Chuck Terry’s Blog

In Parts One and Two  of this blog series, Hiring Top Sales Performers, I explained the first three of five key attributes typically found in top performing sales people, as well as a few hints on how to spot Passion, Purpose, and Position in sales applicants. Those attributes comprise the first three (in no particular order) of what I call the 5 P’s of Successful Selling. This week I will be covering the final two of the 5P’s — Persuasion and Persistence.

To recap, the 5 P’s of Successful Selling are:
Passion
Purpose
Position
Persuasion
Persistence

The next essential “P” I will address is Persuasion. This is pretty straight forward, as it is the ability of a sales person to inspire others to take action on their ideas and products. I am not talking about snake oil sales trickery here; but rather the skill to help others reach the logical conclusion that acting in the suggested way really is in their best interest. I believe this trait is inexorably linked to the previously addressed Passion trait because one enables the other in a selling situation. Persuasive people tend to be very comfortable with other people and have a high degree of empathy, which allows them to explain things in a way that really connects with others.

The first and most obvious way to uncover the Persuasion trait in sales applicants is in how well they persuade you that they are a credible candidate. Done properly, the applicant should make you feel at ease, be easy to talk to, and ask you as many questions as you are asking them. You should feel like the applicant is engaged, confident, and not trying to “oversell” him or herself.

A great line of questioning to understand the depth of the applicant’s skills in Persuasion is to ask about previous selling and personal situations where they have faced resistance to their ideas. Ask about the method they employed to get others to agree to take their recommended course of action. The answers should reflect good listening and diagnostic skills aimed at uncovering the other person’s true objections. The answers should also reflect a method of involving the other party in crafting a solution that was in the best interest of all involved. You aren’t looking for a blunt instrument that over powers people; but rather, the deft touch that enables persuasion without later remorse. The Persuasion trait is absolutely essential in building consensus in situations where multiple people are involved in buying decisions.

The final “P” of the five is Persistence. This is the ability to bounce back from repeated rejection and also the ability to keep a high level of energy during tough times. One of the most challenging and daunting elements of selling is undoubtedly the rejection that routinely occurs as part of the job. In most sales jobs the representative will hear “no” with much higher frequency than they hear “yes.” Much like baseball where a batter that only fails to reach base seven out of ten times is hailed as a hero, selling successfully requires the ability to focus on the three times you actually succeed. A master of Persistence also has a well developed method to maintain a high energy and enthusiasm level, regardless of what else may be happening in their lives. If you are being sold by someone with a high level of Persistence, you won’t be able to tell the difference between a day when they won the lottery and a day when they received an audit notice from the IRS.

When looking for the Persistence trait in applicants, it is good to ask questions about the tough times in their lives and careers. You also want to ask questions centered on how they developed leads and prospects. How do they feel about cold calling (a high rejection activity)? How many times do they typically call on a prospect before they become a customer? How long was the sales cycle in their previous company?

Another line of questioning should be centered on how they maintained their focus, drive, and enthusiasm during tough times. Ask about how their performance has been affected by personal problems in the past? How have they fought through sales slumps? What process do they employ to get themselves “up” before a sales call? In short, you are looking for people that just keep pushing, no matter what, and put on a happy face in the process.

In conclusion, if you can find a sales representative that is a master in all 5 P’s of Successful Selling, hire him or her immediately. Ask them if they can refer anyone else like them, and then hire them too! It is extremely rare to find a sales professional who is extraordinary in all five Ps. As a general rule, the bar should be realistically set at “extremely high” rating for three traits, and at least “good” ratings in the other two. If you can consistently hire to that level, you will be well on your way to building a sales team of super stars that will keep your business in growth mode for years to come!

 Chuck Terry is the Executive Vice President and CSO of Carew International and is regular contributor to Carew’s blog – Executive Insights

Carew International is a leader in sales training and leadership development; specializing in comprehensive, proven training programs for sales, sales management and customer service excellence. For over 30 years, Carew has earned its reputation of delivering increased productivity and profitability to our valued clients world wide.