The proven way for any company to achieve better sales is to hire top performing sales people. Unfortunately, not every hiring manager or sales manager knows how to hire only the top performers and what questions to ask to rule out those who only think they are the best. One of the key ingredients in hiring the best is the sales assessment questions job candidates are asked during the interview process.

During the initial interviews there are certain things you are not allowed to ask, and all good hiring managers are aware of them, but there are other questions that you are required to ask if you only want the best. It is OK to ask sales assessment questions to determine a candidate’s job qualifications and with sales, the candidate’s experience will not tell you anything. After all you are interested in performance not how long they have been in sales and unless you ask how they increased their level of performance in their last position, you won’t know.

By asking the right questions you can determine their values. Don’t confuse values with priorities. Someone’s personal values will not change and cannot be affected by outside influences. However, their priorities will change based on a number of influences. For example, you have established sales goals and their priority is to call on 20 people per day. Another project comes up and they will only have time for 10 calls a day, which is now their priority.

You will also need to establish what most companies call a job description. Unfortunately, once you put that description in writing it could limit the scope of the position. Having a job description can be a map on how to hire a salesperson, as it can be used to develop interview questions sales position candidates will be asked. Achieving better sales should be your priority and assessing the values of the candidates will help direct you to the right person.

Your sales assessment questions should provide answers that are results oriented, not answers that the candidate thinks you want to hear.  Asking what their goals are means nothing if they can’t provide the means of getting there. It’s important to note that while past performance is often an indicator of future success a person with solid values that are in line with your company’s values has the best chance of bringing in better sale and becoming the top performers in your company.

You have decided you need to improve your sales staff and begin thinking about posting an ad on internet jobs boards or even in trade publications for salesmen. You will probably spend more time on the content of your ad than the headline, meaning very few top performing sales people will ever read about the opportunity you are offering.

Building a sales team takes time and patience but by hiring the right people in the first place you can have them hit the ground running. You have to get the attention of those that can be a top performer in your industry interested in your company and its sales team. To do that your ad has to provide information that can capture the imagination of those looking to work with a top company.

Being realistic, salesmen are interested in how much money they can make. Yes, they will all want to help the company succeed, knowing that if the company makes money they can make money. Where the company is located and how the sales staff is compensated will be high on most people’s list along with top performers being able to advance quicker than others. In other words, are advancements based on performance or longevity.

You have probably hired many salesmen in the past and have a standard procedure to hire sales people. Quite possibly you have a prepared script along with a list of questions that are asked of everyone. If it has worked well for you in the past you should have a pile of top performing salesmen already working for you. If you don’t then remember how Albert Einstein described insanity as doing the same thing over and over expecting different results.

You will have to ask yourself why you are running an ad. The answer should be because you are building a sales team comprised of the best salesmen available. Your ad also has to tell potential new hires that they want to work for you, as opposed to hundreds of other companies that all claim to offer the highest compensation. Be specific. Quote reputable sources about the quality of your company’s compensation and how working for you will help them achieve their own high earnings expectations.

Don’t be afraid to brag about how your company’s top performers were rewarded. By offering up specific examples of income potential it can get them thinking that they are so good it won’t take long for them to earn even more than that. It is one way to get applicants to send in their resume for you to judge who deserves an interview for your salesmen position.

The hiring process can be a very costly endeavor for your company. Before you begin, it’s important that you’re as organized and prepared as possible. The work day is busy enough without adding hiring preparation to it, but the great sales manager knows it must be done. It’s an essential part of the sales manager’s job to keep sales hiring costs at a minimum. The best way to hire sales people cost effectively is to do it right.

Save Money by Doing it Right the First Time

Our goal at AHS is to teach you how to prevent significant expenses and have better sales by hiring the right people. There is nothing cost effective about having to hire again and again due to hiring mistakes. Getting it right the first time is easy, but it requires knowledge and patience.

• You might think you’re saving the company time and money by rushing through the hiring process, but that’s not the reality. Giving disc assessment tests and more than one interview for each applicant takes time. Make better sales hire decisions by allowing the time it takes to gather the right information. Better sales hire decisions equal a better bottom line.

• Hire sales people more cost effectively with the convenient tools available to you. You’ll learn more fully what makes a good salesperson, plus enhance your sales hire proficiency. DISC assessment testing and the AHS Sales Hiring Course materials are the kinds of tools that will make a big difference.

Keep Your Current Sales Team Happy, Too

When you make faulty hiring decisions, it has a negative effect on your current sales team. Moral can suffer if everyone is working harder to compensate for a weak salesperson’s low performance. Not having a strong sales team can make your top performers want to find employment elsewhere. Losing those great salespeople is a tremendous cost to your company, so hire sales people with that in mind, too. You’re not just out to hire sales people worth your hiring expenses, you want to create an environment that keeps them with you.

When you know what makes a good salesperson the right fit for your company, you’re already on track for a much healthier financial path. Hire sales people right the first time, with the best tools available, and watch your business thrive with cost effective gains. It really is remarkable what a difference hiring the best sales team makes.