Recruiting Advertising Sales Reps

Recruiting Advertising Sales RepsWhenever you’re employing a brand new sales rep, just a little research can go a long way tosecuring a very-skilled team member. Obviously the candidate’s responses to your interviewquestions are essential, however they’re just one possible supply of details about thatindividual.While resumes will also always be useful in gauging an applicant’s abilities and qualifications,for $150 anyone can get a blistering resume compiled. References, well of course they’re goingto choose people who promote them, but how indicative are two references from the 1000?s ofpeople that must know them by now? You might even be speaking to your applicant’s bestfriend who just happens to be a smooth talker on the phone. Do not rely on resumes to reflectyour applicant’s skills.Of course, it stands to reason however that the resume is a great early indicator – authors, forinstance, must have well-written, literate resumes! For salesmen, the resume – an applicant’sprimary advertising tool – is a superb indicator of their sales abilities. How good will they selltheir abilities and qualifications within their resume? Will they give specific good examples of theachievements in past jobs? Are their encounters referred to in ways that present them to be agood fit for your publishing business? A poorly crafted resume should certainly raise some redflags.A great sales rep must always do their homework. Before you decide to tell the candidate onyour company or even the position, request why they requested this specific job. A simplequestion that allows the sales rep’s to demonstrate just how much research they did on youand your company prior to the interview.An applicant’s attitude and behavior could be telling. Did they arrive either promptly or slightlyearly? Were they respectful and enjoyable to folks they met along the way to seeing you, forexample receptionist, secretaries, etc.? Outfitted and groomed appropriately? Remember, theway in which someone looks with an interview is most likely the very best they’ll ever look atwork! Did they hold eye contact, shake your hand firmly (although not bone-crackingly),demonstrate open, receptive body gestures? Did they communicate well and speak clearly? Didthey talk an excessive amount of dribble too quickly, or barely speak whatsoever? How they sellthemselves is how they will sell your products and services.Specific sales-interview suggested questions: What are some specific good examples of previous sales encounters? How did it go? What did you do right? What would you do differently? What do you know about our publications products and sales cycles? How will this rival that which you’ve done previously? How would you make your first sale for our publication? What type of compensation structure would you prefer? (The options are often base salary, base plus commission, or pure commission. A sales rep who favors a pure 1/3

commission job has considerable confidence in their own individual abilities. Conversely, one that wants a big chunk of salary is probably a pen-pusher!) What do you think our cost of delivery for each product we sell might be? (A good sales rep should have already have an undestanding of the product before they meet with you, even if they’ve never sold ads or listings or websites.) What do you think might be barriers to growth for our business? How do you feel you could lead some improvements across the business? What new marketplaces could we address and just how can you suggest we develop these marketplaces?The old classics are also worth including: How will your experience fit this job’s needs? What has been a sales career highlight? Talke me through that success. What’s a substantial mistake that you simply made, how have you correct it and what have you learned from it? What exactly are your finest talents and weak points and how do you ameliorate your weak points? How does our company fit in with your career goals? What is the best thing you will bring to our business if we give you the opportunity?If there’s a lag or perhaps a silence between questions, observe how they handle this. Createan awkward pause, because this really does happen on sales calls. A good sales rep canhandle all situations, because they are natural people who make those around them feel safeand relaxed.At the end of the interview raise any issues or concerns you have – not only does this fairlyallow them to address these concerns, it also shows you how they handle objections and evenpotential rejection.Will they make an effort to form bridges and build a rapport with you (spot the picture of the sailboat, children, etc. and share their common interest, for instance)? Is their familiaritycomfortable or contrived?As you close the interview, provide the favoured candidates with an outline of theorganization’s goals, compensation (structure along with a general range), benefits, travelexpectations, etc. and what the next stage of your recruitment process will be, includingtimeframes. Do they have any queries or concerns? You want at least one or two relevantquestions from them, it shows effort and consideration on their part. An applicant that has noquestions for you probably didn’t bother to analyze your organization, may be too overcome tothink about anything clever to ask, or just isn’t that interested in your and your business.Finally, do they follow-up later that day or early the next with a ‘thank you’ email or SMS.Remember throughout this process that there are more sales jobs than good sales people outthere – so if you find a gem, do everything you can to let them know you are a great publication 2/3

and good employer. But stay within budget and don’t over-extend yourself on the stary-eyed dream of becoming the best publication your town ever knew because you had the best sales rep ever known to mankind! Great sales reps are great at selling everything, most especially themselves. Even when they start working for you, your advertisers will offer them jobs, your competition will offer them jobs. You must both feel the match is good and will only get better. Always get back to your applicants at least by email, even better by phone. Not only is this a common courtesy, it is good PR – sales reps generally know lots of people, you might as well have even the unsuccessful ones feeling good about meeting you. As a bit of fun, here are some Sales-Rep types. The ideal match will likely be combination of these, and most importantly be someone you think you can work hard with and also ultimately share a glass of wine with on a Friday afternoon at the end of a hard cycle when all the files have gone to press! Sales Types: The Instant Buddy – People buy from people they like The Guru – People buy from people who have knowledge they can rely on The Consultant – Combination of ‘guru’ and ‘buddy’. People buy from people who show a genuine interest in them and their business affairs. The Networker – People buy from people they met elsewhere, or through referrals. The Hard Seller – A thing of the past, but beware they are still out there. Hard sellers will only give your business a bad name and may cost you $1000’s in unpaid invoices when customers wake up to the fact they really didn’t want to spend that sort of budget with you. 3/3Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

Recruiting Advertising Sales Reps

by EzyMedia on Jul 09, 2012

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Recruiting Advertising Sales Reps Document Transcript