How Do I Know if Someone Has Talent for Sales?

Written by Adam Grossman

An ordained rabbi, who has founded multiple ventures focused on workforce development, he is a cofounder and the Chief Development Officer at The Selling Factory.

Businesses rely on sales teams to promote their products and services. If your sales team doesn’t do its job, your sales will drop. As a result, profits will suffer and your business will feel the effects across every department, not to mention your bottom line.

But hiring a salesperson to join your team can be a challenge. It’s tough to tell whether someone will have great sales skills based on their resume alone. Even if they were successful in a previous sales job, other factors, like the type of product they sold or the support they had from their team, can have an impact on that success.

To find great sales talent, you’ll have to look beyond the resume. There are a variety of skills and qualities that can help you decide whether a person is likely to have strong sales skills.

Strong Research Skills

When most people think about sales skills, they think of individuals who are friendly and engaging. But the reality is that the most important part of the sales process starts before a salesperson reaches out to a prospect.

Research on prospects is key to landing a sale. Without it, salespeople are left with their personalities alone to land the sale. Often, even this isn’t enough.

The average successful sales employee spends around 6 hours each week on research about their sales prospects. Knowing how to find the information that you need about a prospect, and having the dedication to spend time researching each prospect, are key to being a great salesperson.

Finding individuals with strong research skills can help you build a better sales team. But if you run a small business, providing enough time for your employees to complete the necessary prospect research may be just as challenging. Outsourcing some of the duties of your sales team can help with this.

Great Communication, Especially Listening 

Great communication alone isn’t enough to be a great salesperson. But strong communication skills are still an important indicator that someone has the potential for strong sales skills.

Strong communication skills are actually a combination of many different skills. Someone who communicates well knows how to listen, how to adapt their communication to their audience, how to speak clearly, and how to explain themselves well.

When it comes to sales, having the ability to talk in a friendly but professional manner is key. If someone is too stiff in their communication or overly casual, this might not translate well to a sales position.

Great communication skills do more than just make for a great salesperson. It can also make a person a better employee and team player. This is key to building a great sales team.

Perseverance

About 60 percent of customers will say “no” four times before they say “yes.” Despite this, nearly half of all salespeople never try to follow up with a prospect after that first “no.”

Failing to follow up with prospects is a problem for several reasons. First, it means that the time spent researching that prospect is often wasted. It can also be detrimental to your bottom line, as you lose out on a large percentage of buyers who just need a little more exposure and convincing.

Salespeople may fail to follow up with prospects because they feel it is a waste of time, or because they doubt their ability to change a prospect’s mind. But individuals with great sales skills will demonstrate perseverance. They’ll be willing to follow up several times with a prospect, investing more time and energy in the hopes of turning the contact into a sale.

Self-Discipline

While you might be looking to build a successful sales team, much of the sales process is a solo operation.

Self-discipline is an important skill to have if you want to be good at sales. Each sales employee will spend a lot of time each day working on their own. This might include researching their own prospects and reaching out to them.

Their ultimate goal might be to land sales that will help the sales team’s bottom line. But the work they do will largely be done alone. For that reason, another skill to look for to identify strong sales skills is self-discipline. 

Confidence

No one wants to buy a product or service from someone who clearly lacks confidence in what they’re selling. If an individual doesn’t have a general confidence in their skills and abilities, they likely won’t find much success in sales.

Natural confidence can be a great trait in a successful salesperson. But learned confidence, alongside the other sales skills on this list, can be a good alternative.

If a person has gained confidence by advancing their skills and knowledge, they’ll be more likely to showcase that confidence when talking with prospects. Prospects are likely to pick up on this confidence, and feel more confident or secure in working with that salesperson as a result.

Building a Team With Strong Sales Skills

Knowing the signs that someone has great sales skills can help you hire better employees. Unfortunately, cultivating a talented team of individuals with the sales skills your business needs is often easier said than done. The Selling Factory can help.

The Selling Factory manages top college students, training them to do research, generate leads, and make calls. We have candidates who have already worked for us while in college and are ready to begin a career in sales. They are familiar with the sales process, confident on the phone, and are ready to quickly ramp up. Your business gets high-performing sales team members, without having to go through the time-consuming hiring process. Schedule a free consultation today to learn more.

