10,000 from just one shop, for one day,” Okoh asserted.