6 sales jobs with residual Income

What are the best type of sales jobs? In addition to the ones with large earning potential, my favorite type of sales jobs have residual income.

Usually, you still get paid up front per sale but then monthly or yearly you receive payment. So long as that customer keeps using the service! Sometimes these ones start out slow and snowball. Sometimes they start out big and get even bigger. Here are some of my favorites

Insurance Sales

This one is wide and varied in the type of insurance you can sell. The most common are accident and health, death and disability or supplemental insurance. I was licensed in accident and health and I sold supplemental insurance.

Supplemental insurance puts money directly into the pocket of the policyholder to cover out of pocket expenses. This is helpful for something like cancer, heart attack, or stroke. More than likely you won’t be working for the next few months or worse.

The pay was generous up front: %50 percent of the year’s policy. The policy I got for my wife and I was around $200 a month so my commission was around $1,200. In addition to that, I’d get a monthly residual of %5 after the first year passed, so around $10 a month.

That doesn’t sound like a lot. But that’s on top of what you’re currently selling that year. It adds year by year, with a surprisingly low drop rate for the customer.
Say you sold 3 policies a week at that rate, your monthly take-home would be around $14,400. That’s before expenses (We had to pay for hotels, gas, food, and misc).

For most 1099 sales jobs you are an independent contractor which is great for taxes. You get to write off .50 cents for every mile you drive and all of the hotel expenses and half of the meals. There were several second year sellers on my team making above 250k a year after expenses. It is a lot of time on the road though.

Logistics and Freight Sales

Moving things is big business. I’m not talking about a residential moving service but supply lines. Any company that uses raw materials or sells goods has a supply line. Many companies do their own shipping for part of their products. But there are usually some aspects covered by third-party logistics companies.
The reason there is so much money here is volume. There are over 2 million semi-truck drivers and 5 million semi-trucks in America. Your job would be to convince those companies in need of logistics that your company is cheaper or more reliable. Once you do, you are in charge of maintaining the account. You receive a commission for as long as they remain customers.

Security Sytems

Security alarms have been around forever. My grandmother in law had used the same service for over 35 years before she moved. It’s another one of those services that once you start paying for, you generally don’t stop. Unless you get another provider or you can’t afford it.

With security system jobs you’ll usually get paid a percentage of the setup fee and any equipment they buy. The cameras, motion detectors, smoke detectors, and sensors add up to thousands.

Monitoring services are anywhere between $35-$100+ a month. You’ll usually receive between $10-$40 a month for the life of the customer. I haven’t worked this sales job before but it’s one I think would be fun and helpful to people.

Advertising Sales

Advertising sales an area I really wish I had more experience in, it seems fun. Usually, your job is to find and retain customers. You’ll get a percentage of their monthly payment and art commissions. Some larger companies separate the jobs where you get the client and someone else takes over managing them. It’s less money per customer but it frees you up to find more business.
A great business idea would be to start an online advertising business specializing in Facebook and Instagram advertising. It’s cheap and effective if done right because companies are still slow to adopt the “new” way of advertising. The prices are way lower than traditional media. It’s often easier to gauge their effectiveness as well.

Saas Sales

SaaS sales or software as service sales. You’re mainly selling to businesses and learning institutions. I’m not sure if the point of sale systems falls under this category but that is another one that is similar. Businesses use all sorts of different software to accept money, manage client data, and do their work. Businesses also get set in their way and don’t update once they find a system that works. That gives an opportunity for some long term residual income.

Product Line Representitive

This is one that isn’t too common, but I’ve seen some ads on craigslist, so I take it with a grain of salt. The ones I’ve seen are drinks: energy, alcohol, or soda. You represent a new line of products from an unknown company.

Your job is to find stores or chains willing to stock the product. Competition for shelf space is insane for new and existing products. It’s down to how much you believe in the product you’re selling. The pay is generally low as far as salary goes but there can be huge residual income if you are successful. Some even offer stock in the company. That is a huge potential for major money down the road.

Tell me about your experiences!

I love sales jobs as primary income or a secondary income while you launch your business. Check out my reasons for loving sales jobs here. The ones that come with residual income are extra enticing. They often start low in pay but in a few years you’re making more than you could have at a higher paying job.

What sales jobs with residuals did I miss? Tell me in the comment section! Looking for ways to make money outside of sales? Check out my big list of business ideas!

Further amazon reading- This is one of my favorite sales books: Go for no! it will help you embrace the many no’s you’ll hear on your journey!