Victoria Zamitalo

Campaign Manager

Victoria received a BA in History and Economics from the University of Florida in May 2023. She is a driven sales professional with over 5 years combined experience in customer service, consumer relations and outbound sales, and is deeply passionate about fostering close relationships between consumers and sellers. She aims to train the next generation of sales professionals in not only the tricks of the trade, but also interpersonal skills that make sales the exciting and ever-changing industry that it is.

victoria@thesellingfactory.com

Mia Semel

Campaign Manager

Before graduating with a B.A. in Sustainability Studies, Mia took on multiple roles while interning at The Selling Factory, including sales development, recruiting, and leading campaigns. She is an active listener and effective communicator, specializing in fostering genuine connections and finding common ground among differing perspectives. She aims to find practical, creative solutions regarding sustainable development, biodiversity and the climate crisis.

mia.semel@thesellingfactory.com

Kira Grieve

Senior Campaign Manager

Kira graduated from the University of Florida and received her Master of Science in Entrepreneurship. She is passionate about helping businesses grow and connecting with new people. Some of her hobbies include traveling and hiking. She hopes to visit all of the National Parks one day!

kira@thesellingfactory.com

Jared Glosser

Vice President

After graduating from UF in 2014 with a B.A. in history, Jared started his professional career Fundraising for a non-partisan political lobby in South Florida. In 2016, Jared moved back to Gainesville to work for a non-profit, recruit students for international travel opportunities, and pursue his MBA at UF. Jared has been with The Selling Factory since 2019 focusing on operations, client onboarding, and client success.

jared@thesellingfactory.com

Ian Massenburg

Chief Operating Officer

A graduate of University of Florida (B.A. 2001), Ian Massenburg brings over 18 years of sales executive and sales management experience to The Selling Factory. Before coming on-board, Ian worked alongside Brad at Infinite Energy, and then spent his next 3 years as VP of Partnerships selling SaaS products B2B. Ian brings his vast knowledge and experience to the team and to our partner companies served.

ian@thesellingfactory.com

Damien Paulk

Campaign Manager

Damien is a University of Florida graduate that recently joined the team full time after working as a Sales Development Intern for one year. As a Campaign Manager, Damien looks forward to contributing to the growth and success of The Selling Factory. When Damien is not at work he enjoys exploring Gainesville with his girlfriend and dog or watching the Gators dominate college football.

damien@thesellingfactory.com

Brendan Viehman

Campaign Manager

Brendan graduated from Liberty University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Project Management. For the past 5 years, he has enjoyed working with blockchain technology and cryptocurrency development. In his free time, he surfs and makes personal finance videos for his YouTube channel.

brendan@thesellingfactory.com

Savannah Howard

Campaign Manager

A graduate from the University of Florida’s College of Journalism and Communications, Savannah obtained her Bachelor of Science in public relations with a concentration in French. After almost two years as a sales development intern for The Selling Factory, she joined the leadership team in 2021 taking on the role of Campaign Manager. In her free time, Savannah enjoys going to concerts and festivals and cooking for her friends and family.

savannah@thesellingfactory.com

Zack Kampf

Campaign Manager

Zack is a creative technologist with experience in advertising, event planning, and game design. He started as an SDR in 2018 and has been with TSF ever since. Upon graduating UF in 2019 he became a campaign manager and is currently seeking a master's degree from NYU. In his spare time, you can find him at the intersection of Art & Technology!

zack@thesellingfactory.com

Josiah Blakemore

Growth Manager

Josiah has over 10 years of sales experience, worked with Brad and Ian at Infinite Energy, and also spent time selling SaaS as Director of Partnerships at SharpSpring. He’s always been very competitive and has a love for sports and games. He enjoys solving problems and coaching team members to do the same!

josiah@thesellingfactory.com

Sue-Ming Frauenhofer

Marketing Manager

Sue-Ming received both her B.S. in Psychology and M.S. in Management from The University of Florida. As a student, she took on multiple roles while interning at The Selling Factory, including sales development, marketing, and recruiting, eventually leading to her current role as Marketing Manager. She enjoys refining her taste in music and visual art, engaging in mindfulness and meditative practices, and frolicking outside with her sidekick pup.

sueming@thesellingfactory.com

Adam Grossman

Chief Development Officer

Adam is an ordained rabbi, who has founded multiple ventures focused on workforce development. Hired as CEO by a failing non-profit, in over 5 years, his ingenuity saved the organization, which led Slingshotfund.org to recognize it as one of North America’s most innovative Jewish non-profits. His expertise to identify, cultivate, and on-board talent ensures our student teams meet our partners’ needs.

adam@thesellingfactory.com

Brad Gamble

Chief Executive Officer

After graduating from UF in 1999 with a B.S.B.A, Brad Gamble has dedicated himself to sales management, branding, coaching, and building companies. He served as the VP of Sales & Marketing for Infinite Energy until 2014, when he founded The Selling Factory. He has dedicated himself to teaching critical skills to tomorrow’s leaders, and helping companies achieve sales success and revenue growth.

brad@thesellingfactory.com