When looking for technical salespeople, there is a tendency to always hire from within the industry. While there’s nothing wrong with taking this approach, don’t cast aside potentially good candidates simply because they don’t have industry experience. Look for people who have experience in sub-trades or allied fields as well. Technically astute people, or those…
Evaluating Your Current Sales Team
I’m feathering my own nest here, but you may want to consider using our online sales assessment to get a better handle on your sales team. The results may explain why some people are doing so well while others are budding also-rans. The Sales Temperament Assessment (STA) is easy to complete. While it’s primarily used…
The WYSIWYG Candidate
What you see during a hiring interview, particularly the first and second interviews, is not necessarily what you’ll get once the person shows up on your doorstep. It’s an easy trap to fall into. Candidates, particularly good sales candidates, have the ability to adjust their demeanour to suit the situation just as they might during…
An Email Reference Check is Better Than No Reference Check
I’m a big fan of doing reference checking but I don’t much care for the tendency to do them by email. Having said that, I’d rather you check references that way than not check references at all. An email reference check is where you send the reference an email that contains the questions that you…
Can Your Candidate Communicate Effectively in Writing?
If your salespeople do a lot of communicating with prospects and customers by email, make sure the person you want to hire can string a bunch of words together into a cohesive, understandable sentence. You can’t count on the candidate’s resume or thank you letter as being any indication of his writing skills. Someone else…
The No-reference Reference
Lots of people are gun shy about giving references but will usually do so if they feel the person deserves it, despite company policies discouraging it. One way to use this to your benefit is to call the former employer after hours and leave a message that says, “I’m with XYZ Company and we’re considering…
C-Level Reference Checks – When You Should Get Your CEO Involved
Getting valid reference checks has been a problem for a long time and even more so when sales candidates are prepared to sue someone at the drop of a poor reference. This can cause employers to fall into the trap of not doing reference checks. The challenge is how to get people to give you…
Why HR Shouldn’t Interview Salespeople
Now before some HR professionals dump garbage on my doorstep, metaphorically speaking, let me explain. What I’m really saying is that HR shouldn’t be the only people who conduct sales interviews, but that wouldn’t have made a provocative headline. HR professionals are excellent at conducting preliminary interviews but, even then, they might inadvertently throw out…
Good Sales Candidates Are Everywhere
You are surrounded by lots of salespeople every day, some good, many poor. Most of you walk around with your industry blinders on and that causes you to miss out on some potentially good salespeople. Good salespeople, those who are wired for sales, can often be trained in the intricacies of your business with a…
But… Can He Sell?
You’ve just finished conducting a job interview with a potential sales candidate and you have a nice warm feeling about the person. The individual was charming, witty, laughed at your jokes, had a reasonable resume, and seemed to have great listening skills. But… Can he sell? And more importantly, can he sell what you want…
