What should I look for when I hire a salesperson?

Ah, but the sales person who looks the part, and “sells” themselves to you at an interview may have done all the selling that they feel they need to. They got the desired close; they don’t need to worry at least for a while until ramp up is over.

The personal appearance of the person you are interviewing is not the best judge. My first interview, I didn’t own a suit. I was neatly dressed, but in no way was it business attire. I still got the job, and was with the organisation for two years. I showed a couple of key sales traits. I listened and didn’t cut in. I answered everything asked truthfully. I also was keen to work there, I was attentive, and I had done my research. I knew a lot about the company, and was able to ask open questions about the client base.

I have been an interviewer in the past – met the “slick” salesperson with the apparent qualifications, bar one. They thought that they knew everything about the products we sold. They didn’t get the job.

In IT, no one knows everything about the products. Why? They change every single day…