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8 Characteristics Every Salesperson Must Have Not every person is a born sales leader but many commonalities can be found in the personality traits of successful salespeople.

By Deepti Awasthi Sharma

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Has anyone ever told you that you're a natural-born salesperson? If they have, they're probably commenting on your confidence and enthusiasm or your way of getting people to listen to you. Not every person is a born sales leader but many commonalities can be found in the personality traits of successful salespeople.
If you were ever curious whether you exhibited the classic signs of a natural-born salesperson, here is the basic recipe:-

1)Confidence:- People who are easily embarrassed or overly self-conscious make poor salespeople. They are too worried about what others think of them to get the job done effectively.

2)Closing the Deal:- They know the art of closing the Deal. If there is anything artistic about selling, it lies not in the method but in closing the deal. Natural born star salesperson develop a sixth sense about the right moment to do this and, more importantly, they have the courage to prompt it. Fear about closing the deal is one of the main problems in sales networks. Natural born salesperson are focused and committed to what they want irrespective of the outer world circumstances.

3)Charisma: -They have a special power naturally that makes them able to influence other people and attract their attention and admiration. They have a positive attitude towards any situation and they are solution oriented and problem solver.

4)Curiosity:- This trait describes a person's willingness to absorb information. Inquisitiveness improves salespeople's product knowledge, and it drives their understanding of why customers should buy it. Curiosity is also a telling sign that a salesperson is actively engaged in sales calls. A curious person will ask more questions, try to see the situation from the customer's point of view, and discern the truth.

5)Company and Friend Circle:- They surround themselves with the best. Star salespeople shine they surround themselves with great teams and partners. They welcome healthy competition and capitalize intelligently on the synergies generated by the power of the sales team (especially on major accounts).

6) Ability to Communicate:- We've heard for eons and eons that communicating isn't just speaking. It's effectively listening and watching both verbal and nonverbal communication as well as speaking professionally. However, it takes a very gifted individual that can truly communicate effectively, clearly, and professionally in every situation. The ability to read someone's mannerisms and body movements will be your first indication if they understand what you are saying or, more importantly, if they disagree or have a concern with what you are selling. Did their eyebrows furrow? Did they give you a head nod? A frown? A glance to the other DM? You must read these things and more importantly, react to them. Never be afraid to ask, "Do you have a concern?" if you see them frowning or with a furrowed brow. That slight furrow might ultimately be the concern in their thoughts that kill your deal that actually, shouldn't have been a concern at all.
7)Ability to Connect:- I've seen on far too many occasions inexperienced salespeople either systematically spit out a plethora of questions, robotically state scripts, or vomit at the mouth every feature they can regurgitate of their product and/or service without initially working on connecting with the prospect. Great salespeople find a way, anyway, to make a connection with their prospects. They do so either by connecting via a mutual contact or friend, by reading their office and surroundings to connect via past schools, hobbies, etc. or, as I did during my time in sales, by making a connection with my expertise and knowledge regarding their industry. Never discount the power of knowledge. Research everything you can find on them, their business and industry and throughout your discussion with them, you'll gain their respect and that will create a very strong connection.
"People buy from people they like, and people like people that they have a connection with".

8)Competitiveness:- Being in sales is about winning and if you're not competitive, then you're not winning. The problem is, "being competitive' has a negative connotation with certain people. I've heard either this statement or a variation of this statement countless times from average salespeople, "Oh, I don't care about being number one, I just care about being good." Those words were never spoken by Great salespeople. Great salespeople wake up, go throughout their day, and lay their head on the bed every single day thinking on how they can be better the next day and how can they win and Great salespeople thrive in a healthy competitive environment. Whether they are competing against a past record, the office colleague that continues to inch them out in the final reports, or even their own personal best, Great salespeople need competition.

If you dislike competing against other people but you want to improve your sells, make the competition about yourself. Can the "you' tomorrow beat the "you' that "you' are today tomorrow?
Seriously, who loves Salesforce database management? Who thrives on making cold calls? Non-competitive people will allow their database to become an albatross because winning simply isn't important enough. Competitive people embrace the database management and the cold calls because they are the stepping stones to winning.
If you want to be Great, you must unleash that spirit, the healthy competitive spirit.

Deepti Awasthi Sharma

Co-founder, Gohoardings.com

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