Destined for career growth at Cox
In our For the Love of Sales series, we’re learning about the sales team members who drive Cox forward and achieve success for our customers. Read below to explore what our salespeople love about their life at Cox.
“It felt like destiny. It’s like all the experiences I had were leading me here.”
That’s what Whitney Lutley – a Media Consultant at Cox Media Inc. – had to say about her journey to a career at Cox.
Whitney is a driven professional who meets sales challenges with poise and resourcefulness. A resident of Mobile, AL, Whitney serves as a media consultant for the Florida, Georgia, and Alabama regions.
“I create marketing plans for owners of small to medium sized businesses to help them better reach their customers through cable advertising and digital marketing,” Whitney said. “My favorite part about my job is presenting a solution tailored to fit their business needs. I’m most excited during the educational process when I’m explaining different digital marketing strategies to them. It’s so rewarding when the client understands our products and how effective they can be to their business.”
Prior to arriving at Cox, Whitney attended the University of South Alabama – going to classes during the day, and working in retail sales at night. After graduation, a frustrating process of applying for jobs ensued. Whitney eventually decided to take a break from job-hunting…and then the right door opened. Whitney was recruited via LinkedIn to join Cox Media’s sales team.
“When I got here and went through the sales associate training program, it was so eye-opening,” she said. “A whole new world opened up. A passion was ignited. I had no idea of the depths of the media industry, and every aspect of digital marketing and digital advertising was so interesting.”
In that training program, Whitney met her leader, Steve Allen. Steve is Cox Media’s Digital Sales Manager for the FL/GA/AL region, as well as the Sales Manager for Cox Media’s sales associates. Whitney said Steve was the perfect leader for her.
“He really coached me and led me to get out of my comfort zone. I think this position has given me the confidence to start conversations and be more open. I’ve always been a good public speaker, but this position has helped me learn how to nurture relationships.”
She added: “Cox has surrounded me with a lot of people who are smart and very good at what they do, and they make you want to aspire to be the same way. Seeing successful people motivates me.”
But Whitney didn’t rely solely on mentors and training within Cox in order to accelerate her career growth. She also leveraged Cox’s tuition reimbursement program to earn her master’s degree in Digital Marketing from Full Sail University and celebrated her virtual graduation earlier this year.
“Everything I learned in that program, I can apply to my day-to-day job,” Whitney said. “I got real-world courses for strategy and media professionals in today’s world. I want to pour this knowledge back into the company and continue to use this degree even more.”
What else has Whitney learned as a young sales professional at Cox?
“If I knew someone who was interested in a sales career here, I would tell them that they need to be excited about meeting new people,” Whitney says. “Listen twice as much as you speak, and be aware of different personality types. Be bold and brave. Feed your weaknesses just as much as your strengths. Always be coachable. And be open-minded to learn, grow, and give yourself a chance. That’s what my mom told me when I was going through challenges. She always said: ‘Don’t give up on yourself; just give your very best.’ ”
Whitney has her eye on the future and is hungry for new challenges and growth at Cox.
“I couldn’t ask for a better company to work for,” she said. “And I don’t think I could ever find a company as inclusive and compassionate. I know there’s plenty of room to move up and around – there’s so much opportunity here. It’s just about discovering what area would be a good fit for you.”
Interested in learning more about the salespeople who drive Cox forward? Check out the rest of our For the Love of Sales series and follow along on social media using #ForTheLoveOfSales.
Sales Savvy Runs in the Family
In our For the Love of Sales series, we’re learning about the sales team members who drive Cox forward and achieve success for our customers. Read below to explore what our salespeople love about their life at Cox.
Monique Cobbins describes herself as a “second-generation car girl.”
Because her father worked in automotive sales (and is still a dealer today), Monique grew up in-the-know about the behind-the-scenes of a car dealership – the lingo, the systems, and what makes them successful. But she didn’t initially envision herself following a similar path.
“I was turned off by the automotive industry because that’s all I saw my whole life,” Monique laughed. “But then I got into it and fell in love with it.”
