Managers are always seeking out top sales talent. It doesn’t matter how great your sales strategies are if you don’t have the right people to sell your products and services. Without a talented sales team, your company cannot grow and your profits cannot increase. Naturally, this means having an effective sales hiring process is vital to your organization.

But if you’re constantly hiring the wrong people, your sales hiring process is likely the problem—it’s failing you.

Here are some of the reasons why your sales hiring process might not be as great as it could be, and what you can do to fix it.

You Wait Until the Last Minute

Your sales force is simply too important to your organization for you to wait until the last minute. By then, you’ll only have a maximum of two weeks to find that extraordinary new hire. The chances of that happening in such a short time span aren’t very good.

Adjust your sales hiring process. You must always be recruiting, even if you don’t have any open positions at the moment. So that when you do have it in your budget to hire someone new, you’ll already have a wide pool of qualified candidates. When you start interviewing early, you give yourself more time to make the right decisions instead of being stuck hiring someone that isn’t great, just because you have no other options.

You Have No Methodology

Your sales hiring process must be just that—a process. There should be a methodology to it. You shouldn’t be taking shortcuts or skipping steps with such an important responsibility. You should have clearly defined stages that are strictly laid out and followed—from sourcing and interviewing to onboarding. When you strictly adhere to your proven methodology, you’ll produce better hiring results. 

Your Sales Hiring Process Is Outdated

If you’ve been using the same sales hiring process as you did even five years ago, therein lies your problem. Your sales hiring process is outdated, so it won’t be as effective as it could be. You must keep up with hiring trends—like social media recruiting and inbound marketing—if you want to attract and find the best sales talent in your industry.

You Focus Too Much on Skills

The fact is selling skills aren’t actually that important. And your hiring decision shouldn’t be based on them alone. Skills can be learned, and when you have a proper onboarding and training program at your organization, you can teach your new hires exactly what they need to know to be great sales people. What you should really be looking closely at are your candidates’ personalities and their cultural fit within your company.

Not everyone is cut out to be a sales person; it takes special personality traits. And even the greatest sales talent might not work out in your unique business environment if they don’t match your company culture. Getting to know your candidates on a deeper level can help you make better hiring decisions. Don’t ignore skills and experience—just don’t let them be your only reasons for hiring.

You Haven’t Marketed Your Brand

Your sales hiring process should include brand marketing. You need to spread the word about what a great employer you can be, what the perks are of working there, and why top sales people shouldn’t miss out on the opportunity. You need to get people excited and eager to work for your organization. That’s how you’ll attract top talent to work for you.

You’re Not a Hiring Expert

You’re a sales manager. You’re not a hiring expert. Sometimes the best decision you can make to ensure you hire top talent is to outsource the responsibility to an expert that knows the industry, knows how sales people think, and can find and recruit the best. Let a sales recruiting firm handle your sales hiring process, and you’ll get better results.