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Does your small business rely on sales professionals to generate new business, sell to existing customers, and drive revenues? If so, we do not need to remind you that the best salespeople can make the difference between your business being a success or a failure. A sales superstar goes above and beyond the soliciting function. They nurture business leads and use excellent interpersonal communications skills to turn prospects into long-term customers and ambassadors of your brand.
In addition, they maintain contact with existing customers throughout the year and try to upsell them on additional products or services that your business offers. There is an abundance of talented sales professionals out there. However, finding and hiring a sales professional who can help take your small business to the next level is difficult. Balboa Capital hopes this blog post can help. It features some helpful tips on how to hire a sales superstar for your business.
Write a strong job description.
Nobody understands your business or what it needs to succeed better than you do. After all, it is your small business, and you know when it is time to scale up and expand your sales team. If you are looking to hire one or more salespeople, your job postings need to stand out and not appear generic. Write a full and detailed job description that includes a complete overview of the position, the desired amount of experience, and a complete list of sales-related tasks, responsibilities, and expectations.
Then, come up with information that gives job seekers an inside look at your business’s culture. Briefly tell the story behind your business and its position in the market. In addition, explain some of the reasons why your business is a great place to work. For example, working from home, fun-filled events, and extra vacation time can be real game-changers for salespeople. They view perks like these as the perfect complement to competitive salaries and sales commissions.
Avoid the standard job interview.
Nothing is more frustrating to a job prospect than an interview that is prepared poorly, involves generic and predictable questions, and wastes valuable time. So, avoid conducting formal job interviews with the same format and questions.
When your best candidates arrive for their interviews, please do not keep them waiting, and start by giving them a short tour of your office. Keep it conversational during the interview process and avoid asking the standard list of rehearsed questions that just about everyone uses. If you are conducting the job interview online via video chat, ask your IT specialist to confirm everything works correctly and send your candidate all the necessary login information in advance.
Ask sales superstars about deals they could not close.
By nature, sales professionals are highly competitive and driven to succeed individually, so they will probably mention their many successes during the interview. However, what about their failures? To find out how a candidate handles failure, ask them to tell you about a deal they could not close and describe what they think happened.
A candidate who makes excuses or blames others does not accept responsibility and might not be a good fit for your business. On the other hand, a candidate who responds, “Someone else outperformed me” or “I should have handled the deal differently,” is one who is accountable and able to turn a negative into a positive.
Sales superstars understand customer service.
Salespeople who use overly aggressive sales tactics can annoy customers and be a recipe for disaster. Today’s shoppers are more likely to take their business elsewhere if they encounter a pushy salesperson or one with a big ego and poor communication skills.
Your salespeople are the voice, and face, of your brand. Because of this, you want to hire enthusiastic sales superstars who can balance good customer service with fiscal responsibility. Look for salespeople who listen to customers and offer solutions rather than jump into selling. This approach helps generate sales and build lasting business relationships.
Conclusion.
The buyer journey has changed dramatically. People look online to research products and services, check prices, and read customer reviews before visiting a store or showroom. That said, sales superstars are still needed to close deals. We hope you found this information to be helpful.
The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.