When you are on the hunt for candidates for your successful sales team you are looking for individuals who can act cohesively, responding to and supporting a culture of cooperation within the team. Moreover, the task of building a successful sales team is constant as you carefully select sales people from the job market who have the skills and characteristics that will compliment your business goals. Being familiar with the following marks of a successful sales team will help you build the outperforming sales team that you are working towards.

Sales People on a Successful Sales Team Put the Business First

A key differentiator between an average sales team and a successful sales team is the ability to think in terms of the business and the good of the team, as opposed to what benefits the individual team member. Sales teams whose members can do this almost always outperform because they are in tune with the market and looking for strong sales, rather than quick commissions. When you are on the hunt for a successful sales team, look for sales people who can:

• Understand business needs and put these ahead of any conflicting goals
• Use sales approaches that build prospects’ confidence in the underlying business
• Ensure customer satisfaction by delivering and then over-delivering, while still preserving profit margins for the business

Sales People on a Successful Sales Team Follow Up

Many a sales manager has had to wonder why sales are not meeting the expectations set by the quantity and quality of leads coming in to the sales team. Too frequently, the answer is that sales people are not implementing best practices for follow up. When a lead or prospect is warm, it is never too soon to call, send an e-mail, or drop by in person – anything to keep that lead from going cold! The successful sales team is fully aware of the importance and timing of follow up, which is a characteristic you should always be looking for when building your own sales team.

Sales People on a Successful Sales Team Have Longevity

It is no secret that turnover on sales teams trends high, but successful sales teams do have a secret here: Their turnover rate is lower. Many times this is a result of a positive feedback loop, wherein satisfied sales people stay longer, perform better, and work within an environment of satisfaction that encourages others to stay longer and perform better. It takes work from sales managers and executives to reach this point but once a successful sales team reaches it, the longevity can be almost self-sustaining.

Sales People on a Successful Sales Team Are Motivated

That sales people who are turning in top performance are motivated goes without saying, but the reasons behind the motivation of a successful sales team bear scrutiny. After all, it is possible for a sales team to have only one or two top performers and a balance of average and low contributing sales people, though not for long because those top performers will be seeking the exit to a more successful team. The key motivations that need to be present to support a successful sales team are:

• A compensation plan that motivates contributors at all levels and adequately rewards performance
• A corporate culture that breeds and encourages individual as well as team success
• A great sales manager and a team of supportive executives

Once the characteristics of a successful sales team fall into place your hunt for a successful sales team will be that much easier, as top quality candidates for your open positions will be competing to work for you. If you are having trouble finding the right candidates, a sales recruiter might be the answer; with access to deep candidate pools that include candidates who are not on the active job market, sales recruiters can make the hunt for a successful sales team easier than you thought possible.