10 personality traits sales professionals must have

Modern businesses are rapidly embracing transitions and adopting new strategies to grow. They need exceptional sales professionals to execute these strategies.

Sales professionals are crucial for the success of a business as they bridge the gap between a company and its customers.

Good sales professionals present a product as a solution and help customers in overcoming their business challenges.

They spot the right deal, nurture it, and convert it into sales for increasing the revenue of a company.

So, you need to ensure that the sales professionals you hire have excellent selling and interpersonal skills.

Such skills help in building a good rapport and lasting relationships that encourage word of mouth and great referrals.

However, as all fingers are not equal; some sales professionals outperform others with their excellent abilities.

They don’t only hit their target but exceed it. Such sales professionals are extraordinary for a reason.

They have certain traits that help them keep their head and shoulder above the rest.

Clients are fond of such exceptional sales performers as they are more alert and responsive.

Here are certain characteristics that distinguish the extraordinary sales professionals from the rest:

1. Passionate

“People with great passion make the impossible happen”

Passionate sale professionals are proud to be involved with a product.

They are excited to sell it.

Such sales professionals work wholeheartedly and are committed to their employer’s objectives along with their own career goals.

They don’t only strive to improve the bottom line of a business but also try to provide a good buying experience to their customers.

They have a customer-centric approach.

Such sales professionals think about their customers and are passionate about making a positive difference.

For a passionate sales professional, each part of the sales process is crucial.

They are cautious at every point to ensure they do not lose a deal.

2. Ingenious

Extraordinary sales professionals are ingenious.

They think of unique ideas to excel.

They would look at things differently, while others would be using the same old tactics to sell.

Exceptional sales professionals don’t give up if their strategy fails, they will brainstorm and try till they succeed.

“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time”- Thomas Edison

They don’t only sell for the sake of selling, but they constantly come up with new tactics to close the deal.

They try to solve their customer’s problems in a unique way.

Which is why they become the customer’s favorite and even create a good image of the company.

3. Optimistic

“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty”- Winston Churchill

Most of the sales rep get disappointed when a potential prospect refuses to take the deal forward.

However, a true sales professional won’t throw their hands up in the face of failure.

They will try their best to change the situation by walking an extra mile.

Such sales reps possess a large amount of optimism; they won’t let rejection affect their performance.

Instead, they try recovering from a setback by working on their weak areas.

They don’t only feel good about themselves, but they also fill their surroundings with positive energy.

4. Organized

Overachievers keep themselves organized to avoid confusion.

As Benjamin Franklin rightly said,” For every minute spent organizing, an hour is earned.”

Everything from their sales process to the document as well as CRM is well-organized.

They sincerely use CRM to manage their customer contact details, unlike the underachiever who runs away from this helpful sales tool.

All the information related to the customer is systematically structured in one place.

So that they do not miss any important detail about their client.

With organized data, they can discover their customer’s business challenges and provide solutions to overcome them.

Every appointment and follow up is scheduled in their CRM.

This ensures they don’t miss an important meeting or fail to follow-up with a potential prospect.

Recommended Reading: Strategies to Boost Your Sales Rep’s Interest in a CRM

5. Alert

“Alertness is the hidden discipline of familiarity”- David Whyte

Staying alert is an important characteristic a sales rep should have, as an opportunity can tap your door at any moment.

Top sales professionals are always alert and prepared for all kinds of circumstances.

Put them in any situation, and they will deal with it confidently.

They are alert and cautious to ensure they don’t commit any error.

Moreover, sales professionals know what they need to do and when they need to do it.

Even while interacting with the clients, they are very attentive to ensure they do not skip any detail that might help them in closing a deal.

6. Curious

Exceptional sales professionals are always curious to know new things.

They try to acquaint themselves with the unfamiliar for being more efficient.

“Curiosity is the most powerful thing your own.”

Curious sales professionals are avid learners; they are hungry for knowledge.

They research and try to find out new techniques and tools to improve their sales performance and constantly experiment, learn, and grow.

True sales professionals are always curious to know more about their customers.

They try to garner maximum information they can, to gain a better understanding of their customers.

According to Ben Dean Ph.D, curious people are often good listeners and conversationalist.

Due to their curiosity, top sales professionals can discover interesting facts about their customers.

They aren’t scared of questions. They ask questions and appreciate feedback that will make the better.

7. Emotionally intelligent

“If you are tuned out of your own emotions, you will be poor at reading them in other people” – Daniel Goleman

Emotional intelligence matters in sales.

It is an important characteristic of a top performing sales professional.

Emotionally intelligent people can control their emotions and think rationally.

That’s the key trait in successful salespeople.

A study of over 40 Fortune 500 companies revealed that salespeople with high emotional intelligence outperformed those with medium to low EI by 50%.

They are self-motivated, empathetic, attentive and self-regulated.

They emotionally connect with the customers which is why they can solve their problems and build better relationships with them.

8. Team player 

Top sales performers are team players. They support and collaborate with their team. 

You cannot survive alone in this challenging sales field. You must maintain healthy relationships with your team members. 

You never know when you might need them. For instance, due to an emergency, you need to go on leave, and your potential prospects have some queries. So in your absence, your team member can respond to the prospect’s queries. It is important to give real-time attention to the prospect, or they might approach the competitors. 

9. Self-motivated 

In sales, you’ll constantly face criticism and rejection. Top sales performers don’t give up or get demotivated when they face rejection. Instead, they take it as a challenge and work harder to increase their win rate.

You, too, need to motivate yourself and be positive even if everything seems to be going wrong. Set goals for yourself and make sure you achieve it. Keep tracking your performance and try to improve.

10. Patience

Patience plays an important role in sales. By being too pushy, you end up irritating the prospect. Sometimes the prospect might take time to respond. You need to stay patient and determined. Just because a prospect isn’t responding, you shouldn’t jump to another deal. Wait for the prospect to reply.

Even during negotiation, it is critical to have patience. You need to stay calm and address the prospect’s concerns to close the deal successfully. 

Final thoughts

Exceptional sales professionals positively impact the revenue growth of a company.

Sales leader is born when they can accumulate these professiaonal traits in them.

Even underachievers can be extraordinary sales professionals if they possess these characteristics.

Try to develop these personality traits to excel in sales.

Your sales rofessionals must be open to take part in occassional sales training to hone their skills.

Even after years of experience in the field of sales, there is always something more to learn.

Achieve better sales results with the above mentioned sales rep traits along with a smart sales CRM like Salesmate.

With this advanced sales tool, you can organize your sales process efficiently and foster strong customer relationships.

It is an all-in-one sales solution to excel and increase your sales.

To know about this high-end sales tool, get in touch with our team they will guide you.