Creating New Value with Sales Promotion Services Using PayPay Points

Welcome back to PayPay Professionals, featuring incredible experts that drive the PayPay group. This time, we interviewed Sasaki-san from the Point Sales Department 1, who sells sales promotion services leveraging PayPay Points, about some of the recent projects she was involved in, how rewarding her job is, and what she values in her work.

Pursuing Both Skill Development and Family Life: Two Wishes Fulfilled at PayPay

Why and how did you decide to join PayPay?

After graduating from university, I joined a food manufacturer, where I pitched commercial products to hotels and restaurants.

After becoming a mother, I started to rethink my approach to work. I wanted to show my child how confident I am in my work and to reassess my work style. In my previous job, I dealt with tangible products such as food, but I wanted to gain experience with intangible products to enhance my skills. That’s when I found an opening for a manufacturer sales (point sales) position at PayPay. Tangible products sell well if the product itself is good, but with intangible products, the sales performance largely depends on the salesperson’s skills, which I felt would be very rewarding. I had been a regular user of PayPay and was aware of their promotional campaigns for manufacturers’ products at drugstores and other places. This made me believe that I could leverage my experience in the manufacturing sector to further develop my skills, so I decided to change jobs.

What is the mission of your department and what are your responsibilities?

I belong to Point Sales Department 1 and pitch sales promotion services that involve the use of PayPay Points. Our clients span across a variety of industries and sectors, including manufacturers, infrastructure companies, and point business operators. Among them, I am responsible for companies that distribute daily necessities, cosmetics, and other products to drugstores etc.

Specifically, we take our proposals to product promotion teams in various companies, including marketing and sales planning departments. Proposals include services that enable PayPay Points to be used as an incentive to promote products, like a “Win PayPay Points in a lottery by buying eligible products” campaign, or coupons for specific products to be offered within the PayPay app. Many clients expect PayPay to offer something interesting, which I feel is evidence of how big PayPay’s influence is.

What does your typical day look like at PayPay?

I don’t have a set routine, but I usually schedule one business meeting every day. I spend the rest of my time preparing materials for negotiations and attending regular internal meetings.

Since I can adjust my own schedule for business meetings and visits to clients, I can easily keep a work-home balance and enjoy a fulfilling life!

Pressure of Taking on A Major Client and Secret to Successful Negotiations

What are some particularly memorable initiatives?

My involvement in initiatives related to a major manufacturer of daily necessities was memorable, and I learned a lot.
Being a large company, the manufacturer has separate marketing departments for each brand. PayPay had already implemented a promotional campaign for one of the brands, involving a PayPay Gift Card offered as a present to applicants who purchased specific products, and when I took over the account from my predecessor, the next step was to start negotiations with other brands.

Let me add, though, that this was only three months since I’d joined the company. I still wasn’t sure of the ways of marketing and sales promotion, and what pain points needed to be solved. Feeling a lot of pressure, I pushed forward with the negotiations mainly trying to get to know the client first.

I studied any information I could gather before the business meetings, including information on the brand’s market share and competitors. When visiting the company, I made appointments with several departments to share information about ongoing negotiations with other departments. Although the company has a wide range of brands from baby goods to nursing care products and the target age group varies depending on the brand, I felt it relatively easy to convey the strengths of our services because PayPay is used across all age groups.

As a result of continued and frequent negotiations with the various departments, the client decided to adopt several of our services, including product-specific coupons, PayPay Gift Cards, and payment-linked PayPay Gifts, which gave me confidence as a sales representative.

What aspects of this job do you find rewarding?

At my previous job, I was selling only to food-related companies. But now I have the opportunity to negotiate deals with companies in a variety of industries, which has its challenges but is enjoyable and rewarding because I can increase my knowledge. Going forward, I want to work with my team members to develop even larger projects.

Another highlight is being able to collaborate with clients to devise sales promotions initiatives using PayPay Points. Especially when the initiative is successful, I feel a sense of accomplishment and personal growth.
PayPay Points can be used in so many different scenes so there’s an infinite number of possibilities when it comes to how they can be leveraged. I take joy in creating something new and reflecting that in my proposal, thanks to the fact that there is no fixed framework that I’m confined to. For example, it’s possible to plan an initiative that involves PayPay Points being given as a prize for an internal contest, which is not necessarily just about attracting new customers and promoting sales. I plan to continue collaborating with clients to further develop such new measures.

What is the team’s vibe like?

Quite a few of my team members are around my age, and we work in a generally friendly atmosphere while leveraging each other’s strengths. In addition to conversations over the phone or by Zoom, we have very active Slack chats that sometimes I can barely keep up with. I think we’re a tight-knit team, thanks also to the once-a-month meet-up in the office, and I really enjoy working with them!

Spreading the Word About the Benefits of PayPay Points

Did your impression of PayPay change after you joined the company?

I knew PayPay to be a fast-paced company even before joining, but it really is! Since the clients’ and employees’ opinions are reflected in our services, I myself want to continue pursuing my ideas as an employee and a PayPay user.

To be honest, sometimes I can tangibly feel the difference in corporate cultures, coming from a manufacturer to a fintech company. But at PayPay, anyone can express their opinion and can try new things without being bound by rules and traditions.

What do you value in your role at PayPay?

In terms of PayPay 5 senses, “Be sincere to be professional – Be sincere and work as a professional without making any compromise. Create new opportunities and values. Go through till the end.”
The Point Department is a new team formed in 2022, and we are currently in the process of creating new value as a department and as individual team members. I want to spread the use of PayPay Points by many more businesses, and at the same time ensure that it involves a good experience for the users that receive the points. I plan to stay true to doing this without compromise.

Please tell us your goals and visions for the future.

I would like to communicate the advantages and benefits of PayPay Points to more manufacturers. Like with the client I mentioned in the daily necessities industry, I intend to expand sales promotion initiatives among multiple departments within the same company as well.

Another goal is to spread the advantages of PayPay Points through competition; if a someone issues a PayPay Coupon, this usually sparks the interest of their competitors in the same industry.

A message for our readers please.

The Point Sales Department is suited for people who can pro-actively discover clients’ needs and pain points and then formulate and carry out solutions.

At PayPay, people from various backgrounds work together, sharing their wisdom and insights, regardless of age or gender. Any background or experience can be applied, and I encourage you to take on the challenge. We are looking forward to working with you!

*Job openings and employee affiliations are current as of the time of the interview.