Installer or Salesperson?

Which Side of the Window Treatment Business Are You On?

Every few months, I come across the same question from an installer: “How do I get into sales?”

And every time, my answer is the same: “Depends. What do you hate more, ladders or rejection?”

It sounds like a joke. It’s not. After 20+ years doing both, I can tell you these are two very different jobs that happen to share the same product. Here’s the honest breakdown.

The Installer

The Pros

• You see your results: Every day ends with something finished. Eight windows, done, looking great. Very few jobs give you that.
• Every visit pays: Installers don’t work for free. When you show up at a client’s home, you get paid. Your time is never a gamble.
• People are happy to see you: You’re the one bringing the thing they’ve been waiting weeks for. Nobody slams the door on the installer.
• Your skill is rare: Good installers are hard to find. That gives you leverage and job security.
• The day has an end: When the last shade goes up, you go home. No follow-up calls at 9 p.m.

The Cons

• Your body keeps score: Ladders, knees, shoulders, Florida attics in August. This job has an expiration date if you don’t take care of yourself.
• Your income has a ceiling: You get paid per window or per hour, and there are only so many of both in a day.
• You inherit other people’s mistakes: Bad measure? Wrong color? Customer expected blackout and got light gaps? Guess who’s standing in the living room when they find out.
• You’re often invisible: The sale gets the credit. The install only gets noticed when something goes wrong.

The Salesperson

The Pros

• Higher earning potential: Commission doesn’t care how many hours you worked. One big commercial job can make your month.
• Easier on the body: You’ll still climb the occasional ladder to measure, but you’re not hanging 40 shades a day.
• You own the relationship: The customer calls you. Referrals come to you. That’s long-term value you build for yourself.
• It’s a path to ownership: If you ever want to run your own business, selling is the skill that keeps the lights on.

The Cons 

• Time invested is not money earned: The consultation, the measure, the samples, the revised quote, the follow-up calls. You can put hours into a client and still walk away with nothing. No sale, no paycheck.
• Rejection is part of the job: You’ll quote ten jobs and close four. If you take “no” personally, it will wear you down fast.
• Feast or famine: Great months and dry months. You need discipline with money and a strong pipeline.
• Your schedule belongs to the customer: Couples want appointments at 6 p.m. or Saturday morning. That’s when decisions get made.
• Your mistakes cost more: One wrong measurement turns into a remake, a second trip, and an unhappy client. The installer feels it, but the business pays for it.

The Part Nobody Tells You

Neither side is better. It’s a matter of matching your skills with what makes you happy. And the people who go furthest in this industry understand both, even if they only do one.

So Which One Is You?

Ask yourself three questions:

1. Do I want a guaranteed paycheck for every job, or a bigger payoff with no guarantees?
2. Can I handle “no” without taking it home?
3. Where do I want to be in 10 years: on the ladder, or running the company?

There’s no wrong answer. Just an honest one.

The installer keeps the promise. The salesperson makes it. The business needs both, and so does your career.

Which side are you on, and have you ever thought about switching? Tell me in the comments.

Warmly,

About Roger Magalhães

Entrepreneur | Speaker | Storyteller | Author
Different brands. Same high standard.

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Official Website: Trading Up Consulting
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Book: Nobody Told Me That
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