Your interviews are over and you have made the decision to bring a new sales person on board your team. There is a lot of excitement and energy on both sides. You think you have a real go-getter and someone who is going to knock the socks off everyone. They are excited to show you their ability to succeed.
You walk them around the building, introducing your “new star” to everyone, beaming with pride on your new addition. They show a nervous energy that comes with a new position and assurance that they can succeed.
They go through the training program you have in place, wowing their new colleagues with excitement, confidence, and saying the right things. This is “the one”, the Neo of your sales Matrix, going to whisk your organization to a new level of the Promised Land.
Then you set them loose and …reality hits. The activity starts strong, but, after a few weeks, it begins to wane. The swagger turns into a shuffle. The phone calls, appointments, proposals, etc. all start to slow down. Now you both start to wonder where it all went wrong.
They start second guessing themselves and their career path. “Did I take the wrong job?” “Am I cut out for this?”
You are thinking the same. “Did I make the wrong choice?” “Maybe the other candidate was better.”
So how do you know?
The answer is simple. You don’t. Every sales person hits a block at some point. Whether it is two days after they have finished their training, or six months into the job when they think they should be doing better, everyone hits “the wall”. It is at this point you have to make a decision. Do we continue down this path or do we part ways and look for a new beginning.
The goal of the sales manager/leader is to determine whether they will ever gain the knowledge or confidence needed to succeed. The responsibility of the manager is to provide the breeding ground for learning and the opportunity to succeed. If they are not a good fit, then save everyone the pain that will come and make the decision quickly to move on.
The goal of the sales professional is to get over the hurdles they face. Every sales professional will hit a series of walls. It is up to them to get over these hurdles and learn how to succeed. Just keep going and don’t give up!
Do you have the right person? Only time will tell. And only the sales person will determine for themselves whether they are the one who will succeed. If you have provided training and have a good service or product, the best sales people will find a way.