13 Tips to Hire a Top Sales Representative

Learn 13 tips to help company executives hire the most effective and competent employees for their business.

6 Steps to Hiring Your Sales Superstar

1. Define the Role

It’s really hard to find what you’re looking for when you don’t have any parameters. Take the time to go beyond the job description and really think about the day-to-day activities this person will need to perform. Consider what personality type would be best suited for this type of role. What skills and experience will this person need in order to be successful?

Once you have a handle on what you’re looking for, you can start to sift through the resumes.

2. Review Job History

Look for a sales focus and longevity at companies. You don’t want someone who switches companies every 6 months. That’s a wasted investment. And on the flipside, don’t overlook employment gaps either.

Furthermore, candidates who’ve had experience selling intangible solutions are typically worth at least interviewing because they know how to sell the invisible. In this profession, we’re selling the invisible: the value of our services.

3. Make the First Call Unscheduled

By calling the candidate out of the blue, you’ll be able to see how easily they’re able to adapt, and they won’t be as nervous because they will not have had time to anticipate the call. Use this conversation to break the ice with small talk, and test general knowledge of your company and the industry. This is a favorite technique of ConnectWise’s Worldwide Senior Vice Presidentof Sales Adam Slutskin.

If everything checks out, request the candidate’s W2, and send over the DISC assessment.

4. Set up a Face-to-Face & Follow-up Interviews

Assuming you walked away from the initial phone interview with a positive impression, proceed to the face-to-face interview. Because they’ll have time to prep for this interview, it’s okay to break out the tough questions-why you, salary requirements, and strengths and weaknesses. Download our interview guide worksheet.

If everything goes well, bring the candidate back in for your management team to vet. Keep an eye out for red flags, make sure this is someone your team wants to work wit
h, ask for honest second opinions, and ensure the candidate is consistent.

5. Tour the Facility

This is your chance to impress them. Highlight all the little perks your facility has to offer, then share a sample commission sheet and paint the picture of how much a successful sales rep can take home.

Show them all the tools you’ve invested in to help him or her quickly ramp up and become successful. This should include all the specialized systems you’ve put in place to help standardize and manage workloads. This is the type of information that builds confidence in your company, and makes candidates want to work for you.

6. Conduct the Final Interview Over Lunch

Now, you’re being interviewed, and you have to impress. If you’re trying to recruit a sales superstar away from a cushy job, you need to be sensitive to the fact that they’ve already built a lifestyle for themselves. You need to give them good reason to want to switch.

They’re not going to want to make a minimal base salary while they ramp up and learn your business. Beyond this, be sure to reiterate any other company perks, industry stats, growth potential, or company culture factors that could support their decision to choose to work for you.

Hiring the right sales reps doesn’t have to be scary. Avoid costly mistakes by ensuring you have the right resources in place to support a sales rep, and know how to effectively recruit superstar sales champions.

Once you’ve hired your team of quota crushers, you’ll want to give them ample time to ramp up, and then make sure you’re compensating them fairly. In part 2, we’ll share sales compensation best practices.

Alex Rogers is the founder and CEO of CharTec, the channel’s leading provider of total business consulting and training in sales, operations, marketing, finance/accounting, and HR.

 

 

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