As we grew up, we watched the phrase “you throw like a girl” evolve into “you sell like a girl.” And no, this wasn’t a compliment. You eat like a girl, run like a girl, and you talk like a girl. Somehow, the phrase “like a girl” turned into the ultimate insult, as if being a girl was a flaw to overcome. In the business world, it became a way of saying, “You’re not doing well.” That is the story, as well as the bias around women in sales.
When a manager declares you “sell like a girl,” they aren’t making a casual observation or suggesting that women might bring a unique approach or fresh perspective to sales. Instead, they imply, ever so subtly, that women are somehow less capable than their male colleagues. Companies either believe women aren’t suited for this business or create macho cultures that make it hard for women to fit in. They complain that women aren’t aggressive enough, but when a woman becomes assertive, she’s labelled a “bitch.”
Women in sales careers: Where we stand today
Like nearly all professions, sales has a long-standing tradition of being male-dominated, creating a cycle that favoured men over women. As a result, women often lack recognition for the unique strengths and perspectives they bring to the field.
LinkedIn, the world’s largest online professional network, reveals that Indian organisations still employ more men than women when it comes to sales roles. According to its data, women make up only 19% of the sales workforce and hold just 13% of sales leadership positions in India. In fact, only 39% of sales roles are occupied by women globally.
LinkedIn also reports that Tier 1 cities like Hyderabad (26%), Bengaluru (25%), and Chennai (22%) have the highest percentage of women engaged in sales roles. However, Tier 2 cities such as Ahmedabad (14%), Lucknow (13%), and Jaipur (13%) have lower percentages of women working in sales positions.
More data
According to a report by the Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH) and the financial management app Salt, only 20% of India’s 61 million micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are run by women, and nearly half of these are in rural areas. The report also found that women have minimal representation in small and medium-sized businesses, holding just 5.26% and 2.67% of leadership roles, respectively.
In 2022, sales ranked tenth for the highest wage gap between men and women. Even though women represent more than half of the college-educated workforce, they hold fewer than one-third of B2B sales jobs. These gender biases point out the urgent need for change within the sales industry.
The struggle of women in the automobile sector
The representation of women in B2B sales varies widely across different industries. The parts sales sector, which involves selling mechanical parts and hardware, is the most underrepresented sector for women. The manufacturing (14%) and automotive (14%) industries have some of the largest gender gaps. On the other hand, IT services and retail claim to be more inclusive, but women still only make up 27% and 23% of sales roles, respectively. It is nowhere close to even making up half the sales workforce in India.
Sexism is deeply rooted when it comes to women and automobiles. The old stereotype that women are uninformed or incompetent about cars affects both women working in sales and those buying cars. Many customers doubt that a woman can sell a car, negotiate a price, or even know what she’s talking about. Some will ask for a male salesperson instead.
Since most automobile sales jobs are commission-based, women who can’t quickly overcome this bias and prove themselves may struggle to earn enough to support themselves. It might explain why only 14% of women recommend a career in the auto industry to their daughters or female relatives. Moreover, nearly half of the women surveyed would pick a different industry if given a chance to start over, mainly due to the lack of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the auto sector.
The actual truth of selling like a girl
Only 24% of executives in sales leadership are women. While many factors contribute to this gender disparity, society is quick to assume this is due to a performance gap between men and women. Such old-school thinking overlooks the reality that women are just as capable as men at top performance levels. Despite the challenges women face in securing, maintaining, and growing in sales careers, research shows that, when given the opportunity, women regularly outperform men. In fact, while only 78% of men consistently reach their sales quotas, 86% of women hit their quotas regularly.
There is a common myth that women can’t handle stress as well as men do in sales. But that is not true. A study found that men and women handle stress equally well. In some cases, women even manage stress better than men.
Women often focus more on finding solutions rather than just pushing products. Instead of relying on slick sales techniques, they concentrate on understanding the customer. Even if society calls women “emotional,” they use their emotional skills to build strong relationships and personalise customer interactions. In their work, women believe that success is in attention to detail. They are also better at multitasking, handling more responsibilities, and making decisions with logic.
The final thoughts
Despite recent progress towards a more diverse workforce, women are still underrepresented in sales roles. It is surprising how many companies still believe women are not suited for these roles. In reality, there is nothing about being a successful salesperson that makes it a “male” job. Multiple studies and surveys show that women can be just as good, if not better, at these roles.
A Harvard Business Review report found that companies with diverse teams are 45% more likely to see growth in market share and 70% more likely to enter new markets. So, if companies don’t use the opportunity to address the gender gap in these roles, they will miss out on the chance to capitalise on the talents of half the workforce.
Research Sources:
Payscale 2024 Gender Pay Gap Report
Harvard Business Review (2020): Why Women Are the Future of B2B Sales
Business Insider India (2020): Women only make up 13% of sales leadership roles in India
Deloitte: Diversity, equity, and inclusion in the automotive industry
100+ Important Sales Statistics [2023]: Figures, Salaries, and Statistics
LinkedIn’s Women in Sales report
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are based on the writer’s insights, supported by data and resources available both online and offline, as applicable. Changeincontent.com is committed to promoting inclusivity across all forms of content, which we define broadly to include media, policies, law, and history—encompassing all elements that influence the lives of women and gender-queer individuals. Our goal is to promote understanding and advocate for comprehensive inclusivity.