You Want to Build a Heavy Hitting Sales Team and Identify a Natural Closer? Walk this way.

 I’ve built many sales floors in my time and as every business owner knows it’s really hard to get right…. or is it?

 Here is what 20 years of building sales floors has taught me and It’s not what you expect>

You can’t truly understand what your product demands of your sales people, unless you get in the driving seat and do it yourself, as one of them.  This applies to all departments that need improving or growing, too few people outside of the entrepreneur are willing to go the extra mile.

 It’s not pretty sitting, sales positions are one of the hardest and least sort after in most companies. It has a high turnover, high stress and relentless monthly demands, targets, mindset required.

It’s tough, every win is temporary and every loss is felt and the company will never stop demanding more of you.

I worked in the US some years where sales people are highly paid and highly regarded, why because they allow us all to have a company in the first place. I have never understood the logic as to why they are so lowly looked upon in Britain, other than ego.

They are our Generals.

When a recession hits, when you need to make the leap to bigger, when you want to beat the competition, it’s the smart working, sales people who will pull you through and no one else. Money trumps everything in survival terms, for a company.

But what is the magic ingredient to look for in the most gifted able closers? What I’m about to say will raise a few eyebrows: Learning challenges, messy childhoods and very smart.

My observations are most of the most successful sales people in any company left school at 16 or struggled to complete the worlds, universal, singular measure of intelligence: our schools education system.

They are often highly intuitive, many had above average difficult childhoods, will suffer from dyslexia or ADHD in mild forms.

Sales, at its finest, is an art, It’s about thinking on your feet, fast. Emotional intelligence is a fundamental of the elite top sales people.  Understanding the why behind responses and counteracting the obvious, while still maintaining emotional control, may seem simple till you put ordinary people in the role and watch them fail.  NASA hires 50% of its staff with Dyslexia for a reason: Superior problem-solving abilities.

We need to stop looking from the pulpit, widen the mind and challenge societies beliefs, that’s where you will find the diamonds.

 Hire the right Sales Manager/Director.

 You’re not looking for Mr Motivator, that’s short boosts of energy. You need to teach your sales people how to develop a mindset, that allows them to maintain a consistent level of Inspiration, from themselves.

I remember a big firm in San Jose, California who started the week and most mornings with “who let the dogs out” blasted, while incredibly fun, it was certainly not keeping the top closers and would cause a emotional high then a crash.

The sales people who will blow your targets sky high, will already put too much pressure on themselves, extra stimulation will send them up and crash them, in a work environment…. Top closers need calm counteraction.

The right emotionally intelligent sales manager will understand this and come with a genuine in-built desire to offset the high-energy high-volume drivers, providing them further self-awareness, insite and communication to avoid burnout.  

The best sales directors have a hefty life experience, quiet leaders, there authenticity will get the very best out of your sales people, but it’s their emotional intelligence that will get the results a company needs.

The emotionally Intelligent Sales Manager or Director is the Sales Departments Emotional and Mental Regulator.

After the natural born sales people there is another and they are rare to catch at the age you need them: The Heavy Weight Closer.

 Oh, do I Love these people. They are the back bone of the business sometimes you can’t live with them sometimes and you can’t live without them. One, can launch an entire company, often complex mavericks with agile minds and very smart, usually a difficult start in life brought them a non-traditional route so keep your mind and eyes open.

You could hire 30 sales people but there are sales people who are 30 sales people, in one person. Don’t go looking for numbers look for quality over quantity.

You may have realised this profile is the same as most entrepreneurs, if its simpler you’re looking for the entrepreneur of tomorrow, before they sort themselves out or hit an opportunity and realise, they are one.

* WARNING *

The one quality you must not hire without: Integrity.

I don’t care how good the person seems, is, proves to be, if you don’t high talent, ambition and drive with Integrity, I guarantee you, you will sorely regret it later.

Written by Rosamond Stenhouse