According to HubSpot, 1 customer out of 5 wants to contact a sales representative during the sales process, especially when he discovers the product or service.
Yes, salespeople are essential to your business! They meet up with customers to convince them and make as many sales as possible. They need to inspire trust, know your offers, and be comfortable with prospecting and negotiating. But what is THE key skill of an excellent salesperson?
In this article, we tell you about the different skills (technical and transversal) to be detected in any salesperson. And of course: we give you THE key skill that you should not miss in your recruitment!
Sales, prospecting and negotiation: the only skills of a very good salesperson?
The first skills that come to mind when talking about a salesperson are prospecting, negotiating and selling. But being a salesperson is actually much more complex than that! Your future recruit will have to combine very specific skills and qualities. Vocational training Sales representatives is therefore essential.
The technical skills essential to the sales profession
To begin with, a salesperson must obviously know your product or service on your fingertips. Features, advantages, disadvantages, composition: it must answer all the questions of a prospect without problems to close the sale! Moreover, the company and the market have no secrets for him: typical customer, competitors, target, values...
The salesperson will also have to master a CRM tool to add contact information and insert sales reports. Training on your CRM tool can be very useful! It is also essential that your salesperson has Good notions of oral and written French. He will probably have to send emails or make phone calls!
As for technical skills specific to sales, there is of course customer prospecting and development, but also commercial negotiation or the loyalty of existing customers. All this knowledge for which the training of your salespeople must be done throughout their career. Specialization in a specific field is another solution: field sales representative, business developer, major accounts... Conduct an early skills assessment to Know what techniques to develop with your salespeople !
Listening, emotional management, empathy: all the interpersonal skills of a good salesperson!
For an efficient and agile sales team, some interpersonal skills (or”Soft Skills”) should complement the technical skills of your salespeople.
In general, a salesperson must have Of strong relational and interpersonal skills. Someone who is shy, who does not dare to speak in front of a customer or who does not know how to manage his emotions will have more difficulty maintaining his client portfolio. These skills are also essential to propose and defend your ideas to the company!
Here is a list of transversal and interpersonal skills to work on with your sales teams:
- Active listening to customer needs
- Customer empathy and understanding
- Persuasion and positive influence
- Emotional Management and Conflict Resolution
- Clear communication and relational ease
- Team spirit and collaboration (contrary to popular belief, being a salesperson is not a lonely job!)
- Development and maintenance of a professional network
- Management skills
- Leadership and ability to motivate a team
Some other skills to assess among your salespeople
Sales representatives also have to deal with a changing daily life: customer appointments that are cancelled or added at the last minute, problems to manage, drops in results from one month to the next. La stress management and adaptability to change are therefore essential qualities for any good salesperson!
And don't forget that its portfolio can include a dozen customers or hundreds of contacts! Rigor and organization are also essential skills. Of course, analyzing sales data and statistics should be simple for your salesperson. He will have to take a step back from his performances regularly.
What are the personality traits of a good salesperson?
What about Soft Skills of a good commercial profile?
The first skill to detect in your salespeople is Perseverance. A salesperson must have the A taste for challenge, and be motivated to achieve your goals (such as the number of sales of a product or service, the acquisition of new prospects, etc.). Moreover, he is always looking for results and performance. He never gives up, and has a positive and optimistic attitude when faced with challenges!
However, this enthusiastic attitude must be balanced with a good ability to self-assess and to question ourselves. Achieving your goals is good, but knowing why you don't always reach them is better! Sales people need to know how to analyze their performance and to constantly adjust their sales strategy.
The little plus of excellent sales: his creativity and its strength of proposal! A good salesperson will sell and make a profit. A very good salesperson will think of solutions to go further, to be more effective and to continue their training throughout their career.
Finally, and this is the most important point: your salespeople must be honest in their business relationships. Your customers will have to trust them and feel comfortable dealing with them.
Keep in mind that salespeople are currently in high demand on the job market. They are the main driver of your turnover and the performance of your business. Investing in the development of their business skills, it means ensuring the sustainability of your business, and maximizing your chances of achieving your results! 🚀
