Curious what you would do.

[superdog]

I have been looking for a good sales person for a long time. Years really. And lately, I have been running myself down for months and months.

I finally broke down and hired a staffing agency at 25% of his first year. My industry is very much a niche, and not a heck of a lot of trained people that are unemployed.

I found a guy that I like a lot. Very polished and he knew the industry. But he had no book of business which is strange. A good sales person makes relationships. He had minimal at best. But I hired him because he was so polished and I thought he could add a little bit of sophistication to my small shop.

I hired him at a 25% fee. That is a lot of money. Especially for a small guy like me.

Three days before he was supposed to start he sent me an email asking about his computer his car, tablet etc.

I was somewhat put off by this, as I would have preferred him simply send the email saying how excited he was to be a part of the team. Our focus here is 100% on the customer, not on how we benefit from it. But he has questions, and I can certainly understand that. I am not that much of a prick, and I am mostly OK with that.

What put me off was that his email was riddled with grammatical errors. Misspellings, repeated words, no commas, etc. It was clear he did not proof read it even one time.

If I am an end user receiving a quote for a 100$+ project, I would reject that on principal alone.

So I had a lot of conversations with the recruiter and explained my concerns. I rescinded my offer.

I hired a "polished" executive sales rep that sent his first email to his new boss with a plethora of errors. I do not need an HR nightmare in a few months if I want to get rid of him, and I do not want to flush the 25% fee down the drain.

I got back a lot of excuses and I was swayed because I have been looking for a talented sales person for a super long time. I told them I wanted a few days to think about it. I am going to confirm my decision tomorrow.

I spoke to my team about it, I spoke to my father about it. And I have made up my decision. But I am curious as to what some of you professionals think about this and what you would do.

I am new at this. We have had a lot of growth over the last 5 years and I am basically stumbling around in the dark when it comes to building my sales staff. It has pretty much been me for all these years. I could really use the help. But I also don't need to babysit someone and take time and energy away from my already hectic schedule.

Your thoughts would be appreciated.

[GB-man]

I think your gut instinct is likely to be spot on. Proper use of the English language is vital in a customer facing sales role. My wife, although English is her first language, struggles with grammatical errors. She knows this and spends a great deal of time proofreading every correspondence she has with her superiors. These sort of things are very important to how people view you, even if they seem trivial.

[toucan]

If you already have doubts before he starts its better not to go down that road.
You have a small shop it's best to find the right comfortable fit.

[swils8610]

I agree with Tom. If your gut feeling is off pass as you did. Hire slowly. Fire quickly.


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[superdog]

Originally Posted by GB-man

I think your gut instinct is likely to be spot on. Proper use of the English language is vital in a customer facing sales role. My wife, although English is her first language, struggles with grammatical errors. She knows this and spends a great deal of time proofreading every correspondence she has with her superiors. These sort of things are very important to how people view you, even if they seem trivial.

I proof read my emails dozens of time, sometimes. I also have other people read them from time to time, if they are high profile enough.

First email to his new boss. I just cant get comfortable with that.

That could sink a potential sale in moments. And I just don't have the time to babysit. At this cost of a sales professional, I expect him to be able to operate nearly on his own. Guidance from me for sure, but not babysitting.

[Lawman77]

Trust your gut. Especially in a small business environment. I would imagine the success you have had to date is, in part, because you have been "on point" with your instincts.

[offrdmania]

I tend to be somewhat of a grammar Nazi myself. So many times on this site alone I want to tell people about their errors but it wouldn't be couth of me to do so. Maybe it's just my OCD coming out. For many years I worked in the wholesale sales industry. We constantly has salesman knocking down our doors, hoping that we would sell their product. I can remember many instances where a product was rejected on mere principal because the salesman could not form a proper sentence and didn't know the difference between there, their, they're, etc.

[Jimbogigolo]

You did the right thing (rescinding the offer). Wait and hire quality over quantity. Hiring the right candidate is key!


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[superdog]

appreciate the feedback guys.

this is where I am at. I was just second guessing myself as it has been such a challenge to find someone that even knows what we do.

I suppose I would rather train the right person though.

I was just wondering if maybe I was being too much of a hard ass.

These responses are helpful. Thank you.

[Patton250]

You should definitely stick with your gut instinct on this. Sales people are a different breed believe me I know because I am one and I train them for a living. However this is no excuse for not proofreading an email or any type of correspondence to make sure it is written properly. I am a terrible writer and thank God for spellcheck :-) but even with that I try to read my emails several times before I send them. Hiring is a very painful process but hiring sales people is a very painful process to the 10th power. Good luck.

[MonBK]

Inmyopinionyoudidtherightthing.

IproofreadeverythingatleastfourtimesbeforeIsendito ff.

IapplythesamemethodwithmypostshereonTRFbeforeIhitt hebutton.

[AK797]

Unless my response is a few words, I review all emails, whether business or personal, so contrast that to this and to not do so in this context is borderline sociopathic and sets off huge red flags. The only thing is he could maybe have a good excuse, unlikely as it seems, so I would maybe contact him directly and ask for an explanation, I suppose everyone deserves a hearing.

[superdog]

Originally Posted by MonBK

Inmyopinionyoudidtherightthing.

IproofreadeverythingatleastfourtimesbeforeIsendito ff.

IapplythesamemethodwithmypostshereonTRFbeforeIhitt hebutton.

lmao. I can always count on you to get a laugh.

Truth be told, I think your post was more professional than his email.

