Successful Sales People
1. Empathy
What to look for in good performers:
- Ability to identify and react accurately to the behaviour and emotions of customers
- Identify other people’s feelings/frustrations objectively without necessarily agreeing with them
- Ability to establish rapport easily and put people “at ease” in their presence
- Good listening skills
- Curiosity—the candidate asks questions that require more than a yes or no answer
Poor performers:
- Experience difficulty in establishing rapport with a wide variety of people
- Experience difficulty in adapting their personality style to others with different or non-complimentary styles
- Have difficulty recognizing and responding to subtle verbal, non-verbal and behavioural cues
2. Focus
What to look for in good performers:
- Are goal-orientated and have the ability to articulate their goals clearly and assign timelines
- Do not depend upon the sales manager for direction or guidance
- Possess the self-discipline and conscientiousness to service customers and develop the business from that customer on successive sales calls
- Clear, direct answers to interview questions
Poor performers:
- Need to have performance objectives/standards defined for them and need occasional reminders of what those objectives are
- Need structure and external assistance from a manager to keep them from being distracted and "on track” with their objectives
- Are anxious about things being performed according to the rules or established procedures
- Tend to get distracted and involved in behaviours and relationships that do little towards meeting long-term objectives
3. Responsibility
What to look for in good performers:
- Possess an appropriate sense of urgency, as exemplified in the need to see the sale progress and to bring situations to a resolution
- Anticipate consequences and evaluate alternatives before acting
- Tend to not have excuses for a situation and take action when situations require action
- Maintain a positive outlook towards situations and people—tends to admire, and not to criticize a lot
- Can accept valid criticisms and suggestions for performance improvement
Poor performers:
- Tend to blame people, circumstances and other external factors for why something did not succeed or why something was not completed
- Are comfortable with the status quo and perform only what is required of them
- Fail to go above and beyond what is required to meet customer expectations
4. Optimism
What to look for in good performers:
- Initiative and the ability to focus on opportunities and solutions
- Focus on what can be done as opposed to what cannot be accomplished
- Refusal to allow rejection on one sales call to affect their ability to perform on the next
- Persistence in forcing an important issue even in the face of possible rejection
Poor performers:
- Experience “paralysis” when faced with setbacks, problems or obstacles
- May suffer from inconsistent performance, or have a sales track record filled with peaks and valleys
5. Ego-drive
What to look for in good performers:
- Enjoy competitiveness and constantly look for ways to measure themselves against their peers
- Possess leadership qualities and is not afraid to exert pressure to influence others
- Enjoy sales as a profession for it provides personal gratification and ego enhancement
- Determined to win and willing to take risks
Poor performers:
- Rely on manipulation instead of trust and rapport for results
- Possess a “win-at-all costs” attitude often at other people’s expense
- Find minimal personal gratification in making a sale