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I see the job situation gradually improving. Companies are hiring, because executives in many industries are optimistic. They are also more willing than ever before to let go of underperformers and look for better talent. At the same time, sales professionals are moving around more than ever before, changing jobs, looking for a better career opportunities and greater earning potential.
There is good news and bad news. The good news is that good salespeople are landing better jobs than they had--jobs with higher pay potential and with the promise of career advancement based on achievement of performance goals. Direct sales is a good place to be right now. Why? It pays very well and, as far as I can see, direct selling jobs can't be outsourced overseas.
There is bad news for many who are seeking out a new job in sales. Just as buyers have gotten better at buying, many managers and executives have gotten considerably better at hiring. Having been through the experience and cost of hiring the wrong people, possessing a higher degree of accountability and putting more focus on effectiveness and productivity, they are more determined to do it right.
I spend a fair amount of time assisting companies hire the right sales people. We don’t accomplish that by chance or through gut feel. We depend on a hiring process I’ve developed which includes, among other components, comprehensive job profiles, probing interview questions, and the formal training of a hiring team. I become part of the hiring team, performing many interviews with candidates for sales jobs--at the rep, support, management, and executive levels.
From my perspective as a hiring coach, influencer and recommender, here are 10 critical success factors for getting yourself hired:
Have a plan
There are a good deal of similarities between seeking a new job and running a sales campaign. (When seeking a job, you'll be doing a fair amount more buying than you do in your sales job, but you'll still be doing a considerably amount of selling.) So, in keeping with my recommended format for a sales plan, the following should be the format of your plan to get the job:
Situation assessment. Ask yourself these questions: What are your skills, your experience, and your past performance against quota? What industries (or companies) are hiring? What are the hirer's expectations (perhaps a "golden" Rolodex)? What compensation level is realistic to expect? What are your decision criteria? What are theirs? Are they employing a hiring process? If so, what are the steps? You will also need to assess your prospective employer's industry and company, just as you would a prospect.
Objective: To be offered three positions on or about a specified date at a specified OTE (on-target earning) potential.
Strategy: What are you going to count upon to compel that executive to offer you the job you want for the pay you deserve?
Tactics: How are you going to manage it all? The interviews, differentiating yourself, timing, your current job, negotiations, reference checking, your due diligence, responses to the most common objections?
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