I’ve been swamped phone screening sales candidates this week and have seen many levels of ability. One thing that has been clear is the candidate’s ability to qualify money. This is a big issue for some salespeople in that they are uncomfortable discussing money.

One move I like to use is to provide a wide range on the salary to see what they do with it. If they ask me about compensation (surprising how many do not), I give them a range like $40K to $80K salary. That is a wide range so I expect them to qualify it further:

-What will it take to be closer to the $80K end?
-How will the final salary be determined?
-Which end of that range would you place me?

Any question to drill down on my vague response would be appropriate. I realize candidates want to be polite and professional, but a candidate who can qualify the money in a professional manner stands head and shoulders above the ones who cannot.

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Ok, bit of a laugh here from an ad I read this morning. The ad doesn’t mention the company name and lists 10 bullet points describing the position’s requirements. The last bullet (and line) in the ad caught my attention:

Experience in sanitation or portable toilets business is a plus

Do you think maybe the author was attempting to sneak that point through like a Phil Niekro fastball?

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As the unfortunate recipient of some heinously impossible sales quotas in my day, I am most intrigued by this week’s trait as it pertains to Sales Managers (and a few from my past that I would enjoy assessing on this topic).

Realistic Goal Setting For Others
The ability to set goals for others that can be achieved using available resources and operating within a projected timeframe. This trait includes the ability to utilize previous measurable performance in the establishing of goals and/or quotas.

A sales manager with strength in this capacity is adept at understanding the potential of another individual, weighting the requirements of a job against their abilities and setting realistic/attainable goals for them to pursue.

A weakness in this area indicates a sales manager who may not have enough confidence to set goals at the proper level. They may not have the drive to encourage others to achieve established goals. They may not be able to clearly see what is happening to be able to form an accurate view of the situation.

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can be found at the supermarket according to the latest Harris Interactive poll (h/t JustSell.com).

This year€™s annual Harris Poll ranking industries on how well they serve consumers finds that the supermarket industry does the best job according to U.S. adults. Fully 92 percent of adults think supermarkets generally do a good job, and only eight percent think they do a bad job, giving them a net positive score of 84 percentage points.

Other industries that receive high net scores are:

• online search engines (77 points positive);
• computer hardware companies (64 points positive);
• computer software companies (61 points positive);
• hospitals (58 points positive);
• banks (56 points positive); and
• packaged food companies (55 points positive)

Who knew?  Well, I guess the 10 year trend has always had supermarkets at the top so I guess Harris Interactive knew.

One key point I learned from a sales trainer long ago is that the number 1 reason why customers leave is because they do not feel appreciated any more.  He used to repeatedly state, “Your top customer is your competition’s top prospect.”

I found that to be too true when I worked at a company with a lackluster customer service department.  We used to refer to them as the “customer prevention department.”

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ManageSmarter.com offers up an article I cannot resist – Find Your Next Sales Star. We’re going to start a 10 part series on this article. No, we’re not (though I would like to).

I’ve written about this topic in the past (emphasis mine):

Chet Bloom isn’t a big believer in tests and intellectual assessments. The president of HFBC Ltd., a staff and recruiting firm based in New York, goes with his instinct. “A test will never show a person’s eagerness and motivation,” he says. For him, it’s all about impression, such as how an interviewee dresses, if he shows up on time, and his confidence level. Education is meaningless to him, but background is crucial. Because a salesperson’s salary is determined by success in the field, Chet looks for someone who truly needs to succeed. “I want someone who is eager and focused,” he says. “Maybe they have a mortgage and kids … I look for someone who is hungry.”

Please don’t do that. I would not recommend hiring based on impression and attire. That subjective data should be factored into your decision, but you are in trouble if those items are the backbone of your decision.

And “tests” can show a salesperson’s motivations with a fine gradient.

