The wrong sales hire costs you more than lost revenue. It drains culture, stalls momentum, and wastes your time. When you bring someone on who can’t close deals, you’re not just missing potential income. You’re actively harming your business with every day they stay. Your team watches their failures, your customers experience their mediocrity, and you spend hours trying to fix what might be unfixable.
Average annual turnover for sales reps is around 35%, nearly three times higher than the average for all other industries (13%). One study found that 41.9% of salespeople failed to meet their quotas, highlighting the persistent challenge of effectiveness in sales hiring and management. The right sales hire transforms everything with unstoppable momentum, bringing in deals that seemed impossible and elevating your entire team.
While running my (now exited) social media agency I made great and terrible hiring calls. I learned what separates amazing sales hires from the ones who talk a good game but never deliver. Making the right choice comes from knowing exactly what to look for before signing the offer letter.
Don’t hire a sales person the conventional way
Traditional sales hiring focuses on the wrong signals. Businesses get seduced by charismatic personalities, impressive resumes, or candidates who interview brilliantly. Because if they can sell themselves, they can sell your product, right? But companies hire based on how someone talks about selling rather than evidence they can actually sell. Don’t fall into that trap. Abandon what feels right for what actually works.
Look for prey drive first
Prey drive is the internal spark to chase, close, and win. This quality comes built-in. You spot it or miss it. People with prey drive just want to close deals. This fundamental hunting instinct separates true sales performers from everyone else. Stars deliver. Pretenders talk. Someone with prey drive stays on the phone when others quit for the day. They see rejection as information, not failure. They track every lead and never let opportunities slip. When interviewing candidates, probe for signs of this natural hunger.
Ask how they respond when deals stall or what actions they take when behind on targets. Look for signs they never give up because there’s something inside them that can’t. Their answers reveal whether they possess this essential quality.
“How do you respond when deals stall?” Follow up: “What actions do you take when you’re behind on targets?”
Test them on battle scars, not victories
If someone’s only sold easy products, they won’t survive in your world. Hire people who’ve sold the unsellable. Anyone looks good selling products everyone wants, but sales stars prove themselves in difficult markets. The candidate who closed complex deals during economic downturns or built pipelines from scratch will outperform someone who rode the wave of a hot product.
Ask about their toughest sales environment and how they sold despite it. Stars have stories about perseverance and ingenuity, not just lucky wins. They’ll thrive selling something that actually solves problems compared to the grind they came from.
“Tell me about your toughest sales environment.” Follow up: “How did you manage to sell despite those challenges?”
Prioritize numbers over charm
Forget charisma. Look at numbers. Past performance is the best predictor. Don’t fall for stories, fall for stats. Great candidates come armed with specific metrics: quota attainment percentages, sales rankings, average deal sizes, and conversion rates. They track these numbers religiously because they’re scorekeepers by nature.
When you ask for performance data, beware of vague responses or excuses. True performers know their exact numbers and share them proudly. Request documentation of their claims and verify with references. Use the data as proof that the narrative stacks up.
“What performance data are you most proud of?” Follow up: “Can you give me specific metrics like quota attainment percentages, sales rankings, and conversion rates?”
Design compensation that attracts killers
Your compensation plan is your magnet. If it’s vague, lazy, or capped, you’ll attract the wrong people or none at all. Make it clear, make it aggressive, and tie it to results. Top performers follow the money. They want unlimited earning potential because they believe in their ability to exceed targets.
Create a plan that rewards excellence generously while keeping base compensation reasonable. The right structure attracts hunters and repels order-takers. Review your plan regularly against industry standards to ensure you remain competitive for top talent.
“What kind of compensation structure motivates you the most?” Follow up: “How do you feel about plans with lower base salary but unlimited commission potential versus higher base with capped earnings?”
Hunger matters more than experience
Genuine hunger reveals itself early in your conversations. Ask how they hit their last target. Ask what they’re chasing now. If they talk in excuses or fluff, they’re not ready. Sales winners never stop. True sales professionals take ownership of their performance. They speak in terms of actions they took, not circumstances beyond their control.
Listen for language that reveals their mindset. Do they become visibly energized when describing past wins? Do they have clear personal goals beyond just meeting quota? The way candidates discuss past performance and future ambitions signals whether they have the drive to succeed in your organization.
“How did you hit your last target?” Follow up: “What are you chasing now?”
Create realistic selling scenarios
You’re not hiring a talker. You’re hiring a closer. Know the difference by testing candidates in mock sales situations. After explaining your product, ask them to sell it back to you. Present objections they’ll face in the field and evaluate their responses. Observe how they handle pressure and think on their feet.
Stars welcome these challenges while pretenders struggle with reality. The interview provides valuable data when you make it resemble actual selling conditions rather than theoretical discussions.
“I just explained our product to you. Can you explain how you’d go about selling it to me?” Follow up: “Here’s an objection you’ll face: [present specific objection]. How do you handle that?”
Put it all together
Hiring sales stars requires systematic evaluation of prey drive, battle-tested experience, verifiable performance, reaction to your compensation plan, and demonstrable hunger. Skip a step and you risk bringing in someone who talks better than they sell. Look beyond surface charm to the underlying qualities that drive consistent results. The best sales talent often comes from adjacent industries where selling was harder. The right process leads to the right person almost every time.
When you find your ideal sales performer, everything changes. Your revenue grows, your team elevates, and you get back the time you’ve wasted managing underperformers. You just need to know what to look for.
Read the full article here
