Six Moves To Interview Your Next Sales Superhero

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Sales are a difficult division to succeed in. There is nothing cozy about sales – you are achieving the set targets or you're not. You're continuously under stress and continuously dealing with rejection.

Sadly, 55% of sales employees are lacking the attributes necessary to succeed.

Before we start with what you basically should do in an interview to draw out the a true sales champion, allow me to first reveal three important attributes you must search for in a sales person.

• Your sales rep must have a huge ego/self-esteem. Although commonly culturally discouraged, a huge ego is an asset within the world of sales. They should be able to tolerate negativity, and therefore, they have to be acutely conscious and comfortable of their own capabilities.
• They must understand how to be empathetic. The best closing of a sale happens when the client has connected to what's being offered. The salesman should recognize how the client thinks and direct those feelings in the direction of purchasing the item or service. That awareness is definitely vital.
• They must be capable of telling a story. Storytelling is the most successful form of salesmanship. 63% of the audience in a presentation will recall the stories, while the stats are only remembered by about 5%. If your sales rep has the ability to tell a fantastic story, they are going to be excellent at promoting your product.

Keep these three features in mind as I now walk you through the interview procedure to acquiring that really successful salesperson.

Step #1: Determine what your salesperson is made of.

Don't start with their expertise. Begin by identifying where they originate from and in what way they've arrived at this point and this will give you some sort of an idea as to what kind of person they are.

Be sincere with them and explain that you're planning to start by questioning about who they may be, and what forms them – and ensure they agree with the fact that hiring on individuality and not only experience is a more effective way to recruit. This enables them to recognize why you're questioning personal matters, and will make them more comfortable in answering them honestly.

Legal note: prior to stating any private questions within the interview, ensure that you seek advice from your attorney/HR individual to guarantee that everything you say can't be misinterpreted as illegal discrimination. This content is not legal guidance.

Some suggestions on how to draw out this information:

• Illustrate circumstances in your childhood that have made you into the individual you are now.
• Within your life at the moment, either in your private life or career-wise, what are you currently having the most trouble with?
• What is the most important education you have gained from your parents or guardians?

These types of enquiries are likely to give your applicant the chance to tell a tale – now you can see if her or she is a great storyteller. If they're intelligent and a great sales rep, they'll guarantee that the tales they tell are centered on their strong points – demonstrating self-assurance and ego. The lessons they've acquired will also provide insight into their level of empathy, particularly whatever they have acquired from their guardians or parents.

You can see how in this first step itself you are already getting an idea if this applicant is your champion.

I normally begin with this section not only because I am able to get massive, fast insight into the qualities that will make them a good sales person, but it also allows the applicant to feel at ease – it's normally really simple for a person to speak about their personal history.

And if this is not the case, then there's an immediate red flag as to whether they can handle the challenge of sales or not.

Step #2: Find out what the salesperson is made of.

Now that you know them a little more personally, you can head into their achievements naturally, both in their career and otherwise.

Here you happen to be seeking applicants who can very easily rattle off a summary of achievements. Your salesperson should be a natural go-getter and they must also possess the pride and self-esteem to have the ability to instantly list their accomplishments.

Questions you might need to ask at this point are:

• Can you recall a time in your life when, regardless of obstacles in your path, you continued to be successful and accomplished great things?
• Can you think of other areas where you made major accomplishments? Any activities or interests?
• What would you say are the top four things you have achieved in your life so far?

The responses to these enquiries will demonstrate their accomplishment level, while also exhibiting their level of self-confidence surrounding those accomplishments.

Step #3: Interview them on how they compare to others.

Now you know what they've accomplished; however have they acquired expertise that they're able to use in other circumstances? This leads on from the previous step reasonably easily.

Questions in this section will likely be:

• Who's the most effective salesman you have ever met? How are you different?
• Name a few writers or professors that you have studied or whom you listen to closely. Who are your personal advisors or mentors?

The initial question assists you evaluate not just their expertise, but their confidence too. The ideal response to this question: "Me." Then the next half from it makes no difference any longer – you certainly want to employ that applicant! And when they answer anybody else, the next half will provide you with information into the areas where they believe they can still grow and learn.

The following question, concerning their own education, is usually much more significant than you may at first think. It won't just expose their achievements, but will also reveal their commitment to their own knowledge expansion.

I previously asked an applicant this question and their response was, "Oh, my existing firm doesn't send me to get educated." This was a huge warning sign for me: when your employee isn't a self-starter when it comes to their education, they aren't likely to grow beyond what you have the time to train them in. This is definitely not the kind of individual you want in your team.

