Ever considered being a sales consultant? This interview will take you down the career path, including the ups and downs you can expect in the position, what it takes to land the job, what you can expect to earn and more. This sales expert also explains how important it is to have a positive mindset during any job interview.
I am the leading Sales Consultant for a major car dealership in Florida. I happened to stumble upon this opportunity about five years ago as I was transitioning out of the military. I had no previous sales experience whatsoever, but I have always possessed a very positive and outgoing personality.
A few months before my separation from the military, I was shopping for a new car. After countless, grueling hours of bouncing back and forth between several dealerships and exchanging negotiating tactics with different salesman, I finally locked in on the vehicle I wanted. My salesman was a nice, older gentleman with a casual, low pressure approach, but a firm stance on the price. We battled back and forth over the price for quite a while, but I finally sat down with the sales manager and we got the deal done.
At some point during our dealing, I had mentioned that I would be getting out of the military, and my salesman suggested that I sell cars for a living. I almost laughed at that, because I had never thought of myself as a salesman. He explained to me I had the type of personality and attitude that would thrive in the business, and all I would need is some training and I could potentially make a good living.
After discussing it with my wife, I decided to give it a shot. The week after I got out of the Navy, my salesman set up an interview for me with the owner and general sales manager of the dealership and they hired me on the spot.
When searching for a job in any professional environment, there are several factors that can be quite essential. Your personal appearance is obviously key here. Make sure you are well groomed, well dressed and well versed. Perhaps the most important thing to keep in mind about the professional job search is to maintain a great and positive attitude. Be flexible and have the cognizant awareness to adapt to the surrounding for which you are applying, but always maintain a confident, positive attitude. It is absolutely amazing how far a genuine smile and optimistic outlook can get you.
No matter what kind of job you are applying for, whether it is a sales position or a desk job, another important thing to remember is that you have to sell yourself. Being in the sales profession, that becomes especially vital because while you are being interviewed, the main thing that they will be looking for is how great you sell yourself.
Be realistic in your job search. If you have the desire to try a career in sales but you have no experience, then make sure you are willing to start from the lower tier. Do not attempt to apply for a Sales Manager position with little or no experience because you will not be taken seriously. I knew that I had no experience, and I made sure to let my interviewers know that if they hired me I would be dedicated to educating myself on the craft.
Be honest and open, but keep it relevant. I made sure to drive home the point that even though I did not have the experience, I had the desire, motivation and initiative to work hard, learn as much as I could and apply my sales knowledge to the best of my ability. I did not, however, overload my interviewers with irrelevant information, such as what I did while I was in the military. Although my interviewers appreciated the fact that I served my country, they were not interested in what I did in my military career because it did not pertain to sales in any way.
Do not lose confidence or get down on yourself. I was fortunate in the fact that I got hired the first time I interviewed. However, that is not the norm, and most people should not expect to get hired on the spot the first time they interview for a new position. I had a few things working in my favor, such as I was a previous customer, the sales manager was familiar with who I was, and my salesman put in a few good words for me.
It is quite typical to interview well, but get denied the job. Do not let that bring your spirits down and discourage you. Let's say you have two interviews scheduled for an afternoon. The first interview goes horribly. You felt like a fish out of water and the interviewers all but berated you for even showing up. You walk out of the building feeling dejected. Your next interview is in less than an hour, and how will you approach it? Will you walk into your next interview with your head down and confidence low? Absolutely not! Brush off the last interview, clear your mind and verbally give yourself some positive affirmations. Look at yourself in the mirror and tell yourself good things. Think positively and stay focused. Walk into your next interview with a confident smile and a bright, focused attitude.
Throughout my sales career, those few things have kept me successful. There are times when it can get rough. Working for pure commission is not easy, but it can be extremely rewarding if you stay focused, positive, confident and dedicated. But remember, the key is that you must always know how to sell yourself.
Find and apply for your next successful job interview at SalesJobs.org where you’ll find all the jobs in one place.
