The Sales Weakness That Is Actually A Strength

I was interviewing for my first sales job and sitting across from the Vice President of Sales. I’d been through a few rounds of interviews and completed the last step in the hiring process – an assessment. I felt confident – it had all gone well. So, I was in the middle of thinking that I’d be getting an offer when the sales executive said to me, "You know, Scott, everything in our sales aptitude test is telling me that you are not going to make it in sales."

He goes on to say that the assessment indicated I wouldn’t be a good closer, "that you'll focus too much on the client relationship …. and won't press hard enough for the business. Everyone here thought you’d be good, but I just can't hire you." He said I had “high closing reluctance”… it felt like the professional equivalent of a bad medical diagnosis. At the time, I was devastated. 

What I know now is that his data was absolutely right. But his conclusion was misguided and wrong.

The notion of applying pressure in order to get someone to make a buying decision and closing hard was completely unappealing to me. I wanted to do work that was about helping clients meet their objectives, solve problems, and reach their goals. 

Four years later, I finished as the #2 sales professional worldwide at the Fortune 500 company that decided to take a chance on someone with “high closing reluctance.” I’ve since been a Senior Vice President and Executive Vice President of Sales for a couple of different companies, each time leading teams that achieved record revenues and profits. Yes, closing deals was important, but my teams did that by developing business relationships based on value.

Even though that sales executive couldn’t look past the results of their assessment, my commitment to relationships made all the difference in my career in sales. Today, relationships are built on your ability to add value, provide expertise and insight, and help your customers achieve their objectives. That’s how your sales team can become a competitive advantage for your company.

I’ve been highlighting this story in Zoom Keynotes to kick off the year for Sales teams, and I’d love to connect with you about addressing your sales team. If you want to read more about the topic, these two articles Would Customers Pay for your Sales Calls? And Get Over Your Fear of Sales present relevant research.

I hope you can join me on Tuesday, February 9^th at 10am Eastern as I dig into this more on my next LinkedIn Live.