Art
Siegel

Interviewing Questions To Reveal The Best Sales Reps

The trouble with interviewing sales reps is that the candidates are all in sales; they know how to present themselves in a way that may or may not reveal their true skills. Most reps know the interviewing questions you are likely to ask, and they have prepared solid answers to them. On your next sales rep interview, try these new Interviewing Questions To Reveal The Best Sales Reps. 

Probably the toughest task for a sales manager is hiring effective salespeople. So many candidates who look and sound great in the interview simply don't cut it in the field. After a few interviews, most candidates become quite adept at fielding interview questions, particularly about items that appear on their resume, so they are all set by the time they get to you to make a great impression.

Here are two interviewing tests that may help you improve the odds of finding winners. Both are tests of the candidate's ability to perform in situations very similar to what they will encounter in the field:

Why Are You The Best?

Early in the interview, before you have discussed what you are looking for, ask the candidate this question: "Why do you feel you are the best person for this job?"

Poor
A terrible candidate will have a difficult time coming up with reasons why you should hire him or her. They may try to sell to you, but the assets they mention will be weak.

Good
A good candidate will be articulate and present you with an impressive list of accomplishments and assets which make him or her an outstanding salesperson.

Best
The candidate you want, though, will say something like this: "I think I have a number of attributes going for me. But before I can honestly say whether I am best for this job, I need to know a little more about what you are trying to accomplish. Please tell me about your typical customers and why they buy from your company."

The ideal salesperson is a natural consultant. Rather than presenting a series of generic features and benefits to every prospect, he or she knows it is necessary to first understand the prospect's needs in some depth, and to then present their company and their products in terms of those needs.

Since applying for a job is a natural sales situation, look for candidates who sell to you the way you want them to sell to your customers, by knowing their prospect before they begin to pitch.

Tell Me About Your Hobby

Just about all candidates list some hobbies, sports or other personal interests on their resume. They put them there to show you they are well-rounded individuals. You can use these items another way when you are interviewing sales candidates:

1. Pick a personal interest the candidate has listed on the resume, preferably one in which you are not very knowledgeable. For example, suppose the candidate -- we'll call him George -- lists working on his own car, and you are not a strong auto mechanic. (If no hobbies are listed on the resume, or you don't have a copy, ask: "What do you like to do in your spare time?")
   
   
2. Ask George a few questions about his hobby to find an area in which he claims some proficiency. Let's say George changes his own oil.
   
   
3. Then you say something like: "You know, George, I'd like to learn how to do that myself. If you don't mind taking a moment with me now, what do I need to know to be able to change the oil on my car?" Don't offer him anything about your skills or what type of car you drive. Sit back and let George run the show.

If George is going to be effective selling for you, he needs to get these two things right:

• He should start by asking you a few questions, such as what type of car you drive, what tools you have and whether you have any mechanical experience. It doesn't matter exactly what questions he asks, but George should understand the need to get a little background from you before telling you what to do.
  
  
• Based upon your answers to his questions, George should be able to give you a clear, concise presentation on how to change the oil in your car. Or he might acknowledge that a demonstration would be helpful and ask if the two of you could go to the garage so he can help you find the oil filter.

Danger signs to look for in George's response include:

• A glib overview with no real meat, without knowing anything about your car or your mechanical ability.
• Details that are irrelevant to how you would change the oil in your make of car.
• A rough, unstructured presentation that is hard to follow.
• A presentation that is too technical for your level of experience in this subject.

What you are testing here is whether George can engage in a successful sales dialog and intelligently answer prospect questions about something he knows pretty well. If he fails to do this effectively, he is unlikely to come out of your training program ready to answer prospect questions about your products.

SeaBird Associates Inc
3011 NE 7th Drive
Boca Raton, FL 33431
Phone: 561-750-9233
E-mail: Art Siegel

About Art Siegel