Step #4: Put their sales empathy to the test.

Since your applicant now feels elevated and has demonstrated their value, it's time to switch track somewhat and check out how they respond to other people, and how other people respond to them.

This is could be one of the harder attributes to get out of the applicant, since most people can only really convey things from their own perspective. Nevertheless, we have some skilful methods to draw these details out.

The perfect questions and stimuli for this would be:

• Describe some of your favourite memories.
• If I was to talk to your closest friend, what do you think they'd tell me about you?
• Who provides you with the most support in your life? Why?

Almost all of the prompts I am giving you usually has the dual benefit of giving the applicant the chance to show their skills and great attributes. When they are not taking avantage of all these opportunities you're throwing at them, you can see that they aren't really promoting themselves to the greatest possible extent. When they can't promote themselves, how will they be able to promote you?

Step #5: Examine their CV and test their work ethic.

As you reach the conclusion of the interview, now you can pull out the CV and take a look. One option is to browse through it and speak about each of item separately. This can be a logical technique and can provide you with some wonderful understanding.

However, that also will take up a lot of your time.

Instead, you may want to ask a few questions, and just use the CV as a reference:

• Your last three placements were <go through them here>. Why did you drop each of these jobs?
• In any one of these, have you been unsatisfied? What was the problem?
• At any job in your employment history, have you ever not agreed with your manager? What was the situation and how did you handle it?
• Explain two weaknesses you identified in your former employers.
• Explain two weaknesses that a few of your managers have identified about you.

You are trying to determine their behavior at work, and their mindset when it comes to office situations. Ultimately, you want to bring out anything questionable about their practices – to observe how they face circumstances that are usually complicated within the boss-staff dynamic.

I had a client that I was coaching who questioned an applicant about weaknesses they discovered in former employers. The applicant responded that one of his bosses was "too fussy about the small facts that didn't make a difference." Now I'm really aware of how detail-focused my client is, so I knew immediately when this was said that my client wouldn't have been happy about this.

Sadly, my client made his displeasure obvious. From that point on, the responses the applicant gave were guarded and probably untruthful as he tried to win back favour.

As soon as an applicant doesn't feel secure, they'll try to be anything you would like them to be. This is not helpful for anyone.

You must allow them be sincere and open. Stay impassive and don't give away any judgements during the interview. Encourage the applicant to completely clarify everything before coming to any conclusions.

Step #6: The final test of the salesperson's ego.

Here is the ultimate step. The one that will separate the wheat from the chaff. Here's how it goes:

Everything's finished and you're pretty sure this one is a winner. Now let them know that they aren't a real winner.

Chet Holmes phrases it really well: "You seem like a nice person, but I only have one opening. I need a real superstar. While I'm sure you would do well in many endeavours, this is a very competitive industry and I doubt your particular skills and personality will hold up in this position. To be truthful, I don't get the impression that you're really a superstar."

You shouldn't be delicate here. Be firm, but be polite. Don't get aggressive and be absolutely sure that you don't sound judgemental. Do some practice in saying this with a peaceful, even and neutral tone of voice. No sugar coating – make sure they're clear that you don't think they are suitable. For instance, you do not need to say, "I am not actually certain about you yet." Or "I am not yet convinced you're a winner." That would make it too easy for them.

You will be amazed at the number of salesmen who simply cave and agree to this. They have just invested however long informing you that they are the best of the best and yet as soon as you say, "I do not believe you are," they shut down and leave! Does not seem like something the best of the best salesman would do, does it?

The real sales champions will know to hang on. Winners are so certain of themselves that when confronted with a declaration like this, they will challenge you.

Here's the kind of answer you want from them: "What makes you believe that?" Here is the best question they're able to toss back towards you if they are to demonstrate their salesmanship: when confronted with a doubt, propose a question, figure out the issue and then resolve the issue.

I had a client hiring someone for telesales and the candidate actually asked that question at this stage of the interview. Here's what my client then told them: "You have not shown me how you're different, have not established you're truly the greatest." Ok, that was a bit of a hint at what she was meant to do, but boy did she deliver.

She remain seated for about five minutes, not just repeating plenty of what had already been discussed, but also brought up other situations in which she had accomplished incredible things. She never exhibited frustration, bitterness or conceit in her tone – simply confident assurance that she was right.

It was immediately clear: she was a winner. And in case you use this 6-step process yourself, you will most likely find your own sales champion.

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