Every now and then I get a call from one of my consulting clients who is all excited because he thinks he’s found the ideal salesperson.
“Brian,” he’ll tell me excitedly, “This guy is great with people. He’s a really good talker.”
And I’ll respond with: “I’ve no doubt he’s a good talker, but can he sell?”
And of course, the client assures me that the guy can, until he finds out that he can’t.
Many folks used to think that outgoing people who have the gift of gab made good salespeople. That was before they discovered that many of these outgoing people wouldn’t shut up long enough to let the prospect buy.
We need to remember that there’s a difference between making conversation and making sales.
There are a several reasons why we keep on hiring this type of salesperson:
- They come across as being extremely likeable, and we think our clients will also find them that way. In actual fact, your clients will probably give a sigh of relief when the person leaves or hangs up the telephone so that they can get about their business.
- They are extremely proficient at selling themselves into a job. Unfortunately, that’s often the last thing they sell for you.
- Reference checks come up clean because former employers still like them and don’t want to give a poor reference.
Use our Sales Temperament Assessment to make sure you hire sellers, not just talkers.