Monique worked in a dealership for seven years before being recruited to Cox. Now, she draws on her rich knowledge of the automotive world and merges it with her joyful personality and her love for the products that Cox Automotive provides. She is an Inside Regional Sales Manager at Cox Automotive, working remotely in Mission, KS and specifically focused on selling VinSolutions’ customer relationship management (CRM) platform to car dealers in the New England area.
“If I was describing what I do to someone outside of this industry, I would say that I sell the software that is really the heart of every car dealership,” Monique said.
Monique loves the feeling of knowing a product inside and out and being able to educate dealers on the topic.
“Having the ability to demonstrate and explain the benefits to a dealer principal or a GM…I mean, there’s such a sense of achievement to be able to say: ‘I know my product, and I have the best product in the market.”
Monique recounts many scenarios that sharpened and inspired her as a sales team member at Cox – from learning the Challenger method of sales to clinching a deal with one of the biggest automotive groups in the Massachusetts area.
She commented that Cox sales employees like herself are recognized and rewarded for their diligence and the pride they put into their work.
“Working for a goal-oriented, family-owned company that understands the industry and market makes you feel so safe and protected,” she said. “You’re put in positions to succeed. I love the open-door policy at Cox: letting leaders know your career goals, and then them investing in you and pointing you in the right direction.”
When she’s not closing VinSolutions deals, you’ll often find Monique with her three sons, all of whom play competitive basketball. Being a basketball mom keeps her schedule full, but she also loves to travel with girlfriends across the country.
Working at Cox Automotive makes Monique feel like she’s part of something bigger.
“Working for a company where you actually feel like you’re part of the “why” and the bottom line just makes you have such a sense of pride in what you do,” she said. “If you’re serious about becoming a sales consultant, this is the place for you. If you are a dedicated person, and dedicated to growing yourself, this is the company where you need to be.”
Interested in learning more about the salespeople who drive Cox forward? Check out the rest of our For the Love of Sales series and follow along on social media using #ForTheLoveOfSales.
For Elisa, Collaboration is Everything
In our For the Love of Sales series, we’re learning about the sales team members who drive Cox forward and achieve success for our customers. Read below to explore what our salespeople love about their life at Cox.
The moment you meet Elisa Pulido, you can sense that she is a born collaborator.
Elisa exudes a vibrant energy that not only suits her well for a career in sales, but also for working closely with teammates in order to stand out in the whirlwind of the automotive industry.
“That’s one of the things I can tell Cox really cares about: teamwork matters,” Elisa said. “The collaboration is real.”
Elisa is a Senior Dealer Success Consultant at Cox Automotive, where she serves as a trusted partner and resource for automotive dealers. She specifically supports Cox’s Autotrader brand, helping dealers find opportunities to engage car shoppers online.
“[We’re] able to walk into a dealership and sit with a GM, a dealer principal, a digital marketing manager – whatever the case may be – and really help them,” Elisa explained. “It’s about providing a consultant-based opinion on a broad digital strategy; and helping them fine-tune their operations from inventory acquisition to pricing to merchandising. We help them not only become successful with Autotrader, but beyond.”
Elisa’s go-getter attitude has propelled her through a thriving career in sales, going from radio to pharmaceuticals to television to her current job at Cox Automotive.
“I was taught that if you do the right thing even when no one’s looking, those types of qualities and actions will get you further and help you rise to the top,” Elisa said. “Always be humble and try to be the hardest worker in the room. Do the right thing every day, and it compounds.”
Elisa embodies this attitude outside of work, too. A fitness guru, she is passionate about building healthy habits with her husband and their five-year-old son, Liam. She is also a big fan of the Peloton community and loves the sisterhood she has found by connecting with other cyclists.
“When we do live rides together, it’s not about who’s the best or the fastest,” Elisa said. “It’s about carving out time for yourself. I love being part of a team and uplifting others. Being a part of a community seems to be a common theme for me,” she added with a laugh.
