How to Hire Sales Superstars!
Hiring a sales person is one of the most challenging and critical tasks you’ll take on as a manager or business owner. Making a single hiring mistake will cost you time and money. Make several hiring mistakes and you won’t have a job or a business left to worry about. However, if you get it right, your company’s results will soar – all from a single shining star. Hire an entire department of top producers, and the growth trajectory of your business will be phenomenal.
So what should you look for when hiring a salesperson? What makes for an effective salesperson?
Two words: passion and attitude.
Virtually every successful salesperson exhibits a positive attitude and a strong sense of passion. Your challenge is to learn to identify those qualities during the interview process. In my experience at Network Solutions, I know that if I can find a candidate with the right attitude and passion, then we can teach them how to sell. We can help make them successful.
All About Attitude
A person with a positive attitude is not just someone with a “glass half full” view of life. It’s a “go getter,” someone with drive who can make things happen. It’s someone who can take the initiative and be resourceful. And someone with a great attitude isn’t afraid to show it. Just ask them to give you an example of when they took the initiative to improve or change something and listen to what they say.
An interview is the one place where a person can feel free to brag about their accomplishments. But if someone has a hard time talking about their strengths, about what excites them, about their pursuits, then it’s a stretch to think they are going to be able to do a good job selling your products and services. The interview is the ultimate sales test.
Another aspect related to attitude has to do with a competitive spirit and drive. Many of my most successful salespeople have been athletes. They want to win. They keep score. They don’t take rejection personally. They understand goal setting and hard work. They have passion.
Pinpointing Passion
When someone is passionate about something, anything, that excitement spills over into every aspect of their life. It bubbles up in conversations. It brightens their smile. And if someone exhibits a sense of passion, about hobbies, or values, or family, that’s a good sign. From passion flows motivation.
For example, I’ve interviewed individuals who have demonstrated a deep passion and motivation to succeed for their kids and I’ve given them a chance based on that passion. And, it has paid off many times. Try to find out what really excites a candidate. If they do a good job of demonstrating passion during the interview, I’ll often take the risk even if they don’t necessarily have a strong selling background. You can teach someone to sell. You can’t teach someone to have a good attitude and to be passionate.
Typos & Neckties
Attitude and passion are two key strengths candidates need, but there are other traits to consider. Chief among them must be an ability to present themselves well. If you find typos in a resume, send it to the trash can; because if they have a typo on a resume, they will have errors in a proposal. Be sure that a candidate arrives at the interview looking polished and professional. They don’t need to be sporting the most expensive Italian suit or briefcase. However, you should be able to expect someone to be clean, well-groomed, and dressed appropriately. After all, if you hire them they will be representing you and your company.
Dig a Little Deeper
In addition to taking visual stock of a candidate, I also try to learn a bit more about them. Of course, you can’t ask any off-limit HR questions, but you can try to learn about where they grew up, how they grew up, and pivotal experiences in their past. Did they put themselves through college? Can they point to a time when they showed assertiveness and prevailed? How would their best friend describe them? All of these are legitimate interview questions that you can ask to help you get to know the person a bit better.
Experience Isn’t the End All, Be All
As you can see, choosing a stellar candidate is not just about finding the applicant with the most sales experience. In many cases you can scrutinize a resume and see that all those sales jobs add up to…. well, not much really. For example, if you see someone with a wealth of experience that is lateral in nature, you have to ask yourself, “Why haven’t they progressed?” If they have been unable to take their game to the next level, consistently, and to rise up in the ranks, there has to be a reason. And you need to find it.
Any candidate, veteran or novice, should be doing all they can to progress and develop on their own. Ask what they are doing to improve their current job performance. Do they read journals? Attend workshops? Peruse blogs and web sites? Check out their competition? Any strong candidate understands that importance of cultivating new skills and knowledge.
Prepare for the Interview
Just as the candidate should do their homework, you should also take ample time to prepare for the interview. Don’t just wing it. Too much is at stake. You want to use the time you have with the candidate wisely. So beforehand, take time to research the companies they listed on their resume. Prepare your questions in advance. I have a standard list of 10 or 12 questions I routinely ask, but I also ask another set of second and third level questions based on the candidate’s answers. If someone boasts about being a top performer, I ask questions to delve into the details.
In addition, if you haven’t done so already, you should create a standard approach to interviews. Typically, our candidates must pass a phone screen with HR and then they interview with three additional people (usually two sales managers and a Regional Director or VP). Be sure you and your team take the necessary time to conduct the interview. It will save you time in the end. And collective feedback can help when it comes time to make hiring decisions.
Do Your Job
During the recruiting and hiring process, a candidate is trying to make a good impression. But if you really want to attract top performers to your company, you need to do the same. You need to build your reputation in the marketplace as a great place to work, with competitive compensation plans and ample opportunities. Many top candidates will be referrals from sales reps you already have. If your sales reps get the support and the tools they need to succeed, then they’ll bring other good sales reps they know to your company. As you scrutinize all that a candidate may offer you in terms of strengths and benefits, be sure you can reciprocate with an equally strong offering.
Keep Your Eyes Open
Most talented sales people are already successful somewhere else. That’s why you need to keep your eyes open to recruiting opportunities at all times. I’ve recruited several people who I’ve done business with. I once hired a college student working part-time at Best Buy. He did such a great job selling me a home theater system that I gave him an opportunity as an entry level inside sales person. He became one of my top performers and eventually went into outside sales and then sales management. The traits you are looking for exist in every type of sales situation. So, if you are impressed by the person who comes out to sell you a lawn service, start the recruiting process right then and there. Because when you see someone with that spark, you need to get them on your team.
After the Hire, Don’t Tire
When you go through the process of recruiting talent, what you’ll find is that great sales people are very rare. Sales reps often jump ship because either they’re not getting the recognition they think they deserve or they don’t like their boss. It’s almost never about the money. So, once you get a star on your team, take good care of them. Treat them well. Get them involved. Pay attention to them. Make sure they’re not being taken for granted. Give them the resources they need to be successful. If you can succeed at that, one sales rep at a time, then you will end up building the type of sales team that will have the attitude, passion, and power to catapult your business to new heights.
About the author:
Travis Fore
Senior Vice President of Sales and Service
Travis Fore joined Network Solutions in February 2008. Fore, Senior Vice President of Sales, Service, and Product Delivery for Network Solutions, is responsible for building and leading our Telesales and Direct Sales teams, which play a key role in acquiring new customers and selling high-end online marketing and design services to businesses. He also manages our award winning Customer Service and Product Delivery organizations.
Prior to joining Network Solutions, Travis was Vice President of Sales and Service at Citysearch, a leading online lifestyle guide providing users with information on local business. He was responsible for the recruiting, hiring, and training of sales and service professionals.
Prior to his role at Citysearch, Travis served as Director of Local Sales at Yellowpages.com and worked on the successful integration that combined SmartPages.com, RealPages.com and Yellowpages.com into a single platform and product set.
Travis is an avid golfer and overall sports enthusiast. Travis holds a B.S. in Communications from Western Carolina University and an M.B.A. from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.