How to Prepare for a Sales Job Interview – Not exactly like a date, but close!
Posted by Geoff Alexander on Mon, Jul 12, 2010 @ 10:02 AM
Today's post wasn't written by me. It was written by an individual that has just landed herself an outstanding six-figure inside sales job. I know her, because she took one of my inside sales training courses. More than one company was bidding for her, so she was able to choose from among several. How was she able to accomplish this? She gave outstanding employment interviews, and I know, because I got feedback from more than one company. She "wowed" everyone, so I asked her what the heck she did to gain all this traction. She told me, and I asked her to put it in writing for the blog. She wants to remain anonymous, but we'll call her Allison for the record. What she says below should be adopted by everyone looking for an inside sales or qualification job, and most of it actually applies to just about any job. It's 4 pages long, but trust me, it's worth it.
Here's what Allison says:
How to Prepare for a Sales Job Interview – Not exactly like a date, but close!
When you get asked out for a date, wouldn’t you want to know who you’re dating, what the person is like and how much fun you think you’ll have? With the internet as your tool, you can easily find the answers to these questions on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Podcasts and Google searches. It is no different for a job interview. You can use these sites to mine company and personnel information. Knowing the answers to these questions about a company and the people you will be interviewing with will have you prepared and possibly close the interview as well. Do your homework!
When I receive that wonderful call about scheduling an interview, there are several steps I take to prepare. Most importantly, I treat my interview from my first point of contact to the last as a sales call which has a beginning, middle and end structure to it. I also set my intention of getting the close (the job) by being prepared with the knowledge of “who, what and how” (homework).
In the Beginning - Before the Interview
Before I find the office on MapQuest and park my car to get to the interview on time, I need to know “who am I talking to?” The company’s website has loads of information to answer this question. Most company websites have an “about us” tab. This information will tell you what the company does and usually has a marketing tag line in the likes of answering “…we create an efficient way to save money and time with our software product…” It’s a compelling, succinct and simple message that the company wants its potential customers to understand and is known as “branding.” Knowing a company’s branding message is very important in understanding the product and what problems it can solve for their client. If you get the job, you will need to know this to meet your quota.
In addition to knowing a company’s branding message, it’s important to know about the company in its competitive market. Who are their competitors? What is the differentiation of their product in comparison? It’s good to know whether the company has recently been acquired, are currently active in acquiring other companies, its financial strength and whether it is a national or global company. I use Hoovers.com to get a brief overview of the company. You don’t need to pay for their in-depth service. If the company is a publicly traded company, information about the company is readily available. You can also search for a company in LinkedIn.com for the same purpose.
Another component to “who am I talking to?” Are the Executive Team (E.T.) and most importantly, whom you will be interviewing with. Again, the company website will have a tab to view the E.T. with their previous job experiences, which will tell you if you have any connections to their past companies. Most of the time, the people you will interview with, although important enough to hire you, will not be on the website under the E.T. and you will have to dig further. It is why it is critical to know the correct spelling of the names of the people and their job titles of whom you will be meeting so that you can review their profiles on LinkedIn.com. I use LinkedIn.com to get a sense of the person/people I will be talking to in an effort to create a connection in the interview. If you find an interesting tidbit about the person, he/she will recognize that you searched their profile in LinkedIn. This information alone, can give you a lead in building rapport during the interview (more on that later). In addition, you should have your own LinkedIn profile as it is now the business standard.
What does the company do? Read the “Press Releases.” Press Releases are a company’s pitch of putting their best foot forward. Select one or two that peak your interest. It will give you something you can talk about during the interview. Knowing whether the company has received recent venture capital support, current business partnerships, won industry awards, or launched a new product or version. This information will ignite your enthusiasm and ability to articulate that you did your homework about the company. This will also tell you if you like the company, where it’s going and answer if you want to work for them.
How does the product solve a client’s problem? Read a “Success Story.” You’ll need to know this to meet your sales quota. Does this solve a problem for one person, SMB (small/medium businesses), Fortune 500, Fortune 1000 or other? Does this solve a problem on a national or global scale? You’ll need to know this if you have a geographic territory and whether or not you have the experience to call a variety of markets. This will also tell you about the vertical markets the company is attempting to reach.
Review the job description. This will tell you how the company believes the client’s problems will be solved. The job description will tell you what you will be responsible for and what type of work experience they are looking for. You will need this information to build your compelling stories of WHY you are the right person for the job.
