Hiring a sales consultant in New York is a straightforward process that requires a bit of know-how on the selection process and knowledge of market features to ensure successful recruitment.
In hiring a sales consultant, it is essential to look for specific elements within each candidate’s resume and make sure that you understand the conditions they might require, and start the process based on that. To help you and ensure that you hire the right person, we have assembled a list of the essential elements this process should include and some insider tips that will help you along the way.
So let’s begin!
Who is a Sales Consultant?
A sales consultant is a double agent responsible for finding customers for your company’s product but also working as customer service and transferring the voice of customers to the company. Hence, you improve the product/services.
The sales consultant’s position and workload may vary depending on the company’s overall arrangement. Essentially, sales consultants have one crucial task: to understand customers and the product they are selling and eventually assure that these two pieces connect.
Practically speaking, the main tasks of a sales consultant in any company are to negotiate prices and terms of sale and process cash or credit payments. Additionally, sales consultants are responsible for contacting prospective and existing customers, satisfying their needs by consulting and assessing them, and ensuring your product meets their needs. It is also a creative job that constantly improves sales pitches to please customers and make a product attractive to the target group.
To increase sales, qualified sales representatives and the necessary skills are essential.
What to Look for in Sales Consultants?
Sales consultants should have several necessary skills and experiences in their background to perform well in their position.
Firstly, the academic background is necessary to be considered for the position. Bachelor’s degree in business management, administration, or marketing is an excellent base for a successful sales consultant. Building up a successful career as a sales consultant requires training that builds up experience in sales or marketing with certificates and licenses to improve the experience.
One great example of these qualifications is the Certified Professional Sales Person (CPSP) offered by the National Association of Sales Professionals (NASP). Similar options worth exploring include Certified Sales Leadership Professional (CSLP), Certified Sales Professional (CSP), or Certified Professional Manufacturers’ Representative (CPMR) certification established by prominent institutions and highly prised by professional sales consultants.
But in the end, it is essentially all about sales representative skills. In the first line, a robust set of skills required for consultants relies on communication. The core idea is to communicate persuasively and effectively with prospects, clients, and colleagues.
Working with this variety of people requires adaptability and an extroverted personality that quickly connects with different individuals. In addition to communication skills comes public speaking and presentation skills essential to successfully making sales.
Another set of skills required for a good sales consultant includes organizational skills such as time management and organizational skills, arranging meetings and presentations together with managing schedules and deadlines, which can help ease using customer relationship management (CRM) software programs.
Hiring Process in New York
The day-to-day task of a sales consultant is to meet with clients and assure sales, which can happen in and out of the office. Often, the sales consultant has assigned a specific territory in which they will travel.
Therefore the hiring process is extensively shaped by the market and location. These two elements shape all other features of the hiring process. Namely, focusing on the general market of good sales consultants in the New York area makes the search more complicated and the process more competitive.
As the previous paragraph shows, good sales representatives must have excellent skills and academic backgrounds. Also, everyone knows that sales consultants have a significant role in representing a company and eventually shaping the products available to the customers.
This significant impact requires a thorough process of hiring the consultant, especially in New York, which represents the business hub. Therefore customer satisfaction is a crucial factor that any company cares about, thus finding good sales representatives matters.
Therefore the first step is to research the market thoroughly to ensure the best candidates. We advise starting the hiring process by advertising the position, drafting it correctly, and later assessing CVs and inviting for interviews where you want to see innovative approaches and strategies.
Ensure that the advertisement for the position you are announcing aligns with the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”). This title prohibits advertisements with preferences and biases based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or genetic information.
Additionally, the New York City Human Rights Law (“NYCHRL”) prohibits discrimination against arrest or conviction records, caregiver status, credit history, salary history, status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual violence, or stalking, and unemployment status.
Lastly, our advice regarding the preselection process is to avoid advertising language that could be deemed discriminatory such as advertisements stating that the company seeks “young” applicants or explicitly referring to gender and disability.
Similarly, in the interview process under Title VII, the NYSHRL employer should avoid questions about national origin, religion, pregnancy, caregiver status, etc.
The critical thing to remember is that in New York, starting in October 2017, employers in New York City cannot ask about salary history during the hiring process. Salaries for sales consultants vary depending on the individual features.
Primarily impact the salary during the hiring process, and negotiations have education, skills, experience, and the size of the employer’s business. People always forget that salary is also impacted by the company’s location.
Therefore, it is good to know that the typical salary level in the U.S. is 67,703 $/ year. For the New York consultants, salary and average are around 78 000$.
The next step in the hiring process is assessing the skills such as understanding your product and communicating the main message should also be a priority for you. It will be essential if you want to stand out and sell your product in crowded markets like New York.
Additionally, remember that this is a two-way process and that the selected person needs to be adequate for the team and the brand you represent. Therefore it is crucial to seek consultants with experience in your niche.
Last Piece of Advice
Take your time for the overall hiring process. It is essential for success, especially in the large market pool of candidates such as New York. It will ensure you assess all the relevant components for the perfect sales representative needed for your business.
If you wish to learn more about some general notions of hiring sales consultants, read our blog “Tips for hiring a sales consultant,” which will help you understand the process.
