Entelo CEO Breaks Down How to Sell a Salesman

April 18, 2014 at 2:16 PM by Rob Stevenson

Again and again, we hear all about the overlap between salespeople and recruiters. How as a recruiter, you Screen_Shot_2014-04-18_at_2.14.53_PMmust sell a candidate on your company, how the hiring cycle reflects a sales cycle, on and on ad nauseum.

Don't worry, friends. I'm not here to compare you to phone jockey charlatan salesmen. And although we tend to focus on the importance of adding top technical talent, truly, you're going to need to build a top tier sales team, or the lights go out and the ice cream melts. Recently, our fearless leader, Jon Bischke, gave an enlightening talk at SalesHacker conference where he shared some of the insights we've realized when it comes to relating to and eventually hiring sales candidates. Check out the full talk below, and be sure to stick around at the end for a great Q&A!

 

Some key takeaways:

  • Top-level salesmen for huge brands probably aren't right for your small- to medium- sized business. These salesfolk operated with the power of that brand behind all their sales efforts. When your company is still building a brand, you need someone who is comfortable defining a brand and expressing it's utility.
  • No one is going to work for your forever. Express to your candidates how your company and role can help them grow and learn, and they will see your organization as more of an opportunity and put it in perspective of their entire career
  • If you're not exhausted by your recruiting efforts, you're doing it wrong. Jon spends approximately 50% of his time recruiting, and shares an anecdote about how Mark Zuckerberg spent 6 hours interviewing on the eve of Facebook's IPO. 

What strategies have you utilized to recruit salespeople? Leave a comment or tweet @EnteloRob!

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