NZSALES

NZ’S E-MAG FOR SALES LEADERS | WWW.NZSALESMANAGER.CO.NZ

APRIL | ISSUE 93

Page 6

Hiring Your Next Superstar

Getting the most out of the interview and selection process

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From the EditorHow to identify and recruit sales

people who will be successful is one of the toughest challenges

for sales managers. It is tough for many reasons, not least of which is that if you are new to sales management you will probably have no recruitment experience. I’ve yet to see an induction manual with a section on how to recruit

sales people either. (Let me know if you have!).

A successful sales team requires the sales manager to recruit the

ABOUTShort and sharp, New Zealand Sales Manager is a free e-magazine delivering thought provoking and enlightening articles, and industry news and information to forward-thinking sales managers, business owners and sales professionals.

right people. It is possibly the most important job for the sales manager or business owner to get right. In this issue, in the first of a series of two articles, talent development specialist Steve Evans explains three steps to take to reduce the risk of making a poor recruitment decision.

PNCONTACT/SUBSCRIBE&SHARE

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EDITOR Paul Newsom

ART DIRECTOR Jodi Olsson

GROUP EDITOR Richard Liew

ADDRESS NZ Sales Manager, C/- Espire Media, PO Box 99758, Newmarket, Auckland 1151, NZ

ISSN 2230-4762

CONTENT ENQUIRIES Phone Paul on 021 784 070 or email pauln@nzsalesmanager.co.nz

ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES Phone Jennifer on 09 522 7257 or email jenniferl@espiremedia.com

SUBSCRIBE AT www.nzsalesmanager.co.nz. It’s free!

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APRILcontents

THIS MONTH'S MUST READ...............................................................................................................6HIRING YOUR NEXT SUPERSTAR

10 TIPS TO IMPROVE TELEPHONE SALES TECHNIQUE..................................................12

DEVELOP A BETTER WORK/LIFE BALANCE.............................................................................16

TWO MINUTE TOP-UP.......................................................................................................................18WHY SALES TRAINING DOESN’T WORK

QUICK FIX..........................................................................................................................................20It’s not what you sell, it’s how you sell

BOOK REVIEW...................................................................................................................................22As You Think by James Allen

CALENDAR.......................................................................................................................23

THE CLOSE........................................................................................................................................24

http://www.fastforwardyourbusiness.net/nzau/?aff=12ffyb169

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MUSTREAD

Words by Steve Evans

Hiring Your Next SuperstarGetting the most out of the interview and selection process

www.nzsalesmanager.co.nz | 07

Before we get into the prickly subject of teasing out the sales superstars from the ‘also-rans’, we need to understand that the main tool that we use to select staff is, at best, going to

give a seasoned interviewer a one in four chance of getting it right. In the hands of an untrained or inexperienced interviewer, it will be little better than putting on a blindfold and picking a CV from the pile in determining whether a candidate is going to perform in the job.

It has been common knowledge for decades that the selection interview is a very poor predictor of whether a candidate is going to perform in any job. When it comes to sales jobs, the interview becomes even less effective. Most sales candidates can present themselves well at interview and are adept at brushing over the areas they would rather you didn’t explore and usually arrive with glowing references.

While some recruiting managers may see these factors as evidence of sales skills, most will grimace with pain in recalling occasions of hiring staff that were good at interviews but precious little else.

When you look at the bottom-line of the revenue generated by a sales person hitting one hundred percent of their targets, as opposed to someone hitting just forty percent, then the need to make the most from the imperfect art of staff selection becomes clear.

There are three practical steps that any sales manager can take to reduce the risks of making poor selection decisions at a time when strong sales performance is more important than ever.

It has been common knowledge for decades that the selection interview is a very poor predictor of whether a candidate is going to perform in any job. When it comes to sales jobs, the interview becomes even less effective.

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The reliability of the selection interview rises dramatically when the interviewer has a clear picture of the behaviours, skills and competencies associated with success in the job

21 Know what you are looking for

Going into the interview process without having clear goals on what you want to measure is as ineffective as selling without clear goals for prospecting, call cycles or sales plans. How will you select the right candidate if you don’t know what you are looking for?

The reliability of the selection interview rises dramatically when the interviewer has a clear picture of the behaviours, skills and competencies associated with success in the job. For those of you with a strong HR function in your business, your first port of call should be the job description and competencies for the specific vacancy. For those without on-tap HR support, we take a look at the core sales competencies and interview questions in the next issue of NZ Sales Manager.

