Are Salespeople Born or Made?
There is an ongoing debate around whether superstar salespeople are inherently born that way or whether they can be built through training and enablement.
My perspective is split, in that, I believe anyone can be trained to be an effective sales professional although the elite, have characteristics that can’t be taught.
What are these characteristics?
Drive
Passion
Hunger
I have previously spoken about the science of sales, meaning that through the implementation of a clear structure, process and defined methodology you can deliver repeatable results.
These systems can be taught, enabling anyone with enough enthusiasm and aptitude to be able to reach a reasonable level of sales competency.
That being said, salespeople are divided by the minority elite 5% and the remaining 95% of competent performers.
The 5% combine emotional intelligence, interpersonal skills and sales process (factors that can be taught) with drive, passion and hunger (factors that can’t be taught) to carve themselves a place within sales’ elite.
Even though there are certain skills that can be taught, naturally, an individual's ability to onboard these learnings and execute varies greatly.
Top tier sales professionals are able to absorb and implement their learnings effectively while demonstrating consistency in their approach.
When interviewing aspiring salespeople, I am often looking out for innate capabilities as opposed to focussing only on their functional skills.
As much as they both have a role to play, hiring someone who has the key ingredients that will motivate them over time can play a vital role in ensuring you’re hiring a potential star of the future.
Ultimately, my answer to the question is that elite salespeople are born while competent salespeople can be made through coaching and enablement.
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Disclaimer: All views expressed in this article are my own and do not represent the opinions or views of my current employer or any entity whatsoever with which I have been, am now, or will be affiliated. This post is for informational purposes only and any advice should be followed at the reader's own discretion.
©2020 by Alex Alleyne