Using CPQ Aptitude Assessments to Build a High Performance Sales Team

Pre-employment testing, such as the CPQ Aptitude Assessment, is a must to build a modern, high performance sales team that doesn’t depend on just one or two top producers to drive revenue, but instead works like a finely tuned machine with all parts driving sales.

There are certain roles that should be filled with the right people in order to cover all aspects of the sales cycle. The following lists the major ones, and describes some of the traits that each should possess based on CPQ Aptitude Assessments.

Outside Sales Hunters

Outside sales hunters are what we call the commission-only, highly motivated salespeople that can “create something out of nothing.” These folks set appointments via cold calling, face-to-face networking, and other activities which require strong Goal Orientation and Social Confidence traits in order to set the bar high and be nonplussed when dealing with new people.

Inside Sales

These salespeople handle those that walk in or call in. While still challenging, this sales role has the benefit of having interested people initiate contact, meaning all their leads are somewhat warm and they do not have to go out and try to drum up business like outside sales hunters do.  Detail Orientation and Good Impression can be useful traits to possess for this job.

Customer Support

Customer support personnel tackle the issues faced by customers after the deals are done. Anything can go wrong, even in the best companies, so having people on the team who have a high Need to Nurture and low Skepticism trait is necessary to diffuse any tense situations and get a relationship back on the right track.

Managers and Executives

How often is this mistake made: a top salesperson is promoted to sales manager simply because they are great at sales — rather than being great at managing and leading people. What usually happens is that the sales manager becomes miserable because she cannot sell as much as she used to, while the juniors under her are miserable because the feel unsupported by their management.

The type of traits for managers and executives would vary based on the type of department or division they are responsible for, but seeing a high Need for Control and Social Drive trait can point to a natural leader.

Assistants

Every great sales team has great assistants. But hiring them can be tricky, as those with too high of a sales drive might end up competing with their salesperson rather than helping them to build their business and take care of clients. Similar to customer support personnel, assistants should have a high Need to Nurture trait and should also display exceptional Detail Orientation to catch the things that salespeople might miss which can blow up their deals.

To find out more about the eight basic personality traits or how CPQ Aptitude Assessments can help your business make more money, please contact us today for a free consultation. We’d be glad to help, and even provide a free assessment to try before deploying it out to your team.