Image from Gina Sanders/Shutterstock
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The leaves are changing, the kids are back in school, and that familiar chill is in the air. You think it's the perfect time to look for a job, and it is! But are your job search fears preventing you from making that leap?
It's not uncommon to feel lost when embarking on your job search journey. After all, school teaches us everything except how to get a job. What should you put on your resume? What questions should you ask in an interview? How can you stand out in the hiring process when there's so much competition?
Are you feeling spooked yet?
Believe it or not, there's no need to be afraid of the job search process! You can land your dream job with the right tools and strategy. You can find a job that won't give you nightmares. Here are three spooky secrets every job seeker should know as they look for a job this fall.
1. An Effective Job Search Starts With An Interview Bucket List
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Despite your fears, you've decided to take the plunge and look for a new job. You might be asking yourself, "Where do I start?" The answer is simple: start by creating an interview bucket list.
An interview bucket list is a list of 10-20 companies you'd love to work for. Are you passionate about a company's products or services? Do you feel connected to its mission? Can you relate to its values and beliefs as an organization? If you answer "yes" to any of these questions, that company probably belongs on your interview bucket list.
Once you create an interview bucket list, you'll be able to conduct a targeted job search, one with direction and a foundation upon which everything else will be built. An interview bucket list helps you focus your job search and networking strategies on the right opportunities, making it easier to get your foot in the door at one of your dream companies.
2. Your Job Application Needs To Disrupt Hiring Managers
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In order to stand out in the hiring process, you need to disrupt recruiters and hiring managers. You accomplish this by doing two things: optimizing your resume and writing a disruptive cover letter.
A well-optimized resume includes keywords from the job description. This ensures your resume gets past the ATS and into the hands of the hiring manager. Once it's in front of the hiring manager, it needs to grab and keep their attention. Quantifying your work experience—adding numbers to your bullet points—will make you stand out from other applicants. Hiring managers will want to know more about you and your accomplishments, and that's how you land a phone interview.
Before that, though, a hiring manager will read your cover letter. To disrupt them, you need to write a disruptive cover letter (obviously!). A disruptive cover letter gives you the opportunity to tell a story about why you feel connected to the company you're applying for. It's that storytelling aspect that will stand out to hiring managers and compel them to pick up the phone and give you a call.
3. Employers Hire You Based On 3 Things
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You can't get hired unless you know what employers are assessing you on in the interview process. While your skills and expertise matter, companies actually hire for three things: personality, aptitude, and experience (in that order).
Most job seekers don't realize how important it is to demonstrate their personality, aptitude, and experience in an interview. You could have the right experience for a job, but if the hiring manager doesn't think your personality is a good fit for the company culture, you probably won't get a job offer.
Make sure you demonstrate your soft skills and learn how to answer behavioral interview questions to prove you're the best candidate for the job you're applying for, not just the most qualified.
Want To Learn More Job Search Secrets?
As you look for a job this fall, it might be helpful to know some more spooky secrets so you can get over your job search fears and finally take control of your career.
We know the job search process can be scary. However, it's important to get clear on what you want to do next and focus on conducting a strategic job search, or what we refer to at Work It DAILY as job shopping. This is the only way to effectively market yourself to employers. If they can't see exactly where and how you add value, then that's going to decrease your chances of landing the job.
The competition is fierce, and there are a lot of factors that are out of your control. But the one factor you can control is your job search strategy, the tools and tactics you use to land a job.
If you want to learn the secrets to conducting a strategic job search, sign up for our Job Search Bootcamp, a two-hour, on-demand video workshop that comes with a free workbook.
In this video workshop, you'll learn:
- How to use backchanneling to get directly to hiring managers.
- The secret to using a connection story to stand out against the competition.
- How social media can be your secret weapon to get job interviews.
- The resume format that is getting job seekers more job interviews.
- And, a lot more hacks for job search success!
Let us show you the secrets to getting a new, better-paying job you actually love. Sign up for our Job Search Bootcamp today.
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