Within the company, which has 13 sales divisions, there are different criteria for success. “What makes one sales rep good in one division won’t make them great in another one,” Rude says. Stryker looks at the Gallup assessment of top salespeople within each division to find the right match for every prospect. “It’s incorporated in our day-to-day processes,” Rude says. “It’s truly why we think Stryker is great at identifying talent.”

Ok, we are not fans of “cloning” your top salespeople. It is next to impossible to do since people are far more varied than that. Plus, a team comprised of extremely similar salespeople means the group as a whole has the same strengths and, more importantly, the same weaknesses. Over time, your team’s narrow focus may cost you if your target market moves in a direction opposite of their uniform strengths.

However, that italicized sentence from the excerpt is spot on. This truth affects hiring companies too. Just because a salesperson was successful at your competition does not mean their success will transfer to your company. You approach the market with a different value proposition, customer base, market share, name recognition, etc. Remember, each position requires a specific, unique set of skills, motivations and aptitudes.

My 2 Keys For Hiring Sales Stars
Hiring strong salespeople requires a concerted effort involving many parts of a process. If I had to reduce the process to 2 fundamental keys, I would offer up these:

Design as much objectivity into your process as possible

and

Have your hiring process mirror your typical sale

1. Design
The first example in the referenced article is highly subjective and not repeatable. The approach sounds good if you are a recruiter attempting to secure business from a client – “My finely-tuned gut can sniff out the best salesperson.” Sorry to mix metaphors, but you get my point.

Use assessments. Phone screen them before meeting them. Devalue the resume. Have more than 1 person in the initial interview. All of these approaches help to limit the natural blind spots we all possess. The more objectivity in your process, the more repeatable it becomes. Throw out the approach that uses an HR person to sort resumes and one hiring manager who interviews candidates and decides solely on that criteria.

2. Mirror
A salesperson’s job is to persuade others to make a decision in the salesperson’s favor. Ok, that is overly simplistic. The reason I say it is that a hiring process can closely match a sales process. Therefore you can see a salesperson in action if you use this similarity to your advantage.

If you have a short sales cycle, frequent-rejection sale, use your hiring process the same way. Be short on the phone screen, interrupt the candidate, feed them fuzzy phrases and try to get them off the phone. You will be amazed at what you can observe on this call.

Conversely, if you have a long sales cycle that requires rapport-building, observe how the candidate bonds with you on the phone, use email extensively and extend your hiring cycle (don’t overdo this last one).

When you are in the interview, mirror your typical prospect in your timing, approach, warmth, demeanor, etc. This disarming process will help to reveal the real salesperson leading to the one who is the strongest fit for the position’s needs.

My suggestion is to use your gut at the right time which is as close to the end of your hiring process as possible. By then you will have culled the candidates down using measurable, repeatable techniques. The fruits of your labor will be selecting a strong salesperson who becomes a cornerstone of your sales team.

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From the JustSell.com newsletter:

Sales is not a game. Nothing about it should be left to chance. An effective process that ensures progress toward the goal of bringing in new customers and retaining current customers is what you and your team should strive for. Your process should be methodical, predictable and hold you and/ or your team accountable.

Excellent.  Unfortunately, we encounter many sales departments that have no process.  We are strong proponents of a selling system.  The last thing a sales manager needs is a team of lone wolf salespeople attacking the market with different processes.  Good luck with the forecast in that scenario.

The system should be flexible so that each salesperson can adapt it to his or her style, but the core goals should be the same for each salesperson.  Any approach short of that leads to an unreliable forecast.  An unreliable forecast sends waves through an entire company, not just the sales department.

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That is a pertinent question in successful selling and one we always ask when profiling a sale. Many sales managers that we talk to would like to have a one-call close sale no matter what the sales cycle. That misalignment always leads to a unique discussion.