Elisa knows that collaboration not only results in strong rapport with coworkers, but is also good for business.
“Handing off clients to other sales team members in different business units (BUs) was nerve-wracking in the beginning,” she said. “Delegating has always been hard for me. And when we work cross-collaboratively across BUs, you’re really talking about handing off a relationship. But last year, if you look at referral-based [sales], I was one of the top in different products because I realized that I could be confident in other teammates and build deeper relationships. Now, I always have someone in those BUs I can lean on. It’s never a fight of ‘let me be the hero.’ It’s true collaboration.”
At Cox, Elisa has discovered that teamwork habits are by no means limited to coworkers in the same location.
“One of the things I was concerned about coming into this position is that everyone is in a different location,” said Elisa, who is based in south Texas. “I was used to an office environment where everyone leaned on each other. I’ve been utterly shocked with the amount of collaboration that you can still have when you’re 300 miles away from someone!”
Elisa added that especially now, in a virtual world, she feels more connected to her colleagues than ever.
“There’s a true form of community across the nation,” she said. “I know it’s hard to believe, but it’s true. Being able to know that everybody has your back and that you’re all pushing for the same thing? Every step of my journey with Cox has been built on that.”
Interested in learning more about the salespeople who drive Cox forward? Check out the rest of our For the Love of Sales series and follow along on social media using #ForTheLoveOfSales.
Is a low-stress sales career possible?
In our For the Love of Sales series, we’re learning about the sales team members who drive Cox forward and achieve success for our customers. Read below to explore what our salespeople love about their life at Cox.
Sergio Garcia has lived in the United States for 22 years. During that time, he’s worked for eight different companies – which makes him well-versed in what makes for a supportive workplace.
“Cox is the best of the best in all aspects,” Sergio said. Currently a Direct Sales Representative for Cox Communications’ Central Region, he lives in Springdale, AR.
Prior to joining Cox, Sergio was working in a high-stress setting as a car sales representative.
“I decided to look for a new career in the same field,” he said. “I resigned from my job and decided to spend some time off and go on vacation with my family. While I was on vacation, I received a phone call from a friend telling me that Cox was hiring a bilingual direct sales representative.”
Fast-forward to 2020: August marked Sergio’s fifth year of being part of the Cox family, and he still finds his day-to-day to be both exciting and enjoyable.
“Of all the companies that I have worked for, Cox has given more autonomy than the rest,” Sergio explained. “With Cox giving me more autonomy, it has allowed me to be less stressed and I have learned to be more responsible with my work because of the amount of freedom I am given.”
In fact, this kind of flexibility is Sergio’s favorite part about working in sales at Cox.
“I love the flexibility of my schedule, and the fact that I am not locked in an office for eight hours waiting for customers to call me or come to ask for services, but rather that I go looking for them,” he said. “I feel very blessed to have this because I know how rare it is in the sales field. For example, in my previous job my schedule was from 8 am to 8 pm, resulting in a lot of stress. At Cox, I can set my own schedule and this has allowed me to be more creative in finding new ways to accomplish my work goals.”
Sergio said that this more relaxed, entrepreneurial environment has given him more time to enjoy his hobbies – including soccer, boating, reading, and having Bible studies with friends – as well as family time.
“One huge impact from my flexible job is that whenever my wife and I started our process of IVF to have another child, I was able to travel to Tulsa early in the morning to my wife’s appointments,” he said. “Another thing is that whenever my oldest daughter had school events and orchestra concerts, I was able to attend, unlike in my previous job. I have also taken a lot more vacations.”
Sergio has ambitions of moving into a supervisor role at a local or regional level and finds the pleasant work environment of Cox to be a catalyst for professional growth.
“I think it’s important for Cox to offer an environment of independence and trust in employees because it allows one to grow more as an individual and learn and excel in managing their work,” he said.
Interested in learning more about the salespeople who drive Cox forward? Check out the rest of our For the Love of Sales series and follow along on social media using #ForTheLoveOfSales.
Cox Social Networks
