What Are Characteristics of a Successful Salesperson?

When asked to picture someone who works in sales, most people will probably think of a talkative extrovert. In reality, salespeople come in all different shapes and sizes—and personality types. In this video, Acquirent CEO Joe Flanagan sits down with HR Director Ryan Winthrop to chat about the personality traits of a successful salesperson, and how to identify them in the field of recruiting. If you’re asking yourself how to hire a sales team for your company, consider these qualities first.

Experienced salespeople will know that many types of people can be successful and effective in sales. But is there a roadmap for identifying someone who will thrive in a sales role? Can people who aren’t always comfortable in social settings still be good at sales? Working as a salesperson involves a lot of communication with clients, coworkers, and potential consumers, but that doesn’t necessarily mean introverts can’t succeed in those roles.

Predicting Success

Though there’s no one personality type for sales, a few critical qualities can help predict a salesperson’s success. Firstly, they must see value in the product or solution they’re selling. It’s difficult to convince a potential lead of the worth of a product if you do not believe in the product’s worth yourself. Even if you personally have no need or special relationship to the product, find a way to appreciate its strengths and ability to solve the problems of prospective customers.

Having a passion for the industry is another must for a successful salesperson. There’s no one right way for people to show they care about what they do, especially at an outsourced sales company like Acquirent, where one team differs greatly from the next. Be on the look-out for the diverse ways employees express their enthusiasm for their work and try to identify those traits in prospective salespeople.

Finding the Right Fit

Everyone has something that motivates them more than anything else. In recruiting, it’s our job to find out what exactly that drive is for each person. At Acquirent, we’re working with 25 different clients. A certain team member might fail with one client but be a great fit for another. It’s all about finding the right balance, which is why open communication is essential.

At a sales outsourcing company like Acquirent, our business varies so much from client to client that hiring a mix of personality types as salespeople is essential. When recruiting, we have to continue to look for all different types of salespeople and learn the best ways to match them with clients for success.