Raise your game in interviewing

The next step to increase the effectiveness of interviews is to ensure they are conducted by someone who knows how to do it. Interviewing is a bit like driving a car in that you hardly ever meet someone prepared to admit they aren’t very good at it. It seems to suggest that we are not a good judge of character, or our interpersonal skills are somehow incomplete; both of which are admissions few sales managers would feel comfortable making.

The reality is that selection interviewing is a prized skill developed through practice and training in effective interviewing methods, most notably behavioural or competency based interviews. If you don’t interview very often or are untrained, then bring in a seasoned and trained interviewer to help you reduce the risk of making a poor selection decision. If interviews are likely to become a significant part of your job, then get trained in Competency Based Interviewing.

3

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Back up your selection decision with reliable supporting information

The greatest improvement that can be made to the process of selecting the right candidate is to add other criteria to back up your decision. Most recruiters make superficial in-roads here, usually in checking references, but few take sufficient steps to make a strong selection decision.

We already know that there is no perfect correlation between the selection method used and performance in the job. But the more steps we take to assess the candidate, the more we reduce the risk of getting it wrong.

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Steve Evans of People Central helps businesses to attract, recruit, retain and develop talented individuals and teams. Visit Steve’s website at www.peoplecentral.co.nz

www.peoplecentral.co.nz

References are as notorious as interviews when it comes to making selection decisions. How many of you have been on the brink of firing a useless sales person when they flounce into your office and announce they are leaving? What kind of reference are you going to give them to help them on their way? Also, remember that many separation packages reached outside of employment tribunals include ‘a good reference’.

I’m not suggesting that recruiting managers should stop checking references. But I would advise that they use the same diligence as they apply to the selection interview by asking the same competency based questions and insisting on specific examples. References should always be checked by phoning the referee as people will tell you much more than they are prepared to write down. In sales, it also pays to get a reference from a key client of the candidate as well as the employer to get a sense of how their customers see the candidate.

Sales Aptitude/Psychometric Tests bring objective, independent and unbiased information into making the selection decision. They will help identify sales superstars, people unlikely to cut it in sales environments and the personal development plans required to get a good candidate to be a great performer before the Employment Agreement gets signed.

Just ensure the test you use is from a reliable test publisher; something that a freebie downloaded from the internet is unlikely to deliver.

Sales simulations and role plays are little used in New Zealand but can bring valuable additional information to the selection process on how the candidate is likely to perform in the job. Choosing simulated role plays that have been tried and tested to ensure they measure what they claim to measure is the first step to ensure you don’t fall

into the trap of choosing a tool that won’t do the job. Secondly, ensure that the role play fits the sales job you are assessing. A relationship sales role, where long term business is generated through sales presentations to panels of decision makers, requires a different role play to one-off high volume retail sales.

Following these three steps isn’t a quick or easy process, but the time and financial investment in getting a clear picture of the person you want to recruit, acquiring the skills to interview effectively and backing up the shortcomings of the selection interview with additional measures of candidates effectiveness will reap huge dividends in increased sales volumes by effective sales people.

In Part 2 of this article in the next issue of NZSM, Steve explores the core sales competencies and suggests interview questions to

evaluate them. •

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1

2

Words by Matthew Mewse

Call PreparationMake sure you know what you’re

going to say, when and why!

The last thing you want is to be

on a call to a client and not know

what’s going to fall out of your lips

next. Make sure you create at least

a short guide so you can map your

way through to a successful call.

Call ReviewThis is where we learn what works!

Try and review your good calls.

Forget the bad ones or what didn’t

do well and focus on what we did

do well. Was there a phrase you

used that your prospect or client

liked? Did the timing and pace

of delivery go as planned? What

could you do better? Then you can

incorporate these points into the

next call. Develop and evolve what

works for you.

10 Tips to Improve Telephone Sales Technique Increase Your Sales

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3

4

5

6

IntroductionsDon’t mess about!

On a business to business call

don’t ask if they have a couple of

minutes, they answered the phone

so they must have. Secondly try

not to ask how they are today. You

need to get to the

point and not sound like a run-of-

the-mill telemarketer.

Use a successful formula for your introductionTell them who you are, where

you’re from, and the reason

for the call and then ask a 'hot-

button' question. The great Alan

Pease explains a hot-button when

pressed should make a good

prospect or client interested in

what you have to say. Create your

own hot-buttons and use them

during the call.

7

Call disciplinesManage time and continuity for better success.

If you have several or many calls of a similar type to make, keep focused.

Try not to make one call, have a break or do something else in between.

Also, where possible keep similar types of calls together. This helps your

flow. Start and finish the calling session in one go. You’ll get continuity,

warmed up for calling and more confident as you push on. Plus, you get

through what must be done!