Selling Power offers a good article on this topic in What€™s the Purpose of this Call? I found this excerpt to be quite revealing:

Consider this example. Fournies was recently speaking at a national meeting to salespeople whose product was a $25,000 chemical analysis machine sold to hospitals. He asked his audience how many calls it took to sell their product to a hospital and most people responded, €œ11 or 12 months.€ Okay, replied Fournies, but how many calls? As a group, the reps argued that €œit depends€ because all hospitals are different. That€™s when the company€™s highest performing rep raised his hand and said, €œMr. Fournies, if I don€™t sell the product by the third call, I don€™t go back.€

The room fell silent as this rep explained his strategy. On his first call, he said he qualifies the customer. He finds out whether the customer needs the product and can afford it and who would make the buying decision. If the answers are positive, the rep schedules a second appointment. During that second meeting, he demonstrates the equipment to the buyer and all the users and gets them to make the buying decision. On the third call, he picks up the purchase order.

I know, it is a bit of blue sky, but the principle is valid. We have assessed our share of salespeople who appear to do little more than wander around looking for a sale. The vast majority of successful salespeople we encounter have a somewhat defined system, or set of goals, that they pursue with each suspect.

At the same time, it is important for the sales manager to know how many calls it takes to close 1 deal. I’ve said this before, it is remarkable to me how many sales managers do not know this number – literally no clue. That lack of mission-critical data is always a clear warning sign to us that we need to qualify the selling cycle before going any further.

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Mike Cardinal has released the final article in our Proactive Sales Management series titled The Finishing Touches.  This article completes our 3 part Summer series which defines 3 basic steps in structuring a sales department that acts, well, proactively instead of reactively.

An excerpt:

A simple but effective way to ensure flexibility within your sales department€™s foundation and structure is to utilize information available to you. Many of our clients take the insight they learn from our assessments to customize and add finishing touches to the communication style utilized with each individual.

Each salesperson has a blend of traits, styles, skills and motivations that need to be considered.  The sales manager sets the tone for the department and essentially €œfinishes€ the look of the department.  Yet, the sales manager also needs to understand the influencing factors associated with each individual to receive their full effort.

Some salespeople require a strong, bold approach while others thrive in a data-driven, detached style.  Many are rewarded by money, while others are motivated by status and recognition.  The sales manager who understands these fine details about his or her team is the one who puts the perfect finishing touches on the sales organization.

Please read the entire article.  And in case you missed the first two articles:

Part 1 – The Foundation of Expectations

Part 2 – The Structure of a Selling System

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The first step and greatest key to get the most out of your sales team is to know what you have. I realize many sales managers believe they know their team’s strengths and obviously they do to some level. But I’m thinking deeper than an observational level.

Assessing and evaluating their skills, talents and motivations provides a detailed, objective blueprint for maximizing performance. This principle is well written in an excellent Boston Herald article titled Leverage your team with sales assessments.

Here is a succinct description of some successes which flow from assessing and evaluating your team.

Assessments that measure individuals€™ motivating drives at work help you understand who the person really is, how they adapt to their work environment, and what the world sees.

This information is particularly helpful in designing a coaching plan and understanding how to help salespeople unleash their self-motivation. In the selling skills area, it€™s important to assess a sales rep€™s skills in the core areas common to all sales processes: building trust and credibility, understanding how buyers buy, strategic questioning, effective listening, value articulation, presentation skills, closing, handling objections, establishing next steps and positioning for future business. Combining the information of these types of tools provides a powerful benchmark for leading your sales reps.

I see this truth play out on a regular basis when dealing directly with salespeople. Most of them are shocked at how much information we can gather from a handful of relatively short questionaires. The next surprise is our ability to describe and define the salesperson’s motivation and reward pattern. Understanding this pattern leads to clarity in their role – something that is often intrinsically unclear.

Secondly, this information allows the sales manager to leverage the strength areas of each salesperson.

The other aspect that is helpful is the individual information. This information is best used to design focused individual action plans, coaching plans and performance improvement plans. By concentrating on areas where an individual needs the most help, and using insights on individuals€™ motivating drives to continually keep them focused on making improvements, your odds of helping them bolster sales will increase dramatically.

Please click here if you would like to learn more about how to use this deeply-rooted information to leverage your sales team.

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