Ask the sales expert…
How well does your business find, recruit and hire high-performing sales reps and key sales talent? Do your methods lead to reliable hires and replicable success? Or do your sales recruitment efforts too often send you back to “square one” after you’ve invested considerable time, effort and money on an underperforming sales rep with no “upside?” If your direct sales recruiting process repeatedly falls short, it’s likely your overall sales recruiting strategies are a root cause. With that in mind, here are five critical sales recruiting strategies.
Understand your current sales recruiting approach. Does your company use a strategic method — one that is systematic, proven, well-documented and replicable from one hire to the next? Or is your approach to direct sales recruiting more “seat of the pants?” Perhaps your sales recruiting strategies lie in between, but you aren’t sure where you stand. Regardless, if your sales recruitment process is ill-defined and often leads to bad hires, it is time to take a closer look. A great place to start is by taking a Sales Hiring Skills Assessment (salesxceleration.com/sales-hiring-skills-assessment/) to identify gaps in your sales recruiting strategies.
Define your ideal candidate. When selling your company’s products and services, your sales reps improve their conversion rates by targeting the right prospects at the right time in the right ways. So, why wouldn’t you do the same when “selling” your company to sales talent during recruiting? The first part of this success equation is finding the “right prospects” (or, in this case, the right job candidates). This requires a clear picture of your ideal candidate and the position. What type of person will succeed as your sales rep? What experience and expertise should they possess? Do they have a history of sales success? Are they trainable and coachable? Do they have the personality to connect with customers and fit in with your current team? Simply put, if you don’t have a clear vision of who you are looking for (and the position), how will you know when they show up?
Use the right sales recruitment tools and resources. When recruiting sales reps, many companies play a numbers game. They use every available tool, resource and platform to reach anyone and everyone currently seeking a sales rep position. The result? Too many applicants to sift through with only a few exceptional candidates standing out. The better approach is to focus on quality over quantity. Use a strategic mix of only those tools, resources and recruiting platforms likely to connect you with that ideal candidate.
Be prepared to answer candidate questions. For a sales hire to be successful, it must be mutually beneficial — the proverbial “win-win” situation. So, don’t just go into the sales recruitment process loaded with questions for candidates; be prepared to answer their questions, too — about sales compensation, onboarding, territories, travel and other key job factors.
Get help recruiting sales reps when you need it. Recruiting and hiring a top-notch sales rep is a complex process, and the stakes are high. If you typically manage direct sales recruiting on your own, take a step back and honestly assess if that makes sense. If you and your team are not skilled in sales recruitment, admit it. Chances are you’ve seen your weaknesses play out in wasted time, misfires and unacceptable turnover rates.
An expert recruiter will ensure your next sales hire is the right fit for your team. They can bring critical perspective and focused skill sets necessary to simplify your recruiting and hiring, while helping you avoid the substantial costs — to your reputation and bottom line — of making a bad hire.
The Bottom Line
Effective sales rep recruitment is critical to business success. It requires a strategic, targeted approach using the right resources. Unfortunately, many businesses fall short and end up making — and repeating — costly mistakes. To determine how well your business handles hiring salespeople, check out this free Sales Hiring Skills Assessment (salesxceleration.com/sales-hiring-skills-assessment/). The assessment can help you understand where your company falls short, and how to implement new strategies for better sales hires and reduced turnover.
Debe Black is the founder of Action Ignite Sales in Phoenix, Arizona, focusing on sales excellence. Action Ignite Sales utilizes the Sales Xceleration platform, helping clients exceed their growth and sales targets across a range of industries by building successful sales plans and aligned sales teams.
