When your organization is looking to outperform in its marketplace, nothing but top sales talent will fit the bill. Yet what many organizations overlook is that the search for greatness in sales talent must be on-going to be successful. Switching hiring efforts on and off makes for a less effective recruitment process that will not attract and retain key sales talent. Here’s how your organization can keep its search for greatness on-going without exceeding your sales recruitment budget.

Look Outside Your Core Industry for Sales Talent

During the recent recession, it was relatively easy for organizations to require and receive years of experience in a specific industry segment. A rising tide of sales hiring has changed that dynamic, meaning that organizations looking for greatness should be widening their horizons. If your organization is having difficulty locating top tier sales people, though, it is not because those individuals are not out there. It might just be that your recruiting is not reaching the right places. Give active consideration to great sales talent from outside your core industry, including:

• Second career sales people, who have had success in entrepreneurial or other sales environments
• Beginning career sales people, who have recently entered the work force but have already demonstrated sales success
• Experienced in another industry sales people, who have shown translatable ability to sell in other markets

Know That Top Performing Sales Talent Has High Expectations, Too

You expect high performance from your sales department. Would it surprise you to learn that top sales talent has high expectations, too? If it does, your sales recruiting process may need an update to attract the top sales talent you are looking for. Top performers want to work with other top performers in highly regarded, highly visible positions; these individuals thrive on the thrill of sales, and expect that the rewards will extend beyond what they earn. After all, top performers can earn a high salary nearly anywhere.

Actively Manage Your Sales Talent – Your Top Commodity

The commodities that your organization relies on to get business done are actively managed, because resources are finite and must be maximized in order to benefit the bottom line. Your sales talent is also a finite resource, especially when it comes to your A-level talent. While it is true that no individual sales person is irreplaceable, it is more difficult to replace higher performing sales team members, especially as the job market is shifting in favor of these high performers. In recent months it has become the norm for available top sales talent to receive multiple offers from interested organizations within a short period of time. If you are actively managing your talent, you can spend less time worrying about competing offers and more time building sales revenue.

From Recruitment to Retention, a Sales Recruiter Can Help with All Aspects of Managing Your Sales Talent

Now that sales talent is a recognized resource, and now that organizations’ knowledge of selling and what it takes to become a great sales person extends far beyond outmoded perceptions of “shark” sales people, many businesses are outsourcing sales recruitment to sales recruiters. The right sales recruiter can help your business gain a competitive edge in the marketplace by:

• Reducing your overhead costs for sales talent acquisition and retention
• Boosting the overall quality of candidates through finely managed recruiting processes
• Providing better predictions of candidate performance through well-tested interviewing and screening methods

As a sales manager or executive, your sales recruitment process is only a part of the overall picture of success for your sales department. By outsourcing your sales talent recruiting to a qualified recruiter, you can better leverage your time and resources even while your on-going search for talent greatness continues, ensuring you never miss the opportunity to hire a great candidate again.