Image by Ev KamikawaOver the last year I have had at least 100 conversations with small business owners whose business has grown to the point where they realize they can't do everything. If they want to keep the growth going they are thinking it is now time to hire a salesperson.
I've talked to three such companies this week alone (a software company, an accounting company, and a training consultant).
How do you know it is the right time to hire a salesperson?
There are several things you need to keep in mind before making this step.
Here are some things to consider:
1. If you can't commit to having another person be a part of your business, DON'T DO IT! If we equate the hiring process to dating this is like deciding if you want to be active on the dating scene or if you are comfortable being single. If you are absolutely against having someone else voice their opinions about how the company should do things, you are not ready. If you can't handle that the salesperson may have their own style and ways of successfully dealing with things, you are not ready.
2. If you keep going back and forth about if it is a good idea to hire a salesperson, then don't. Only commit when you are 100% sure. Successful marriages happen when the two people are absolutely sure that this is the person they want to be with. Where to live and whose towels we should keep and whose we should give away are questions to be decided once married. Both parties need to first be committed to each other. The rest is small details.
Same thing when hiring your first salesperson. You can take a chance on a second salesperson, but you need to get the first one right.
3. Good indicators on if the time is right to hire a salesperson are when:
A. You realize that you are SO OVERWHELMED with other duties that you haven't called a new prospect in months and now there is no new business on the horizon.
B. You are so SCARED of prospecting that you haven't done it in months and now there is no new business on the horizon and all of your current projects are ending.
C. You are so LAZY that you haven't prospected it in months and now there is no new business on the horizon and the money has stopped coming in.
D. You are TIRED of the up and down cycle of:
-prospecting and making a sale,
-then not prospecting because you are working with your new client,
-when that job is done having to start prospecting again because you didn't do it when working with the client (in the meantime there is no money coming in)
-then having to wait while the process of developing relationships with prospects starts and develops until it is time to make a sales pitch (still no money coming in)
E. You are really HUNGRY and want even more success and realize you need someone else to keep the pipeline stuffed with opportunities.
F. You are SMART enough to realize that there are people better at certain things than you and it is worth paying them to do what they do. As a spouse you might try to fix the broken bathroom sink, but sometimes it is better to just call a plumber and have it done right.
I hope this helped. Are you ready to hire your first salesperson or not?
I've written several blogs about how to recruit salespeople so just search this blog for "job ads."
Thanks!
Ev
"A Heck of A Nice Guy"
