Hire a Salesperson Today

Over the years at shopVOX, we’ve spent a lot of time in the trenches of the sign shop business. In order to ensure that all of our shopVOX features meet the needs of today’s business owners and deliver on our promise of bringing you the best print shop software on the market, we’ve had to. Along the way, we’ve learned a lot. 

One of the things we at shopVOX have learned is just how crucial and important the role of the outside sales representative really is.

If you’re in the sign shop business and you don’t have an outside sales representative, that’s okay. Maybe you rely on bringing in customers through digital marketing platforms and social media. If so, following up on leads probably takes up a lot of your time. After all, you’re the one that’s going out and meeting with potential clients, doing surveys, offering estimates, and collecting deposits.

Having that kind of close, personal oversight can be a good thing, especially when your business is still young. But it also takes a toll over time. So how do you find good help? How do you find a salesperson you can trust to do the job right?

Don’t Have a Sales Rep Yet? Here’s What to Do

Bringing in an outside sales representative is a major pivot point that every successful sign shop ultimately has to make if they want to continue growing. Sales representatives don’t just bring in sales; they bring in opportunities.

Recruiting is Itself a Form of Sales

Key to successful recruiting is to be a salesperson yourself. At the end of the day, that’s what recruiting is: selling yourself and your company to a potential new employee, just as you would to a potential customer. You have to consider not only what this person can do for you, but also what your business can offer them to help propel them to future success.

Industry Experience Isn’t Essential

Don’t make the mistake of hiring someone with industry experience solely because they have industry experience. While experience is by no means a red flag, it begs the question of why the person in question is looking for a new job in the first place.

What is it about their current workplace that they don’t like? If it’s a problem you can offer a solution to, great. If not, you might find yourself repeating this process in a year’s time when this same person is looking for the door again. Although industry experience is definitely a plus, don’t be afraid to train someone new to the sign shop business.

You Can’t Teach Good Personality

So, then, what could possibly be more important than industry experience? The answer is simple: personality. Everything else can be taught, but a positive attitude is something an employee either does or doesn’t have.

Being a good sales representative is all about having winning interpersonal skills. During your interviews, pay attention to how candidates answer questions, if they provide options, how friendly and outgoing they are, and if they demonstrate a willingness to learn.

Set Up Your New Hire for Success

How you handle the first 30 days of your new sales rep’s employment goes a long way to determining their future success, so make sure they have the right tools for the job. That means not throwing them on the front lines right away, but easing them into it; consider starting them as an inside sales representative, so they have time to learn the terminology and get a feel for the business. A comfortable and well-trained sales rep is always a more effective sales rep.

Streamline Your Sales Process with shopVOX 

When you make the decision to hire an outside sales representative, what you’re really doing is making an investment in your business. Yes, you’re going to have to put a lot of time, effort, and money into recruiting and training, as well as reorganizing the infrastructure of your company. When all is said and done, though, you’ll start seeing returns on that investment in a big way.

Another investment that is sure to pay off in a big way is using shopVOX sign software. Designed from the ground up for the unique needs of sign shop owners, shopVOX will help streamline every aspect of your business, from lead generation to workflow management to customer communication and more.

Want to learn more about what shopVOX can do for you? Contact us today and let's grow your business together!