The 8 mistakes to avoid when hiring

Getting the right sales people into your business is fundamental and getting it wrong can be both costly and time consuming to remedy. We look at the 8 common mistakes you have to avoid when hiring.

Mistake 1 = Not writing a Job/Person Specification

Sounds simple but it is a common mistake. If you go to the supermarket without a shopping list, you will come home with some items you did want and some you didn’t! Write a list of what you can’t live without in your new recruit. But remember that attitude can be as important as skills. Skills can often be trained but attitude is much harder to change.

Mistake 2 = Not selling the job to the candidate

Recruitment is a two way street. You need to attract the best candidates to your business so tell them why they should come and work for you. Don’t assume that they know everything about the intricacies of your business. Don’t miss out on a great candidate by failing to make them want to work for your company. They may take up another job offer.

Mistake 3 = Judging a book by its cover!

We’ve all heard this analogy before yet most employers still reject brilliant sales people because they can’t write a fantastic CV. Trust the agency to pre-select candidates based on your job specification. Meet the candidates and judge them on whether you would personally buy from them!

Mistake 4 = Being too specific on your Job Specification

Start with a wide job specification and consider carefully the elements that are truly non-negotiable. By limiting yourself to candidates in a very specific market sector you can often miss out on quality candidates in other markets that have professional sales training and related experience. Again, meet a range of candidates and narrow your selection based on face-to-face interviews.

Mistake 5 - Having too many people involved in the interviewing process . . . and the wrong ones

Recruitment should be done by the person with the ‘need’. Ultimately this person will manage the new recruit and probably benefit from their success. Involving too many people in the recruitment process does spread the responsibility, but doesn’t make the risk any less. Statistics prove that successful recruitment can be done by one person and that involving more than three people in the process can actually have a detrimental effect on the success of a new recruit.

Mistake 6 = Delaying your final decision

Elongated recruitment processes usually end in losing the best candidates as they are snapped up by other employers. Sounds simple, but this is a fact and it causes the recruitment process to be far more painful than it should be.

Mistake 7 = Scrimping on salary when it comes to offering to the right candidate

In sales we try to exceed our customer’s expectations. Job offers should follow a similar vein. By offering a low basic salary you devalue the recruitment process. Details like this should be sorted out prior to a second interview so that a candidate’s expectations are managed effectively.

Mistake 8 = Not using On Target Recruitment!

With a specialist bespoke database, On Target can give you access to the best sales talent in the market. We will help to pre-screen candidates – saving you wasted time and stress. We can typically half the time it takes to recruit, making sure valuable sales territories remain covered and competitors don’t steal a march on your clients!

Looking to recruit now?

Give us a call today to find out how On Target can make a real difference to your recruitment process. To discuss your current vacancy, contact us by email or call us today.

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