Over the last ten years of running startups, I have observed two very fascinating patterns:
- Sales is one area where the leaders of the organisation can’t really do much to change things around; it is all in the hands of the sales force.
- Most successful salespeople do not even know why they do better than the rest. They say it comes to them naturally.
What it boils down to is the fact that assessing the personality of a sales applicant is of paramount importance; more than their aptitude for that matter.
- It becomes all the more important when it’s B2B. Why? Because leads are fewer in number and you might have just that ONE shot to get it right.
- It is even more crucial for startups. Why? Because at startups, there will not be a predefined way toward action, no scripts to read from, and no previous examples to learn from.
The personality of the salesperson is the only determining factor for a successful enterprise deal in startups.[Tweet “What Is a Successful B2B Sales Personality For a Startup?”]
Here are some qualities a startup should look for in a B2B salesperson:
1. Graceful, even under pressure
The people whom you chose in your sales force should be fighters but, that’s not enough – they must be graceful, not aggressive, fighters.
We’re looking at:
- People who are quick on their feet.
- People who don’t give up easily.
- People who can convert a “No” into a “Yes” with a smile.
- People who have the ability to figure out the right thing to say and to do so at the right time.
Persuading people is not an easy task; it needs persistence but, persistence alone will not bring results – they must be able to pair it with intelligence and grace.
‘Persuasion is clearly a sort of demonstration, since we are most fully persuaded when we consider a thing to have been demonstrated.’ – Aristotle
Hence, picking people who are street smart and are great under pressure, will be in your best interest.
How do you spot this in an interview? Test the grit of the applicant. See if they’re patient, and graceful even when you put them in the most difficult of situations.
2. Resilience, even in the face of rejection
Resilience – both mental and physical. Sales work implies lots of rejections – polite ones, rude ones, and painful ones even.
It is important to find people who are resilient and unwavering to initial rejections, and will keep engaging with prospects, no matter what. They must be able to separate work from emotions and to not take anything personally or to let it go to their head.
Let’s take an example of what we do at my startup Hiver. When training new sales personnel, for the first few months, we keep track of the number of rejections they faced and the number of follow ups they make after rejections. In general, we try and see how they handle rejection and. if the trainee shows a satisfactory level of resilience, we assign them to a major new client. This system has helped us build grit into our sales force.
It’s not just about forcing yourself to face one rejection after another; it’s about facing rejection, embracing it, and learning from it.
How do you spot this quality in an interview? Ask them a question that does not have one correct answer. The one who keeps trying till you ask them to stop – this is your guy!
3. A networker, even in the most uncanny situations
If a person is not good at, or has no experience in networking, chances are they will fail to pick up the social hints necessary to understand a situation/person. A person who cannot do that will not succeed in persuading people, which is after all what sales is all about.
Here is what having people skills implies:
- Emotionally intelligent with people.
- Ability to pick up social hints and cues.
- Ability to have comfortable conversations with people.
- Ability to go in with zero awkwardness while approaching potential customers.
- Ability to bond with people and be unforgettable.
How do you spot this in an interview? Ask them to go out and convince your existing employees that they (the applicant) are a good fit for the role. Basically – convince a stranger of your worth. The one who gets the most recommendations – is your guy!
4. Humorous, even when the ship’s going down
A sense of humor is an added charm that can make you form quick relationships, diffuse tense situations, and handle conversations with ease.
Having a good sense of humour places the people listening to you in a good mood which will, in turn, break the ice and lessen any friction. The result of which is – they will be more open to what you have to say.
In sales, a potential customer’s willingness to hear you out depends on many factors; one important factor though is, likeability of the person presenting. Having the ability to make the other person laugh will definitely help them cross that barrier.
Also, even if that particular sales proposal is not successful, the bond they have formed with the potential customers will leave the way open to reach out for future projects.
Here is an interesting read on how to use sense of humor in sales.
How do you spot this in an interview? The same example from point #2 – if the person keeps at it, with a smile – they’ve probably got what it takes!
5. Driven, for themselves, and for the company
Preparing a list of prospects every day and forcing your salespeople to follow that list blindly is not the way to go. They must be excited about catching the ‘big fish’. They must be driven enough to want to bring in as many leads as possible.
Successful sales will never happen by following a manual of instructions; successful sales can happen only if the person making the sale is determined enough to figure out a way to make it happen.
Hence, self-motivated and self-driven are necessary qualities that a good salesperson needs to have.
How do you spot this in an interview? Have they done thorough research about what your company does? Okay, everyone does this to some extent. See if they know about the competition and your market dynamics too.
6. Curious, always
If your sales force is not curious enough to wonder about what went wrong in the sales deal, or to pose uncomfortable questions to their customers, or to figure out what is the real reason behind a prospect’s rejection, then how will they get better at making a sale?
Curiosity is a key factor to finding solutions because, in sales, there is no pre-written solution for every problem, a salesman needs to be able to figure out the solution to a problem on the spot and curiosity is the key to being able to do so.
How do you spot this in an interview? Do they ask questions during the interview? Say something which is practically impossible and see how they respond – do they buy it or will they contest it? The ones who contests – is your guy!
7. Fear of failure
In the Batman movie, there is a powerful line which goes something like this – “how can you move faster than possible, fight longer than possible, if you don’t have fear?”
So select people who are terrified of failure, of disappointing other people, of not making enough money for their family, of not reaching the top, etc. … are the people have a stronger impulse to win. The other alternative (failure) is impossible to accept for them and hence, they will be less likely to give up.
How do you spot this in an interview? Have a small pause after every answer they give. The ones who try to fill into these gaps with more information about the subject – are the ones who are afraid of failure, and would rather try a little bit more that wait for the next question.
“Sales are contingent upon the attitude of the salesman – not the attitude of the prospect“ – Clement Stone
Niraj Ranjan Rout
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- What Is a Successful B2B Sales Personality For a Startup? - March 2, 2016