[superdog]

Originally Posted by AK797

Unless my response is a few words, I review all emails, whether business or personal, so contrast that to this and to not do so in this context is borderline sociopathic and sets off huge red flags.

agree. and I have made mistakes. I have definitely made mistakes.

but not in an email to a prospective client, or not in an email to someone I am trying impress.

[superdog]

Originally Posted by Patton250

You should definitely stick with your gut instinct on this. Sales people are a different breed believe me I know because I am one and I train them for a living. However this is no excuse for not proofreading an email or any type of correspondence to make sure it is written properly. I am a terrible writer and thank God for spellcheck :-) but even with that I try to read my emails several times before I send them. Hiring is a very painful process but hiring sales people is a very painful process to the 10th power. Good luck.

especially considering your experience, thanks for the comment.

and yes, thank God for spellcheck.

[goin camping]

I think Toucan nailed it in post number 3.

Good luck.

[indexmatch]

Originally Posted by offrdmania

I tend to be somewhat of a grammar Nazi myself. So many times on this site alone I want to tell people about their errors but it wouldn't be couth of me to do so. Maybe it's just my OCD coming out. For many years I worked in the wholesale sales industry. We constantly has salesman knocking down our doors, hoping that we would sell their product. I can remember many instances where a product was rejected on mere principal because the salesman could not form a proper sentence and didn't know the difference between there, their, they're, etc.

sorry, had to... but all in jest!

to OP, if your sales person cannot sell you on himself, it probably makes sense to look elsewhere

[offrdmania]

Originally Posted by indexmatch

sorry, had to... but all in jest!

to OP, if your sales person cannot sell you on himself, it probably makes sense to look elsewhere

You got me

[r8t3d_M]

I don’t think you’re being a hardass. You need to do what’s best for you and your company and I don’t think he’s it. It might be in your best interest to hold off a while longer and find the right person for the job. Probably easier said than done and I know you could use the help but perhaps the wait will be worth it in the long run.

[BristolCavendish]

Good to see you back Seth.

Clear and concise communication (whether written or spoken) is critical in a business environment where contracts, quotes and dollar signs are involved. I suspect that you saw a 'red flag' warning in his communique and now have reservations about this individual representing your company/business interests.

I would 86 the guy based on his lack of 'attention to detail'. The least he could have done was to take some time proofing his e-mail prior to forwarding it your way. Imagine the same kind of e-mail/contract/quote going out to a prospective customer/client. It could easily be perceived as a reflection of your company (in addition to opening-up some potential doors for civil lawsuits due to a lack of certain clarifications or specifics).

I'm sure that you can find someone better suited to ensure the success of your business objectives.

[sco]

Originally Posted by superdog

I proof read my emails dozens of time, sometimes. I also have other people read them from time to time, if they are high profile enough.

First email to his new boss. I just cant get comfortable with that.

That could sink a potential sale in moments. And I just don't have the time to babysit. At this cost of a sales professional, I expect him to be able to operate nearly on his own. Guidance from me for sure, but not babysitting.

I've been in my job in sales for the last 17 years. Honestly, I read outgoing emails over and over before sending them out to a customer all the time. I'll even make sure that the tone of the email cannot easily be taken as negative etc.

I'm not sure if you are able to give this new guy a trial period or not. If the answer is no, I would consider moving on..

Good post, and good luck

[tommy91]

Maybe he was drunk? Not sure that makes his situation any better....

[AzPaul]

Not seeing much in the way of disagreement.
If you value TRF as a good measure, then your call looks like the right one.

[Lucky777]

Seth

Go with your gut. It has gotten you this far and will always guide you in the future. No way I'd hire him at this point in business. A few years ago I'd have made excuses but learned the hard way. Your client isn't going to be feeling sorry for you when you don't get the bid ... better to start off on the right foot than wrong.

[Tony64]

To hire or not to hire...hmmm

What kind of watch did you say he was wearing?

[superdog]

Originally Posted by Lucky777

Seth

Go with your gut. It has gotten you this far and will always guide you in the future. No way I'd hire him at this point in business. A few years ago I'd have made excuses but learned the hard way. Your client isn't going to be feeling sorry for you when you don't get the bid ... better to start off on the right foot than wrong.

Agree. Thanks for the feedback. Agree with you 100%.

[superdog]

Originally Posted by AzPaul

Not seeing much in the way of disagreement.
If you value TRF as a good measure, then your call looks like the right one.

Yep. I do value to consensus. Clearly a good amount of wisdom on the site.

[Abdullah71601]

I think you're making the right decision Seth.

On your next go round you might consider a written correspondence in your interview process. Disguise it as response to technical aspects of your niche. If the candidate writes well and interviews well in person, you will have much more confidence going into the hire, which will translate to a more successful transition handing off sales to a new guy.

[superdog]

Originally Posted by tommy91

Maybe he was drunk? Not sure that makes his situation any better....

I thought the same.

His reasoning was that he was in the car waiting for his daughter.

I honestly don’t believe that tho.

[superdog]

Originally Posted by Abdullah71601

I think you're making the right decision Seth.

On your next go round you might consider a written correspondence in your interview process. Disguise it as response to technical aspects of your niche. If the candidate writes well and interviews well in person, you will have much more confidence going into the hire, which will translate to a more successful transition handing off sales to a new guy.

Great post. And Ive thought the same thing over the last few days pondering this.

I need to make my hiring process significantly more stringent.