Selling Yourself Successfully:
A How-To Guide
Let’s face it – at the very heart of it, closing a sale and getting that job offer is the same thing.
In both cases, you have to find the right contacts, thoughtfully engage with them and convince them that you, above all others, are the right person to help them solve their problems. The only difference is, is that while salespeople pitch a product or service, you’re pitching yourself as a candidate to prospective employers.
Given the parallels between the two, you can learn a lot from salespeople. In fact, there are a number of tips and best practices that have emerged in the world of sales over the years that those in the market for a new job should keep in mind – preferably before you start submitting those applications.
What are these secret sales tricks, you ask?
Luckily, here at Annesley Gandon, we love sales and we have a bit of insider knowledge you can benefit from and really, there’s no “trick” – it’s all pretty straightforward and anyone, with a bit of practice, can improve their selling technique to stand out from the rest.
Check out our tips below and start selling yourself!
- Do Your Homework
Fail to prepare and prepare to fail! That old adage still has some life in it – so whether you’re trying to sell a product or apply for a job, you need to take the time to do some first-hand research on the opportunity you’ve been presented with.
You would never go into a sales pitch without knowing your product inside-out and your job search should be no different. Your CV, cover letter and any other correspondence you send should have content that’s specific to the company and position you’re applying for; novice jobseekers and salespeople often think this will take longer, but a generic “mass blast” will yield far fewer results than an informed, targeted approach.
The blanket, generic approach will produce much less response and, ultimately, give the impression you couldn’t care less about where you work – companies want those who are excited by what they’re offering! By taking the time to personalise all company correspondence, you’ll increase your chances to get your foot in the door dramatically.
- Get to the Decision-Maker
Salespeople often talk about prospects in terms of “gatekeeper’s vs decision-makers”.
Decision-makers are those who have the ultimate say in whether or not they will purchase a product or service, while a gatekeeper is somebody who serves as an obstacle in the path to the decision-maker – think an Executive Assistant guarding the office door of the CEO. So, to streamline the process, salespeople often try to reach out to the decision-makers from the get-go.
While many decision-makers will employ recruiters to find the right candidates, you can make sure that your recruiter has the ear of the CEO rather than the hiring manager or Executive Assistant, as well as experience to sell you properly. (See: Annesley Gandon!)
- Use SPIN Selling
Salespeople often use what’s known as the SPIN technique:
- Situation: Establish the buyer’s current situation
- Problem: Identify any problemsthe buyer faces that your product can solve
- Implication: Explore the cause and any knock-on effects of the problems
- Needs-Payoff: Show why your product will solve their problem
Using this technique, you can position yourself correctly for any role; simply take the time to understand the employer’s current situation and problems, discern any visible implications this has on their business and then present your case as to why you are the best possible solution!
- Mirror Your Interviewer
All salespeople understand that the path to success is built upon good relationships with others. Building an established rapport is the key foundation to any profitable sales relationship and in an interview, your main challenge is how to develop that rapport quickly – you have a short window of time to present your best self.
Now, how can you possibly establish something that often can take weeks, or even months to do? Well, great salespeople tend to naturally mirror their clients – that’s right, we’re delving into a bit of psychology now! Mirroring is a technique in which one person actively adopts the behaviours and mannerisms of another person and attempts to become their mirror image; it’s based on the proven premise that individuals subconsciously trust and like people that exhibit similar qualities to themselves.
This isn’t to say you need to change your entire personality, but even something as small as mimicking an interviewer’s hand gesture, sitting in a similar position or repeating a phrase you hear them say can earn you extra points – and if done well, you can form a bond with the interviewer that will make you memorable to them, even if they’re not entirely certain why, and thus more likely to be chosen from what could be a long list of interviewees.
- Compliment the Company
Another classic way of endearing yourself to a sales prospect is to compliment them –
after all, people tend do business with who they like and it’s pretty hard not to like someone who makes you feel good about yourself! Be careful though – flattery can sell but disingenuous comments can come across as false, so make sure it comes from a genuine place.
You’ll have done the research on the company already (right?!) so maybe you noticed the company did an impressive project a few years ago, or perhaps they work with a high-profile client or won a prestigious award recently. Let them know how much the company impressed you because of it, and why – founders, owners and upper level management all love this kind of flattery as often they feel they will have contributed to the success of the business in one way or another.
In addition to softening them up slightly, it also shows you’ve done your research on the company, and that you’re not just applying for “another job”, which will further flatter them.
- Share Your Success Stories
We’ve all seen it – the testimonials, the gushing, the reviews: most companies that sell online products and services nowadays will highlight case studies to show prospects that they’ve been able to help those in similar situations to themselves in the past, allowing the prospect to envision how that company might be able to help them too.
In the same way that a salesperson may offer a third-party story to help the customer visualise how the product or service my benefit them, as a job seeker, you may not be expected to produce case studies, but you can certainly share positive anecdotes that illustrate your prior success.
Tell stories, and where possible, quantify them to show the scale of your work – at the end of the day, most employers are risk-averse so you want to make them feel confident that hiring you is undoubtedly the right decision. Be very careful not to labour these points so much that they come across arrogant – in this, humility is key.
- Make It a Two-Way Conversation
Sure, the interviewers want to get to know you — but you should also show that you want to get to know them and make sure that the company is the right fit for you too.
We always say you have two ears and one mouth – so use them accordingly! For example, try to listen more and ask open-ended questions on the back of what they’re saying; by relating to their subject, you’ll naturally create an easy flowing conversation.
This is especially important to keep in mind when your interviewer inevitably asks if you have any questions for them – refer back to something they may have briefly mentioned previously or bring up something you found in your research that genuinely interested you. With these types of questions, it’s easy to ask a quick follow-up question that will cause more details about what they just said to unfold. An easy method to quickly formulate questions on the fly is to think of the What-Why-When-How questions –
What caused that to happen? When did you do that? Why did you decide to do it that way? How long did that last?
A note of caution however; don’t ask questions that may be seen as too in-depth, such as questioning financial performances – try to keep it relevant, but light.
- Follow Up
It might not be the most fun task but following up often means the difference between radio silence and a successful sale — and the same is true for job seekers.
A follow up email can offer good opportunities, whether it be to ensure that your application has been received or something as simple as sending a thank you to the interviewer for their time and to reiterate your enthusiasm for the role, restating what makes you an ideal candidate – a thank you can go a long way and will make you stand out a little more.
If you did find any commonality during the interview, then that can also be used; you may have found out about a pastime they were taking part in at the weekend, so mention that you hopes it goes well to demonstrate that you were genuinely interested in them.
Don’t look to be too overeager however – when it comes to radio silence, a week is a reasonable amount of time to justify another follow up to see if a decision has been made, while any earlier than that could be perceived as pushy, desperate or even a little rude.
And that’s all there is too it! No tricks, no gimmicks – just plain old common sense! And while there is no universal way to guarantee that you’ll get a job offer, you can certainly do everything you can to stack the odds in your favour.
Who knows? Using these tried and tested approaches may just help you get that much closer to your dream job – check out what roles we’ve got available now here!
