What's the modern day equivalent of a "traveler"?

I have a stack of newsletters here that were sent out to dealers from a branch house. They often refer to "travelers". I assume these guys are reps from the branch house who went out to solve problems for the dealers and give them a kick in the butt when they weren't selling enough. . Something like territory managers.
Has anyone heard this term in this regard before?
 
My understanding they were more pure salesmen whose responsibility included taking orders from dealers. I think a branch manager was more in the position to pressure dealers to order but the traveler got caught in the middle between the two parties. Branches had their own separate department for machine warranty and service issues. I think travelers went by the wayside by the 1970's at the latest. Most companies did not see a need to be as quite hands on with sales but still had people at the branches to pressure dealers for orders.
 
In my part of the country, "travelers" are groups of modern day gypsy's who scam elderly people or rural people by offering "low ball" offers to paint buildings, apply asphalt, put up siding etc. The products and services are low quality and the workmanship is inferior. When I was in the military and bought the home place my mother lived on the farm by herself as my dad had just passed away. A group of "travelers" arrived on the farm and pressured her into having the garage, chicken house, and milk barn painted even though we only grain farmed. When I asked her why she approved the painting she said they kept pressuring her to do it today as they were only going to be in the area for a few days and this was a great price. She always called me before she committed me to any contracts but this time she was pressured and threatened to accept their terms. They also demanded immediate payment after she signed the contract and also added "extra services" charges which she paid them. The whole process of showing up, painting, and leaving was like 90 minutes. The did not prep anything, prime anything, and even painted over the windows with paint that was so thin and inferior it basically washed off in the rain. There have been documentaries on TV about the travelers. They love to target old rural people and intimidate them to approve their scam products and then are out of the area immediately. I did not find out about the scam until it was too late to do anything about it so I just reimbursed my mother for the charges. I do know she learned her lesson and felt very embarrassed. In her defense, my dad had always taken care of the business side of farming. Unfortunately, he had just passed. The travelers likely went through the obits to target my mother. Dad would have sent them packing immediately.
 

Yup, I saw a story about them on 20-20 or 60 minutes or somewhere. They and their ilk are something you have to be careful of when parents get old.
 
According to my father (JD dealer for 50 years), that was the term for the territory managers in the 1950s.
 
(quoted from post at 15:16:41 07/24/15) According to my father (JD dealer for 50 years), that was the term for the territory managers in the 1950s.

There were territory managers that were employed b JD that checked dealers whole goods inventory & collected amount owed JD every month. I remember this happening from mid 60's to late 80's
 
I might be wrong again, but this is what I understand from some of my tractor books.
In the mid 1800's a "traveler" was a salesman who loaded up a team & wagon with as many plows & such as he could at the branch house & traveled the territory selling to farmers. When he had everything sold, he loaded the team & wagon on the railroad & went back for another load. If he heard of someone wealthy enough to afford a reaper, binder, or in later years, a tractor, he would have one sent out on the railroad & set up a public demonstration, trying to get other farmers interested.
Willie
 
About five year ago there was a weekly TV show called "The Riches" about a family of Irish travelers.
 

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