Don\u2019t flame me on the title, there is a method to this madness.\u00a0 I like clich\u00e9 questions for sales interviews.\u00a0 There, I admitted it.\u00a0 Now, I should clarify, I\u2019m not talking about an entire interview of these questions, but rather some strategic ones sprinkled into your question list.<\/p>\n
Here is why \u2013 if the question is clich\u00e9, the candidate should have a sparkling answer.\u00a0 Their answer may be well-rehearsed \u2013 that is fine.\u00a0 You, as the interviewer, simply need to drill down on their response to get to the unvarnished truth.<\/p>\n
However, the catch to this approach is when they don\u2019t<\/em> have a strong answer.\u00a0 I am always concerned about candidates who provide weak answers to expected questions.\u00a0 They should have expected some of these questions and, more importantly, should have prepared for them.\u00a0 This lack of preparation is often indicative of how they will prepare for an initial meeting with a prospect.<\/p>\n Here is one I often incorporate, \u201cTell me about a time when you had to go well beyond your normal responsibilities to close a deal.\u201d\u00a0 Simple, clich\u00e9, but here is why it works \u2013 I want to hear a good, real example.\u00a0 I\u2019m looking for what they<\/em> perceive as being a stretch for their role.\u00a0 There is much to be learned in their response.<\/p>\n There are many sales prima donnas who have a high maintenance attitude.\u00a0 Some tasks, in their opinion, are beneath them.\u00a0 I\u2019m always looking for where they draw the line in that I don\u2019t want a salesperson who tries to do everything themselves either.\u00a0 There is a happy medium that works for your position.\u00a0 My experience has shown that smaller companies expect salespeople to do more tasks while larger companies expect more specialization.<\/p>\n Keep those clich\u00e9 questions handy next time you interview a strong sales candidate.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"