Recruiting for sales is a unique challenge and can sometimes be daunting. Investing time and effort into recruiting the right people is necessary when creating a successful sales team. Here are three things to keep in mind when recruiting for sales positions:
- First, you need to focus on the skills specific to sales. This means finding people who are good at finding customers and developing relationships with them.
- The ability to sell themselves;
- The resume is not the be-all and end-all.
Let’s dive in and take a closer look at each point.
First, when recruiting for sales positions, pay attention to the skills needed. These skills can vary depending on the industry your business belongs in, but typically include excellent communication skills, a deep understanding of the customer’s needs, and the ability to develop relationships and sell to customers. Recognizing these skills when interviewing candidates for a sales position is crucial.
Next, you need to focus on the candidate’s ability to sell themselves, this is a sales position after all, and you can tell how great they are by observing how they present their skills. A good salesperson can not only sell a product or service but can also sell themselves to a potential employer. Good salespeople are also confident and have a strong understanding of their strengths and weaknesses.
Finally, a sales resume should not be the only determinant of whether a candidate will get hired. Skills such as communication and the ability to build relationships are crucial to the sales process because the customer is the most important part of the sales equation.
However, recruiters cannot always assess such vital skills through a resume. In such cases, it would be beneficial to ask candidates to answer personality tests and arrange an in-person interview with shortlisted candidates.
While skills presented on the resume are highly significant when recruiting for sales, recruiters also need to focus on the candidate’s ability to sell themselves, their personality, and their ability to form relationships with customers.