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Door-to-Door Sales Workers, News and Street Vendors, and Related Workers

Sell goods or services door-to-door or on the street.
  • Summary

  • Details

  • Work Activities

    • Stock carts or stands.
    • Explain products or services and prices and demonstrate use of products.
    • Answer questions about product features and benefits.
    • Order or purchase supplies.
    • Arrange buying parties and solicit sponsorship of such parties to sell merchandise.
    • Deliver merchandise and collect payment.
    • Circulate among potential customers or travel by foot, truck, automobile, or bicycle to deliver or sell merchandise or services.
    • Circulate among potential customers or travel by foot, truck, automobile, or bicycle to deliver or sell merchandise or services.
    • Deliver merchandise and collect payment.
    • Explain products or services and prices and demonstrate use of products.
    • Arrange buying parties and solicit sponsorship of such parties to sell merchandise.
    • Develop prospect lists.
    • Persuade customers to purchase merchandise or services.
    • Write and record orders for merchandise or enter orders into computers.
    • Distribute product samples or literature that details products or services.
    • Set up and display sample merchandise at parties or stands.

    Skills

    • Operations Analysis
      • Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
    • Instructing
      • Teaching people how to do something.
    • Equipment Selection
      • Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
    • Systems Evaluation
      • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
    • Repairing
      • Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
    • Equipment Maintenance
      • Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
    • Time Management
      • Managing your time and the time of other people.
    • Speaking
      • Talking to others.
    • Social Perceptiveness
      • Understanding people's reactions.
    • Reading Comprehension
      • Reading work-related information.
    • Active Listening
      • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
    • Management of Personnel Resources
      • Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
    • Science
      • Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
    • Technology Design
      • Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
    • Quality Control Analysis
      • Testing how well a product or service works.
    • Judgment and Decision Making
      • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
    • Programming
      • Writing computer programs.
    • Critical Thinking
      • Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
    • Active Learning
      • Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
    • Mathematics
      • Using math to solve problems.
    • Persuasion
      • Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
    • Operations Monitoring
      • Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
    • Complex Problem Solving
      • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
    • Operation and Control
      • Using equipment or systems.
    • Troubleshooting
      • Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
    • Management of Financial Resources
      • Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
    • Writing
      • Writing things for co-workers or customers.
    • Installation
      • Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
    • Negotiation
      • Bringing people together to solve differences.
    • Service Orientation
      • Looking for ways to help people.
    • Systems Analysis
      • Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
    • Management of Material Resources
      • Managing equipment and materials.
    • Monitoring
      • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
    • Coordination
      • Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
    • Learning Strategies
      • Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.

    Abilities

    • Rate Control
      • Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
    • Static Strength
      • Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
    • Speed of Closure
      • Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
    • Spatial Orientation
      • Knowing where things are around you.
    • Originality
      • Creating new and original ideas.
    • Far Vision
      • Seeing details that are far away.
    • Dynamic Strength
      • Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
    • Control Precision
      • Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
    • Wrist-Finger Speed
      • Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
    • Gross Body Equilibrium
      • Keeping your balance or staying upright.
    • Number Facility
      • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
    • Visualization
      • Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
    • Response Orientation
      • Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
    • Category Flexibility
      • Grouping things in different ways.
    • Stamina
      • Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
    • Perceptual Speed
      • Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
    • Oral Expression
      • Communicating by speaking.
    • Information Ordering
      • Ordering or arranging things.
    • Fluency of Ideas
      • Coming up with lots of ideas.
    • Gross Body Coordination
      • Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
    • Arm-Hand Steadiness
      • Keeping your arm or hand steady.
    • Finger Dexterity
      • Putting together small parts with your fingers.
    • Depth Perception
      • Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
    • Peripheral Vision
      • Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
    • Sound Localization
      • Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
    • Selective Attention
      • Paying attention to something without being distracted.
    • Reaction Time
      • Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
    • Multilimb Coordination
      • Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
    • Glare Sensitivity
      • Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
    • Time Sharing
      • Doing two or more things at the same time.
    • Auditory Attention
      • Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
    • Written Comprehension
      • Reading and understanding what is written.
    • Explosive Strength
      • Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
    • Manual Dexterity
      • Holding or moving items with your hands.
    • Night Vision
      • Seeing at night or under low light.
    • Speech Recognition
      • Recognizing spoken words.
    • Hearing Sensitivity
      • Telling the difference between sounds.
    • Written Expression
      • Communicating by writing.
    • Deductive Reasoning
      • Using rules to solve problems.
    • Oral Comprehension
      • Listening and understanding what people say.
    • Problem Sensitivity
      • Noticing when problems happen.
    • Inductive Reasoning
      • Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
    • Mathematical Reasoning
      • Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
    • Extent Flexibility
      • Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
    • Visual Color Discrimination
      • Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
    • Speed of Limb Movement
      • Quickly moving your arms and legs.
    • Dynamic Flexibility
      • Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
    • Trunk Strength
      • Using your lower back and stomach.
    • Near Vision
      • Seeing details up close.
    • Speech Clarity
      • Speaking clearly.
    • Memorization
      • Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
    • Flexibility of Closure
      • Seeing hidden patterns.

    Knowledge

    • Personnel and Human Resources
      • Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
    • Telecommunications
      • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
    • Food Production
      • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
    • Biology
      • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
    • Mechanical
      • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
    • Medicine and Dentistry
      • Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
    • Law and Government
      • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
    • Administration and Management
      • Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
    • English Language
      • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
    • Administrative
      • Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
    • Psychology
      • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
    • Sociology and Anthropology
      • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
    • History and Archeology
      • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
    • Therapy and Counseling
      • Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
    • Chemistry
      • Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
    • Physics
      • Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
    • Economics and Accounting
      • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
    • Engineering and Technology
      • Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
    • Sales and Marketing
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
    • Geography
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
    • Philosophy and Theology
      • Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
    • Communications and Media
      • Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
    • Transportation
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
    • Public Safety and Security
      • Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
    • Production and Processing
      • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
    • Education and Training
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
    • Customer and Personal Service
      • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
    • Design
      • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
    • Building and Construction
      • Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
    • Mathematics
      • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
    • Computers and Electronics
      • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
    • Foreign Language
      • Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
    • Fine Arts
      • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

    Education

    Education
    No formal educational credential
    Work Experience
    No work experience
    Training
    Less than 1 month on-the-job training

    Pay

    Washington Annual Salary
    38480/yr
    Washington Hourly Wage
    18.5/hr

    Washington Employment Trends

    Currently Employed
    2,060
    Yearly Projected Openings
    310

    Personality

    Enterprising: People interested in this work like activities that include leading, making decisions, and business. They do well at jobs that need:
    • Self-Confidence
    • Optimism
    • Perseverance
    • Social Orientation
    • Achievement Orientation
    • Initiative

    Tools

    • Automobiles or cars
    • Desktop computers
    • Global positioning system GPS receiver
    • Notebook computers
    • Personal computers
    • Special purpose telephones
    • Tape measures

    Technology

    • Internet browser software
    • Office suite software
    • Route navigation software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Web page creation and editing software