Have you seen our website? It's www…Instead of just blurting out a web address or even a contact point you

might want someone to call, ask them, “Have you got a pen handy?”.

Most people scramble around and find one or just say, “Yes”. Guess what

they do now when you tell them your web or number?

Yup, they write it down!

There’s a problemAbout service, product, money or there's an objection.

Use two of the most powerful words you can ever say on the phone.

If you are faced with conflict, pricing problems, complaints or any

time there is an uncomfortable issue, just say “I understand”. Do you

know how difficult it can be to argue or even get cross with someone

who understands?

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10

9

8How to soften your qualifying and questioningSometimes we need to qualify a prospect or just ask a customer a

question about their needs, maybe even about our own delivery of

service. Try to bridge with phrases like, “And we wondered John…if you

ever felt…”. Or you can use third-party examples like; “I was speaking

to a business owner the other day, and he said to me, “Matthew, we

turnover more than $800,000 a year”, would you say your company was

similar John?”.

Be prepared for all the objectionsYou know you’ll get a few and, after all, haven’t you heard them all

before? Even though they are said in a different way, most are familiar.

Too busy, no budget. Whatever they are and whichever you face in your

business, be ready and have a quality response. Nothing works all the

time, but handling objections effectively will always increase your sales.

Just before you pick up that phoneImagine! As you punch in the

number to call your prospect or

client, ask yourself this: 'What

would it be like to receive a call

from me? How do I sound to

others? Do I sound the way the

prospect expects to hear me? Is

my tone okay and not too selling?

Am I too fast usually or too slow?'

Imagine, and then you’ll hear

yourself on a call.

Please visit the Resources page at

www.supersizeyoursales.com for

more telephone sales help. •

●

For more telephone sales help, visit www.supersizeyoursales.comwww.supersizeyoursales.com

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016 | www.nzsalesmanager.co.nz

Earlier this year, Yahoo's CEO Marissa Mayer instituted a 'work from home' ban for all her employees. Despite this,

and other employers similar policies, the consensus among employers and employees is that finding a healthy work/life balance is good for staff and profits.

Happy people are more fun to be around, have better relationships and are more engaged at work. In short, a happy employee is more useful than someone who is stressed.

No one has ever said on their death bed: "I wish I had spent more time at the office". However, many people live as if this was true, spending time off answering phone calls and checking emails, not detaching from work entirely. Long-term, this can lead to issues such as excessive tiredness, lack of productivity and disconnection from people.

Develop a Better Work/life Balance

Words by Tom O'Neil

www.nzsalesmanager.co.nz | 017

Tips to develop a better work-life balanceTo ensure you make the best of your time at work and home, good ideas include:

• Analysing the use of your time and deciding what's important. Set up a new daily regime ensuring the main things remain the main things.

• Leaving work at work. Turn off your cell phone, shut down your laptop and set a clear boundary between work and home. Ask your family to make you accountable to ensure you don't slip back into old habits.

• Saying no to stressful things that will only cause conflict later on. This allows you to focus on the parts of your life you really care about and give them 100 percent of your attention.

• Managing your time effectively by putting family events in a shared calendar and keeping a daily to-do list. Make sure you complete the important things and don't worry about the rest.

Tom O'Neil is an internationally best selling business author, award winning motivational speaker and NZ Herald business columnist. You can contact Tom to speak at your conference by visiting his website - www.tomoneil.com

www.tomoneil.com

Ways employers can assistEmployers need to understand a mentally and physically healthy person is a good employee.

Making team members work extra hours only builds resentment over the long term. My wife left her specialised role as a quality controller because her employer wouldn't let her have two weeks' holiday to go to a wedding in the UK. She had worked for the company for four years, had given it six months' notice of the trip and had three weeks' holiday owing.

The ways an employer can improve work/life balance for employees include Flexi hours, compressed work weeks, job-sharing, telecommuting and child-care support. These options allow employees to have more control over their lives, enabling them to be more productive.

Finding a quality work/life balance that suits you is important over your long-term career.

Put good plans in place now to ensure you will still be enjoying your

career for many years to come. •

●

The ways an employer can improve work/life balance for employees include Flexi hours, compressed work weeks, job-sharing, telecommuting and child-care support. These options allow employees to have more control over their lives, enabling them to be more productive.

018 | www.nzsalesmanager.co.nz

Why Sales Training Doesn’t Work

Words by Steve Bambury

TWOMINUTETOPUP

www.nzsalesmanager.co.nz | 019

Steve Bambury is a Sales Development Specialist with Sales Star. To find out more visit www.salesstar.com

www.salesstar.com

My journey as the prospective new customer has not been as easy as it ought to be so I thought I would share some of the obstacles I have come across that many of us including

myself may be guilty of, probably without even realising it.