In the Middle - During the Interview
In real estate, the mantra is “location, location, location.” Location is all that matters. The best locations are usually where the best deals are to be had. In sales, whether it is doing your job or going on an interview for a job, my mantra is “connect, connect, connect.” In sales, if you cannot quickly connect with the prospect be it a warm or cold lead, you won’t have a close. People buy from people. In the case of job interviews, the interviewers are the “buyers.” You are the “seller,” selling the goods i.e. YOU.
You must have compelling stories to tell aside from your resume about how you are the perfect person to fill their needs in the job opportunity available. Understand that your resume gets you to the interview or in some cases; helps recruiters get you in the door. Your connection of stories between what you (the seller) can do for them (the buyer) is what is critical to a successful interview.
Actively listen. There is a saying in sales, that “the first person to speak loses the sale.” When you are actively listening, you are taking mental notes on how to respond to the interviewer’s interest in you and how you can help the company with your skill set. You will spend a good amount of time listening to the interviewers talk about the company, where it’s going and what they would like to accomplish with filling in this job. This is a good time to ask each interviewer’s job title and responsibilities so that you can understand the reporting relationship and what’s at stake for hiring you, a highly qualified sales person.
Build a rapport. Remember, this interview is a two-way street. Build a rapport with each person interviewing you. You need to create dialog to show interest and ability to articulate that you can do the job. Asking questions is the best way to create conversation. Sometimes you will meet on a one-to-one basis and other times the interview is a group interview. The sole purpose for you in an interview is to build a relationship (connect, connect, connect) to create a dialog (compelling stories) about how you can solve their need to increase sales. It’s up to you to create an on-going articulate conversation.
Some questions to ask:
What is the most challenging objection to purchasing this product? How do you overcome the objection? What do you like about the company? Where do you see yourself and the company in 5 years? Who are your competitors? How do you differentiate your product?
You’ll need to know this if you get the job. Why not know what’s in store for selling the product? Know the hurdles the company is against in improving sales growth.
Know your numbers. In sales, it’s a numbers game. All sales people know their numbers: quotas, KPI’s (e.g. 40-60 calls a day) and percent of outcomes of prospects to close. You should be able to quote from memory what you have accomplished in numbers.
Top Skills. Have a list of your Top 20 Skills (I got this great recommendation from a VP of Sales) and another list of five specific skills in detail related to the job to have for yourself in the interview to remember and discuss while in conversation. You can craft a generic list of your own or use the job description for listing necessary skills. At the end of the interview hand this copy to your interviewer. Handing this list to the interviewer shows that you have confidence in yourself and helps the interviewer position you in the company’s organizational chart. The fact that you crafted a list and gave it to the interviewer will leave a lasting impression.
Be positive. Nobody wants to work with a stick in the mud. How would you feel if your date was negative and complained about past relationships? What would you think if you had to listen to boring stories? Wouldn’t that tell you that this date isn’t going to work? All your worries about not having a job, needing money, the “what ifs” about not getting this job, etc, leave these at home before you drive in the car to the interview. Be positive about your compelling stories, your abilities, your past work experience, people that you have worked with and other hobbies you might have.
Be passionate. Have a passion that has nothing to do with work. I’m a baseball fan and I am passionate about the game, the score and the players. For others, cooking, art, sailing, collecting and traveling are other passions. Wouldn’t you rather work with someone who has a passion than not?
The end - The Close of the Interview
When you sense that the interview is coming to a close, you can ask:
What is your time frame for hiring? In your opinion, how do I (you) rate against the other candidates at this time? What are the next steps?
Be thankful. Make sure you get a business card of those you meet. It will give you their email addresses. Thank all the interviewers with a strong handshake and nice smile. Write an email within 24 hours to thank them for their time. Understand that you both spent time out of your day to meet while other things were boiling on the stove. As long as you can show respect for them it shows that you have respect for yourself as well. Look at this as a possible beginning rather than a means to an end. Your paths might cross again.
Reply and Stay Active. Once you have sent your thank you email, return any emails and calls from them as promptly as you would any sales call. Your response shows how you are an active sales person by treating the interviewer as a prospect.
In summary
Preparing for a Sales Job Interview is not exactly like a date, but close in knowing the “who, what and how” elements it takes to understand why you are there in the first place. It has been my experience that no interviewer wants to see a candidate fail. For some interviewers, it’s just as uncomfortable for them to interview you as it is for you to be interviewed. As long as you know that you have done your best in doing your homework and creating a connection, it is the most you can ask of yourself.
- Warm regards, and Play Ball!
Geoff here again: I can't add anything, except take Allison's great advice whenever you're applying for an inside sales or qualification job, and add it to your Best Practices Playbook.