All successful companies have highly effective processes and systems in place for their shipping, accounting and marketing departments. A company should have an efficient system in place for the hiring of top salespeople as well. If your company has products or services to sell, you can be sure that the best salespeople will sell it for you. Many companies use the excuse that it is difficult to find and hire the best salespeople, but when you apply a very good hiring process, which includes an excellent interview system; your company will be much closer to hiring the finest.
Make use of Prospecting
Business owners and sales managers have to set time aside to prospect on a continual basis. Remember that prospecting is not an event, but a continuous process. It is essential that you make time for quality prospecting each month.
Test for Emotional Intelligence
A successful salesperson does not have to possess the highest IQ, but as research has shown, emotional intelligence (EQ) is of more value when it comes to being successful in sales. Start testing candidates for the following EQ skills and you will be more successful in landing the best individuals for the job:
Flexibility
A salesperson has to be flexible. The sales industry changes rapidly and all the time, so you need to keep up with the changes and be prepared to be open to any new ideas, as well as be flexible in your approach to sales. Do you think you will be able to make it in a fast moving sales world if you are inflexible?
Assertiveness
Never fall for a person who merely seems as if he or she has the necessary drive to succeed in sales. Many such people score especially low in assertiveness. A person who is not assertive enough often wastes time with unqualified sales opportunities, mainly because he or she is unable to let prospects know exactly what he or she wants from them.
Empathy
A salesperson with bad empathy usually wants to know what is in it for him or her. You need sales individuals with very good empathy, because they will always put themselves in the shoes of the customer, which builds likeability and credibility. This empathy is not an act at all, but it is part of them; it is who he or she is. With this attribute most salespeople are able to adapt and read customers very well.
Look for Values before Hiring
If something such as teamwork is an important value in your company, then you need to look for candidates that can work as a team player. An individual could be great at selling, but if that person cannot work in a team, you will spend more time motivating and trying to boost morale.
In the interview, you could ask all candidates a question such as, “Name me one instance where you helped a team member or colleague in the past, without receiving any type of reward or recognition for it?” The response to this question will tell you a lot about each candidate.
Stick to the basics after you hire the top candidates. Make sure that you have efficient processes and systems in place to keep your sales team motivated. Recognition always works well, especially if it is done in public. Regular sales meetings are needed, and it is the ideal place to hand out such recognition.
A sales meeting should always be a money-making meeting as well. Make the effort to provide your sales team with that something extra that will help each of them to be more successful.