Door-to-Door Sales Workers, News and Street Vendors, and Related Workers
41-9091.00
Updated 2025

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

Sample of reported job titles: Direct Sales Coach, Door-to-Door Sales Trainer, Independent Beauty Consultant, Independent Distributor, Independent Sales Associate, Independent Sales Representative, Sales Representative, Street Vendor

Occupation-Specific Information

Tasks

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Technology Skills

Hot technology
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In demand
In Demand skills are frequently included in employer job postings for this occupation.

Occupational Requirements

Work Activities

  • Selling or Influencing Others — Convincing others to buy merchandise/goods or to otherwise change their minds or actions.
  • Performing for or Working Directly with the Public — Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
  • Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
  • Communicating with People Outside the Organization — Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
  • Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
  • Coaching and Developing Others — Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.
  • Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
  • Developing and Building Teams — Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
  • Working with Computers — Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
  • Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates — Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance.
  • Training and Teaching Others — Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
  • Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
  • Scheduling Work and Activities — Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
  • Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others — Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.
  • Performing Administrative Activities — Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork.
  • Developing Objectives and Strategies — Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.
  • Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.

Detailed Work Activities

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Work Context

  • Freedom to Make Decisions — 88% responded “A lot of freedom.”
  • Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals — 79% responded “A lot of freedom.”
  • Deal With External Customers or the Public in General — 70% responded “Extremely important.”
  • Telephone Conversations — 55% responded “Every day.”
  • Contact With Others — 52% responded “Constant contact with others.”
  • E-Mail — 70% responded “Every day.”
  • Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams — 50% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
  • Public Speaking — 52% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
  • Physical Proximity — 58% responded “Moderately close (at arm's length).”
  • Level of Competition — 33% responded “Moderately competitive.”
  • Written Letters and Memos — 36% responded “Once a month or more but not every week.”
  • Spend Time Standing — 46% responded “About half the time.”
  • Time Pressure — 50% responded “Once a month or more but not every week.”
  • Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team — 36% responded “Fairly important.”

Experience Requirements

Job Zone

Title
Job Zone One: Little or No Preparation Needed
Education
Some of these occupations may require a high school diploma or GED certificate.
Related Experience
Little or no previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, a person can become a waiter or waitress even if he/she has never worked before.
Job Training
Employees in these occupations need anywhere from a few days to a few months of training. Usually, an experienced worker could show you how to do the job.
Job Zone Examples
These occupations involve following instructions and helping others. Examples include agricultural equipment operators, dishwashers, floor sanders and finishers, landscaping and groundskeeping workers, logging equipment operators, baristas, and maids and housekeeping cleaners.
SVP Range
(Below 4.0)

Training & Credentials

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Certifications
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Apprenticeship Opportunities

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Worker Requirements

Skills

  • Persuasion — Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
  • Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Social Perceptiveness — Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
  • Service Orientation — Actively looking for ways to help people.
  • Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Coordination — Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
  • Negotiation — Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
  • Judgment and Decision Making — Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
  • Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.

Knowledge

  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.

Education

How much education does a new hire need to perform a job in this occupation? Respondents said:

  • 57%
     
    Less than high school diploma required
  • 43%
     
    High school diploma or equivalent required

Worker Characteristics

Abilities

  • Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
  • Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
  • Written Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
  • Information Ordering — The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
  • Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.

Interests

Interest code: ECR
Want to discover your interests? Take the O*NET Interest Profiler.
  • Enterprising — Work involves managing, negotiating, marketing, or selling, typically in a business setting, or leading or advising people in political and legal situations. Enterprising occupations are often associated with business initiatives, sales, marketing/advertising, finance, management/administration, professional advising, public speaking, politics, or law.
  • Conventional — Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources.
  • Realistic — Work involves designing, building, or repairing of equipment, materials, or structures, engaging in physical activity, or working outdoors. Realistic occupations are often associated with engineering, mechanics and electronics, construction, woodworking, transportation, machine operation, agriculture, animal services, physical or manual labor, athletics, or protective services.

Work Styles

  • Self-Confidence — A tendency to believe in one's work-related capabilities and ability to control one's work-related outcomes.
  • Optimism — A tendency to exhibit a positive attitude and positive emotions at work, even under difficult circumstances.
  • Perseverance — A tendency to exhibit determination and resolve to perform or complete tasks in the face of difficult circumstances or obstacles at work.
  • Social Orientation — A tendency to seek out, enjoy, and be energized by social interaction at work.
  • Achievement Orientation — A tendency to establish and maintain personally challenging work-related goals, set high work-related standards, and exert high effort toward meeting those goals and standards.

Workforce Characteristics

Wages & Employment Trends

Median wages (2024)
$16.60 hourly, $34,530 annual
State wages
Local wages
Employment (2024)
25,300 employees
Projected growth (2024-2034)
Decline (-1% or lower)
Projected job openings (2024-2034)
2,700
State trends

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024 wage data and 2024-2034 employment projections . “Projected growth” represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2024-2034). “Projected job openings” represent openings due to growth and replacement.

Job Openings on the Web

State job openings
Local job openings

More Information

Professional Associations

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Accreditation, Certification, & Unions