Whether you want to accept this fact or not, your job to find a job puts you directly in the path of being a salesperson. I'm a firm believer that salespeople have a much easier time finding work, not because finding sales jobs are any easier than any other job, but because the process of finding a new job is the same as finding prospects and selling them.
- "But I hate Selling."
- "I can't sell"
- "That would be degrading being a salesperson"
- "Salespeople are so pushy. I don't want to be seen that way"
Do any of these things sound like you? if so, you have been very misinformed as to what sales is and what sales people do. So many people have the picture of that pushy salesperson either on the phone or in a retail store or even at your front door that will not take 'NO' for an answer. Trust me, that is a sales tactic, but not what a sales person is.
Let's break down what good sales person does:
- Identifies a Problem
- Assesses their product or services and identifies how to solve that problem
- Asks Lots of Questions to identify if they have solutions to that problem
- Gets involved in that market to network with that community
- Helps People solve their problems whether they can offer the solution or they can find others than can help the problem
- Develops the skills or products to work in that market
- Makes alot of friends and contacts in that market who they stay engaged with either personally or profesionally
- Brings solutions to new problems to that network, industry or group
- Gets involved with others that also solve that problem
- Becomes an Expert that people want to talk to and who come to them.
Okay, now how does this list differ from the original picture of a salesperson? Very different, isn't it.
A good salesperson is not someone who pushes a product but listens and identifies with problems that need a solution. Before offering that solution they listen more and craft a better solution to that problem than the one they started with. They tailor their product to that problem.
So what does that mean to the job seeker? First, don't just write a resume to sell you. You must solve a problem. So when you market your self, remember to:
- Identify with a problem that exists
- Tailor your message to that problem
- Talk to people in that market to look at solutions or skills to solve that problem
- Tailor your product('You') to that problem
- When calling in or writing in, don't talk about you but call to say you have a solution to their problem and you can show how to fix that problem
At that point, you have differentiated yourself from every other salesperson(job candidate) that only sells themselves without even thinking what the problem of the prospect really is.
That is how sales people become good salespeople in their field.
William G Morgan, the Job Swami, is the Regional Manager and is an Executive IT & Sales Recruiter with Segula Technologies, Inc. He can be reached at (610)579-3216 if you are looking for great people or are looking for next employment
Pingback: Looking for a Job? You Are Now in Sales. | The Job Swami Speaks … | All Topics Blog