👩‍💼 Behind-The-Scenes of Getting Promoted to Sales VP in 2024

Peanut butter and jelly, Jason and Travis Kelce, marketing and sales – all things that are better together. I may be biased as I am a huge New Heights podcast fan and a Marketer married to a sales guy, but the connection between marketing and sales is indisputable. And today I’m going to take you behind-the-scenes of my husband’s recent promotion to VP of Commercial Sales and show you how he successfully marketed himself for a huge (and well deserved) promotion and share the 3-part success recipe you can steal to get yourself a promotion or pay raise, too!

1. Know what people are saying about you

When Scott, my husband, was invited to put his hand up for a VP promotion at his company, I knew the first thing he needed to do was get a 360-degree view of what people think about him.

It was imperative that he knew exactly what his coworkers, leaders, direct reports, and peers would say about him because the people interviewing him for the promotion would be asking all of those same people for their opinions.

It’s important not to get wrapped up in what others are saying about you from an ego perspective, but you have to be aware so you can prepare and respond.

And get ready. Because as awesome as you are… you’re not pizza. Everyone doesn’t have to love you. But that’s okay, because knowing their criticism will actually help you.

2. Advocate for yourself

It’s in my Latina nature to put myself out there, create opportunities, and make things happen. That may not come as naturally to you, but one of the keys to getting promoted is to be willing to advocate for yourself.

Remember, no one will stand up for you like you will!

Whether you’re invited to apply for a promotion or putting your own hand up and chasing what you want – you have to figure out how to strategically position yourself to stand out and get noticed. 

Which leads me to one of my favorite promotion strategies…

3. Reframe your deficiencies

While completing Scott’s 360-degree overview of how he was perceived, one big thing that kept coming up was that he was too nice. Another criticism was that he was a deep, “basement level” thinker who took his time to make decisions.

In sales, things move quickly. You also have to have a lot of hard conversations. So you can see how being nice and thoughtful can be negative attributes.

For Scott, if he could show examples of hard conversations he’s had that have gone really well because he had a strong relationship with the person in question – he could reframe his kindness to be a strength.

Same goes for his deep thinking. If he could show that the leadership team he would be working with is full of quick-draw, fast-action takers who often make mistakes, he could position his thoughtful decision making as an asset that will balance and improve the team.

With the right reframe and perspective, nearly any criticism can become a defining asset.

4. Simplify your vision

The final, brilliant step Scott took in preparing for his promotion was something that comes from one of my favorite books – Bob Iger’s The Ride of a Lifetime. One of the things Iger’s strategist taught him when going through the CEO interview process at Disney was to simplify his vision.

Bob had a laundry list of things he wanted to do and accomplish, but he narrowed it down to only 3 core pillars.

Scott did the same. Thoughtfully getting super clear on the role, his skills, and how he could impact the organization. 

When Scott presented his 3-part vision to the interviewers, they were impressed. It gave them a chance to clearly understand his unique skills, perspective, and value while also seeing exactly how those things would contribute to the role and organization.

And the best part (other than actually getting the promotion!) was that Scott walked away feeling like “Hey, these guys would be nuts not to hire me!” Not because he was arrogant, but because he put in the work and could SEE why he was a perfect fit for this role.

Get yourself promoted

Whether you’ve been stuck in the same role or pay grade or itching to raise your prices – it’s time to get after it. These strategies will help you get unstuck and moving toward your next promotion with confidence, clarity, and purpose.

And if you’d like to dig deeper into exactly HOW to get promoted this year, I’m hosting a free Micro Class on this exact topic! You can click here to join me to dig into this proven way to market yourself and get what you want.

About Veronica Romney

Veronica is a master marketer, executive leader and OG Rainmaker. She’s been the secret weapon behind some of the biggest online personalities & brands in the world (like BossBabe) and the former Director of Marketing for a $2B evaluated corporation. She’s seen what it takes marketing teams to succeed in generating revenue consistently (and what makes them crash and burn).