FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Dallas, TX) – There are no crystal
balls for selecting salespeople. Too often,
sales managers never know they've made a
bad hiring decision until a would-be superstar's
production hits the skids. In other words,
until it's too late. Now, a controversial
new study from two Dallas-based researchers
has found an effective way to boost hiring
"hit" rates and avoid the costly
pitfalls of selecting the wrong candidates.
Sales managers have long relied on personality
traits like dominance, sociability and empathy
to identify top sellers. But according to
recent research by veteran scientists and
bestselling authors George W. Dudley and
Shannon L. Goodson, one of the best predictors
of future sales performance is a salesperson's
willingness to consistently prospect for
new business. Studies by Dudley and Goodson
have shown that salespeople who hesitate
to promote themselves and their products
to prospective buyers sacrifice an average
of 15 orders every month. That hesitation
is called Sales Call Reluctance®. Detecting
it before a hiring decision is made, say
the researchers, can help managers correctly
identify candidates as potential top producers
or future liabilities.
Recently Dudley and Goodson looked at a
multi-industry sample of 206 currently employed
salespeople. Industries represented ranged
from financial services and real estate
to manufacturing and advertising sales.
Approximately half the sample was identified
as Very High Producers (in the top 20% of
their companies), and half as Very Low Producers
(bottom 20% of their companies). Each participant
completed SPQ*GOLD®, a 110-question
computer scored test designed specifically
to detect and measure 12 types of behavioral
inhibitions associated with sales call reluctance.
Then, using only questionnaire results,
the researchers attempted to correctly pick
the high producers. Analysis of SPQ results
enabled Dudley and Goodson to correctly
identify 72% of the VHPs. Whiles that's
not perfect, it significantly improved on
the sample's base "hit" rate (candidates
correctly identified at time of hire) of
54%. Dudley emphasized that even small increases
in selection accuracy can save companies
hundreds of thousands of dollars in wasted
training and unmet quotas. "In most
cases, knowing up front whether a candidate
will be able to prospect comfortably saves
time, money and frustration."
Other findings from the analysis include:
High producers have significantly less fear
that their calls will be seen as pushy or
intrusive. They don't wait for a mythical
"right time" to call on prospects
– to them, it's always the right time.
High producers are not afraid to call on
major decision-makers: people of wealth,
power, and prestige. Low producers, on the
other hand, tend to be more intimidated
by these potential buyers – and avoid
calling on them.
Low producers are more likely to criticize,
complain, and make excuses for their behavior.
They tend to be more difficult to manage,
coach, train, and advise than their high-producing
counterparts.
Goodson acknowledges that this study flies
in the face of current sales selection philosophies,
especially those which favor candidates
with high relationship-building skills.
But, she says, today's so-called client-centered
approaches tend to put the cart before the
horse. "The current emphasis on nurturing
client relationships assumes that salespeople
are comfortable with initiating the relationship
in the first place. But many aren't. They
can't, won't, or simply don't make initial
contacts with prospective clients in sufficient
numbers. As a result, many salespeople who
have become well-versed in relationship-building
chronically lack new customers to build
relationships with."
Dudley and Goodson are co-authors of The
Psychology of Sales Call Reluctance®:
Earning What You're Worth in Sales. The
book retails for $22.95 and is available
in bookstores nationwide or at amazon.com.
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