You are just a few steps away from your dream job. That lucrative sales job will be yours within a few days, and the only thing that stands in your way is crushing your sales interview.
Thinking about the interview process can send a cold sweat down anyone’s spine. But when you add the prospect of a sales job interview – with competitive candidates vying for limited sales positions – many find they feel unprepared.
Read below for tips to help job seekers ace interviews for sales jobs. With newfound confidence, better self-awareness, and a bit of free career advice, you can be ready to face off against any hiring manager.
How Do You Prepare For A Sales Interview?
Be smart about your sales interview preparation after your eyes are set on working for a particular company. Learn everything you can about the business.
- What are the company’s products or services?
- What industry trends can you discover before sales interviews begin?
- Does any of your previous sales experience translate to the new business?
Dig deep to gain insight into how to approach the job interview. This may require a fair amount of introspection.
What do you bring to the sales role? What advantages will you bring to their sales team? What sales strategies have you already used successfully?
What Should You Say In A Sales Job Interview?
View the sales interview as a sales meeting. You are there to sell yourself. But first, relax.
Your job search landed you a job interview, and most hiring managers are busy. So, they already saw something in you that led to this moment.
What you say is only part of the equation. Smile. Offer a firm handshake. But also, yes, give plenty of attention to what you will say. How you answer questions will tell the hiring manager conducting the interview a lot about you.
The Past Shapes The Future
Look for ways to focus on your past experiences when you answer questions. If you have a background that includes a sales career – all the better. But even if you don’t, you can still spend time relating what you’ve learned and how it relates to sales skills.
Provide specific examples of how you grew and what you learned, even from your failures. Just remember when speaking about past job experiences, that it’s PAR for the course:
- Problem: What issue arose? What impact could it or did it have?
- Action: What did you do about the potential roadblock?
- Result: What was the outcome? What did you learn?
Your new company will appreciate people who are adept at building relationships. Talk about your view of teammates and how you connect with people.
Common Interview Questions and Answers
A sales job interview will bring a lot of questions. Answer honestly and clearly. But expect a cookie-cutter sample answer to get you only some of the way. Understand the reasons behind the questions that hiring managers ask.
Prepare for a sales interview by thinking of common questions and how you will respond. Most interviewers will have time to prepare a list of important, open-ended questions, and you need to be ready to give thoughtful answers.
Behavioral questions are a handy tool. An interviewer may ask a few of these. Expect sales interview questions like:
- Think of a time you didn’t get along with someone on your team. What did you do?
- How do you handle irritated clients?
- What is the most important quality in a sales leader?
How can you answer these sales job interview questions? Remember that the hiring manager is trying to determine if you fit their vision of their next new hire.
Answer honestly with specific examples of things you’ve overcome. Most companies want someone to be humble and humble to build relationships or resolve differences. Be a team player.
More Sales Interview Questions
Hiring managers will, of course, want to ask direct questions about your selling skills. This is a sales interview, after all. Prepare well to give answers that speak to your strengths. Questions may take the form of:
- What are your sales strategies?
- What is the most important step in the sales cycle?
- How do you keep up with the latest trends in our industry?
Don’t be afraid to dive into the nuts and bolts of what being a salesperson means to you.
Identify key steps you follow as you sell – gathering cold calls and warm leads, building a rapport with the clients, effective sales pitches, and closing sales.
Answer this line of sales interview questions with your passion shining through—research avenues for gaining insight into industry direction like blogs, podcasts, and business publications.
You should already be using those knowledge resources before the sales interview. And you should plan to keep it up after you’re hired!
What You Not To Say In An Interview For A Sales Position
The final sales interview tips for you involve what you should not say during the sales job interview.
Job seekers should not fail to prepare. Only enter the sales job interview knowing everything you can about the hiring company’s products and services. Do your research.
You should avoid overstating your experience in sales interviews or exaggerating your sales skills. Honesty is the only policy here.
Refrain from implying that you will shy away from a heavy workload. Selling is hard work, and if you’re not ready for that commitment, the sales job probably isn’t for you.
You can ace your sales job interview with the right preparation and smart moves. Sell yourself and set yourself apart from the other candidates. Prepare, research, and be ready with answers. Your next sales job awaits!
