A Sales Compass – A Blog by B2B Sales Connections

Even the best resume in the world will not get you the interview unless the recruiter can find the information he needs to contact you.   Make sure all of your contact information, including name, address, phone and email, are front and center and not buried somewhere at the bottom in the text. 

Only list a phone number that you want potential employers to call.  Ensure that there is the ability to leave a voice mail because a recruiter will rarely call back twice.  It’s also not a good idea to have to leave it to your teenager to take messages either.

Lastly, many recruiters make first contact by email.  Check your inbox daily and turn your spam filters off.  Countless career opportunities have been lost because the email from the potential employer was never answered.

Make it easy for a recruiter to contact you, and you increase your chances of getting the interview.

Aim Higher!

Susan A. Enns, B2B Sales Connections
www.b2bsalesconnecitons.com, www.linkedin.com/in/susanenns, or www.twitter.com/SusanEnns

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The concept of having a virtual sales bench has been around for many years. It has been popularized by the authors of Top Grading for Sales. The concept promotes the need for sales management to always be recruiting because you never know when you will need to fill a vacant territory.

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Before you place a job ad and start to interview candidates, ask yourself if you know exactly what you are looking for.  What are the sales skills required to be successful at selling your product?  What are the personality traits of your top performers?    Take the time to clearly define your perfect sales professionals so that you will recognize it when you see them.  There is not one definition of the ideal sales candidate that fits everyone, but there is one definition that fits you! 

Aim Higher!

Susan A. Enns, B2B Sales Connections
www.b2bsalesconnections.com,  www.linkedin.com/in/susanenns, or www.twitter.com/SusanEnns

For automated tools to help you with your sales recruiting, check out our Recruiting, Hiring & Human Resources Tool Kit at http://www.b2bsalesconnections.com/automated_tools.php

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According to a study by the American Management Association, 28% of employers have fired workers for misusing e-mail and one-third have fired workers for misusing the Internet.  Read this article to find out how you can protect yourself.

http://www.tesh.com/ittrium/visit?path=A1×97x1y1xa5×1x76y1×2449x1×9by1×244ex1y5×1c750×5x1

Aim Higher!

Susan A. Enns, B2B Sales Connections
www.b2bsalesconnections.com or www.linkedin.com/in/SusanEnns

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When interviewing candidates for a sales position, it is important to be prepared.  As every candidate is different, if you just let the direction of the meeting go wherever the conversation takes you, it will be like comparing apples to oranges when trying to decide whom to hire.  Besides, having a chat about the local sports team will not guarantee you make the right hire.  In order to properly compare and evaluate the candidates in an interview, you need to ask the same questions of each and every one, and those questions must be scripted a head of time.

If you would like to receive a free copy of “11 Telephone Interview Questions to Find Top Performers”, please send me an email and I will send you a copy immediately.

Aim Higher!

Susan A. Enns, B2B Sales Connections
www.b2bsalesconnections.com, www.linkedin.com/in/susanenns, or www.twitter.com/SusanEnns

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When you look at the calendar, there are really only about 5 selling days left in the year.  You are hurrying around, doing whatever it takes to close every sale possible before year end so you can make quota and earn your annual bonus.  However you are waiting until after the holidays to prospect for new business since most companies don’t want to start new projects at this time of the year. 

This “hurry up and wait” mode can be very stressful, as you struggle with how to stay busy.  No matter how we wish it wasn’t so, new business slows down during the holiday season.  Even still, there are plenty of productive activities sales people can do to keep busy at this time of the year. (more…)

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You are looking for the perfect Christmas present for a loved one.  Let’s say you decide on a hand crafted silver bracelet that will be unique and meaningful.  Where do you go to buy the gift?  Costco, Walmart, or some other big box store that deals in sales volume and mass marketing of products.

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“When you are good in sales, you are never unemployed.” – John Noble

Aim Higher!

Susan A. Enns, B2B Sales Connections
www.b2bsalesconnections.com, or www.twitter.com/SusanEnns, www.linkedin.com/in/susanenns

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Twice a year we hear from sales people who say “it’s summer time no use in job hunting now”. The same thing happens at year end.  We regularly hear “no one ever hires in November or December so why should I be looking now?”

Companies are always looking and yes the numbers will drop in the summer and at the end of year but this provides serious job searchers with an advantage. If the number of people actively looking drops during this time then the number of competitors for that job has also dropped.  This provides a great opportunity for job seekers who keep looking.

Many companies hire in the New Year and the smart ones are gathering resumes and candidate profiles right now so they will be ready to hit the ground running when they are ready to start the hiring process.

 AIM HIGHER!

 Robert J. Weese

B2B Sales Connections

www.b2bsalesconnections.com

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I was asked recently by a soon to be college graduate how he should start his sales career.  I understood why he was asking.  After all a career in sales can be very rewarding. Not only are good sales professionals always in demand in the marketplace regardless of economic conditions, they also earn well above average for Canadians according to Human Resources & Development Canada. Sales people are also more upwardly mobile, with 85% of today’s CEO’s, Presidents and senior executives coming from a background in sales.

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