Sales Rep 101 – Chapter 3

Types of sales reps

In the sales world there is a philosophy that only a certain type of person can be successful. That is just not true. And I am an example of that and I will discuss that a little later. But the fact is, every company has its own philosophy on the type of salesperson that fits what they are looking for. But here is the problem with that. Over my career I have seen many people that had zero sales experience and didn’t have the “qualifications” that the company was looking for. But they gave them a chance and they turned out to be superstars. To put that in perspective it is so hard to find a superstar salesperson and if those companies that I was referring to didn’t give them a chance they would have missed out on the holy grail. I will give examples coming up. So let’s talk about the most common types of sales people. First up, the Aggressive Salesperson.

The Aggressive Salesperson

This is actually the most common type that companies look for in a sales person but that can backfire on them. In sales you need to be confident in what you are talking about and not be afraid to ask for the sale. But there is a difference between being confident and aggressive. A confident sales person can sit down with a client and discuss the product or service and help them understand how that product or service can help them. And why it is important for them to buy it from you. But an aggressive salesperson can be a complete turn off to potential clients. Aggressive sales people can come off as bullies and clients feel like they were almost forced into buying from them. I know that sounds strange but I have visited with thousands of clients over the years that have told me that they have bought before just to get rid of the sales person.

Do you know what sales people love more than anything? Referrals! And do you think that someone who bought from you but felt like they were bullied into buying it would ever refer anyone to you? I will answer that for you…NO! Aggressive Sales People do bring in sales. But companies get so wrapped up in the person bringing in sales that they forget what type of image that leaves on the company. Bottom line is that if you are an aggressive sales person you can use that to your advantage if you use it the right way. But the majority of aggressive sales people are holding themselves back. In fact, many aggressive sales people don’t even have good knowledge about the product or service they are selling. Imagine if they could actually teach the client about their own company and product with the same gusto that they try and sell with. Look out! Next up, the Arrogant Sales Person.

The Arrogant Sales Person

You may think that this sounds a lot like the Aggressive Sales Person but they are different for sure. We all know arrogant people in life. In fact, they are on of my biggest pet peeves in life. Do you enjoying hanging out with arrogant people? I would say the vast majority of you would say no. In fact, most of the time you will arrogant people in the company of other arrogant people. They funny thing about some arrogant people is that they really don’t have anything to be arrogant about. They don’t have money or connections to powerful people. They just feel that they are better than most everyone else. Wow…I’m disgusted just writing that. So with all of that being said, why in the world would you every buy anything from someone like that. Well, fortunately for Arrogant Sales People, people will buy from them. Most arrogant people are relatively attractive and there is something about buying from an attractive person. However, this is a big turn off for most potential clients. So what do I mean by an Arrogant Sales Person? This is when the sales person talks down to the client like they are stupid. And if they decide not to buy the Arrogant Sales Person will treat them like they don’t know what they are talking about and have no idea how to run their business. I have seen this so many times. Even by my own sales people and it is not a good look. There have been so many times when I wish I would have recorded the sales call so they can see just how horrible of a person they sound like. But unfortunately, this is not something that you can usually train out of someone. Once an Arrogant Sales Person always and Arrogant Sales Person. This next one fits a lot of us. Yep….the Lazy Sales Person.

The Lazy Sales Person

If we are being hones with ourselves we all have days when we fell lazy. Even good sales people have lazy days. But here is the difference. Have you ever know someone that for some reason always seems to have good things land in their lap? And they are not evening trying! I’m sure you have heard the saying everything they touch turns to gold. There are many sales people that fit that category. I have tried for years to figure out how some people have that while others don’t. I think that will stay a mystery forever. So here is the problem with that. Most Lazy Sales People have been in sales for a long time and they just do enough to survive. They are never great at their job but they do know how to sell and that will keep them employed. However, if you are new to sales and you have a Lazy Sales Person on your team you can fall into the trap thinking that is the way to go. Wrong! If you are new to sales you need to hustle. Learn as much as you can and never be satisfied. As you grow and get more successful it will be easier to ease off the throttle a little. But I can promise you this. If you start off your sales career as a Lazy Sales Person you will not make it. Okay, I think you get the point. Now let’s talk about the Passive Sales Person.

The Passive Sales Person

The Passive Sales Person can also be called relationship selling. Some sales are first call closes and some sales are repeat customers. Relationship selling is where you maybe see your customers once a month or once every couple of weeks. Food sales is a good example of this. Restaurants order food and supplies a few times a week so they get to know their sales rep and feel comfortable with them. So there is no pressure when you are selling. Some sales positions require you to put more focus on first call closes. Examples of this would be selling windows or water softeners. Things that customers are usually only going to buy once from you. The percentage of someone buying from you once you leave their home is about 10%-20%. Which is not very good. But a lot can go wrong after you leave. Maybe they have another appointment with a competitor or maybe they are having second thoughts about needing what you are selling. The point is those sales are harder to make and you need to do everything you can do to close the deal the first time. A Passive Sales Person can actually be successful at both of those examples.

Passive Sales People are usually very knowledgeable about their product or service and have good communication skills and can relate to customers very well. But what they lack sometimes is that closer mentality. Which basically means not leaving until they have done everything to make the sale before they leave. That doesn’t mean that they don’t ask for the sale, it just means that they are little more passive and maybe okay giving their prospects time to think about it. Early on in my sales career I would classify myself as a passive sales person. I was great at relationship selling but struggled a little with first call closes. But over time as get better at sales you learn different ways to close clients and you can get better. So when companies are looking for hard closers it may be a littler harder for you to convince a company to hire you but it does not mean that you cannot be successful.

A Good Sales Person

So what makes up a Good Sales Person. To me a good sales person has a little bit of everything. First and foremost you need to be able to relate all walks of life. In sales, you will meet all types of people and you need to be able to read the room quickly. The first sales call of the day may be an attorney and the next one may be an auto mechanic. And those conversations will be very different. Also, a good sales person will be able to be very knowledgeable about their products without seeming like arrogant ass. You want to be able to have a conversation with your clients while you are discussing your product or service. The last thing you want is for them to feel like you are talking down to them. And finally, even if you are more of a passive sales person you want to be able to close the deal.

You don’t need to be an aggressive sales person to be a good closer. You just need to be persistent. Make sure to cover most of their objections while you are doing your presentation and if they give you more objections handle them one at a time until you get to the real issue. And the real issue could sting a little. Maybe they don’t trust you quite yet. Keep in mind you are a complete stranger to them. Or it could be simply that they just want to sleep on it before they make the decision. Just keep in mind to always be yourself. People can sense when you are trying to hard and it is not a good look. Be yourself and you will do great.

Which Type Are You

So which type of Sales Person do you think you are? It is important for you to understand which type you are and to make sure your manager knows what type you are. That way your manager can take advantage of your strengths to help you succeed. Probably the biggest piece of advice I can give you is to be yourself. You can also get better in all facets of sales but trying to be someone your not is not a recipe for success. I’ve seen that many times over the years and it never works.