Definition

Noun: A salesperson whose job involves traveling to visit customers, typically to present and sell products or services, often within a specific territory or region. This role is traditionally associated with visiting clients at their business premises.

Usage

This term is used to describe a specific type of sales occupation. It is a formal and somewhat traditional term. * A company may employ a commercial traveller to cover the northern region. * The life of a commercial traveller often involves long hours on the road.

Examples

• He worked for twenty years as a commercial traveller for a pharmaceutical company.
• The commercial traveller visited every store in the district to showcase the new product line.
• Before the digital age, the commercial traveller was the primary link between manufacturers and local retailers.

Advanced Usage

• The term can sometimes imply a historical or traditional sales role, contrasting with modern "account managers" or "field sales representatives" who may use more technology.
• It can be used in a literary or descriptive context to evoke a certain era or lifestyle.

Variants and Related Words

• Commercial traveler: The primary variant, especially in American English.
• Traveling salesman/Travelling salesman: A very common synonym.
• Road warrior: (Informal, modern) A person who travels extensively for business.
• Field representative: A more modern and general term for an employee who works outside the main office visiting clients or sites.

Synonyms

• Traveling salesman
• Sales representative (often shortened to "sales rep")
• Field agent
• Bagman (archaic/informal, referring to someone carrying a sample case)

Related Phrases

• On the road: A phrase describing the state of traveling for work.
  • The commercial traveller spent three weeks on the road.
• Sales call: The act of visiting a customer to sell something.
  • His schedule included ten sales calls per day.

Noun

1. a salesman who travels to call on customers