Here are five simple tips to consider that can make all the difference and ensure that you don’t make the same mistakes that so many companies do when it comes to developing and growing your sales.

1. In an attempt to save money from the start, some companies simply choose off-the-shelf, generic training programmes that typically have little or no relevance to the needs of your team – avoid these at all costs!

2. Take the time to evaluate the needs of your team before you prescribe a training solution. Clearly identify where your team is now and where you need them to be to deliver the results you desire.

3. Ask the tough questions – do I have the right people in the right roles to take us on the journey. Find an assessment tool that will answer these questions, preferably one that also shows you their growth potential. See here for an example https://www.objectivemanagement.com/assess-your-candidates.aspx

4. Define what success looks like. It sounds pretty simple, but it is often overlooked. Take the time to describe the outcomes you want to achieve and share them with both your team and the training provider.

5. Measure your performance against your goals. Establish key metrics that clearly show your progress and provide both transparency and a framework of accountability for all involved.

Failure to assess the needs of your team and clearly define the outcomes required will likely lead to a generic training programme that either has content that’s not required, leaves out relevant and important content that is actually needed or, worse still, a combination of both!

Whatever the case, if you don’t evaluate and assess your team and clearly define the objectives and desired outcomes the result is all too often a training programme with little or no relevance to what’s truly needed to support your team in the field and a Return on Investment that won’t delight your key stakeholders.

To understand why sales training doesn’t work plus other key common mistakes that are easily avoided simply download the free whitepaper ‘Why Sales Training Does NOT Work’. •

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QUICKFIX

We know how important it is for sales people to be talking with the

decision makers. But how do we

find out who they are?

The best way is to ask. Asking

‘are you the decision maker’,

Finding Your Way to the Decision Makers

or ‘who will make the decision’, can be awkward and may either hit your prospects self esteem, or make you look stupid if you have misread the situation.

A better way is to ask ‘who, as well as yourself, will be making a decision on this?’ This assumption that your prospect is to be included in the decision will protect their self esteem, and the assumption that someone else might be, will open the way to identifying who else you need to talking with. ●

Get world leading free whitepapers and research each month by email!

Contact Ross Wilson on 021 152 8400 or email info@growingorganisations.com to discuss how we can help you achieve your sales goals in 2014.

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RESOURCECORNER

In 1904, a little-known Englishman named James Allen wrote a small book

called As a Man Thinketh. A hundred years later, this book has become a self-empowerment classic. New World Library author and publisher Marc Allen updated this timeless gem, recasting obsolete language and polishing the author's message to highlight the universal principles of the original.

James Allen's message has now reached a whole new generation of readers with As You Think. Great truths are simple and easy to express, and James Allen's insights into self-empowerment are just that: Personal power lies within the mind. Once awakened, there are no limits to what one can imagine and then achieve with the power of thought.

As You Think

Available from Amazon By James Allen

The author shares deep insights into the essential relationship of a person's thoughts to personal character, life circumstances, physical health, life purpose, achievement, and personal serenity. As You Think is a simple yet powerful reminder that "all we achieve and all that we fail to achieve is the direct result of our own thoughts." We are the masters of our destinies. ●

www.nzsalesmanager.co.nz | 023

DATE NAME PLACE COMPANY

14 April Sales Seminar Christchurch Top Achievers

15-16 April Essential Marketing Boot Camp Auckland The Marketing Company

16 April Cold Calling and Prospecting Auckland Top Achievers

20-22 April Sales Performer Auckland David Forman

21 April Sales Basics Auckland Geewiz

22 April Customer Service Auckland Geewiz

22 April Key Account Management Wellington NZIM

23 -24 April First Line Leadership Auckland David Forman

28 April Sales Management Auckland Top Achievers

29 April Create a Marketing Plan Wellington Geewiz

29-30 April Essential Marketing Boot Camp Christchurch The Marketing Company

7 May Sales Training Seminar Hamilton Top Achievers

8 May Key Account Management Auckland NZIM

12 May Sales Performer Auckland David Forman

13-14 May Persuasive Selling Bootcamp Christchurch The Marketing Company

19 May Sales Basics Auckland Geewiz

19 May Cold Calling and Prospecting Auckland Top Achievers

20 May Sales Management Auckland Geewiz

27 May Advanced Serious Selling Auckland Geewiz

29 May Sales Management Auckland Top Achievers

EVENTSCALENDAR

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THECLOSE

"I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my

sails to always reach my destination."

- Jimmy Dean

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