Use a Sales Test and SWOT Analysis to Evaluate Sales Skills for TNA, Development, or Selection

Do you know your sales strengths and weaknesses? You probably have some sense of what you and your organisation are good at and what you could do better. If so, you have the means to improve results and earning power. If the statistics gathered from those who have taken the Sales Exam are representative, fewer than one in twenty sales people are proactive about self-development. Even fewer have taken an inventory of their sales skills and habits.

This may represent a missed opportunity for sales people, their employers, and recruitment consultants.

Assessment

Sales specific assessment tests that examine skills and habits offer several advantages over the psychological evaluation presented by most general psychometric tools.

Direct questions allow a sales test to present self assessed or validated scores for SWOT analysis by test users and managers. Results don't depend on obscure predictions which are easy to challenge.

Separating a sales test into aspects of competency and then specific skills and habits that are examined via direct verifiable statements, facilitates easy customisation. Test can be quickly aligned with job specific competency models.

Development

Every sales person and manager has the opportunity to increase performance by improving sales abilities however, the nettle is hard to grasp. Time for learning costs time for selling. Getting better is often left to chance, or relegated to the bottom of a ‘to do’ list.

The ‘work smarter rather than harder’ wisdom is to spend more time on self or team development. Assessment tools help sales people take the initiative to improve their skills.

Without consultation or assessment, training may fail to address needs or win participant ‘buy in’. Results from sales specific assessments help managers focus training on the right issues.

Selection

An inventory of sales skills and habits makes the interview and selection process much more efficient. It provides a template for objective discussion of a candidate’s suitability. Prior assessment helps candidates to present their abilities effectively, recruitment consultants to match their brief, and employers to select the most suitable candidate.

Alternatives

While there are a wide range of general tests for personality, aptitude, and drive, and some that have a sales theme, sales specific assessments that provide a straightforward sales skills and habits inventory are hard to find.

Using the search terms – ‘sales assessment’ and ‘online sales assessment’ on Google returned many results. After the first page or two, the relevance of the links seemed to decline rapidly. Here are some details on the better-looking offerings.

Sales Test Online offer a pre hire assessment based on word association. It takes about ten minutes to complete. Fees start at $32 per use.

Profiles International is one of the larger providers of assessment tests. They offer two sales specific assessments. The shorter test takes about fifteen minutes and the more comprehensive assessment takes about an hour. As a rough indication only, fees range between $100 and $350.

Miller Heiman offer Sales Excellence Assessment and Predictive Sales Performance. Both tests take between one and two hours to complete. Each costs around £130 per use.

Resolution Systems Inc offer a high end, comprehensive sales specific assessment that takes about 90 minutes to complete and sells for around $700.

The main difference between the SalesSense assessment tests and other offerings are their direct style and 'do it yourself' validation options. Fees range from £10 to £495.

Used effectively, sales assessments have a wide range of applications including personal growth, career management, solving performance problems, designing training, and sales staff retention. Compared with the potential for bottom line contribution, there cost is negligible.

“He who knows others is wise. He who knows himself is enlightened.” So wrote Lao Tzu. If you need to sell more, increase the value you offer. To increase your value, develop your strengths. It’s usually a lot more fun to become extraordinarily good at things that you already have a talent for.

Article by Clive Miller

If you are looking for a sales test to assess sales skills or evaluate sales people, we can help. Use our SWOT analysis based sales test online. Telephone +44 (0)118 933 1357. We will be pleased to discuss your needs or talk through some options. Send email to custserv@salessense.co.uk for a prompt reply or use the contact form here.