Sales Profile - Technical Specifications

(QUESTIONNAIRE UPDATED - 2007)

The Behavioral Factors

The behavioural factors have been redefined after a series of interviews with sales professionals and statistical studies. In the latest version of the test, 9 sales-related behavioural traits were retained, to be regrouped in to 3 key dimensions

The dimensions with related factors	Signification in the case of an high score
1-Sales Force "Field sales"	Audacious and perseverant, a salesperson «field sales» would propect and develop new markets, finally increasing substantial company revenues.
Client Prospection	Endowed with a natural flair for contact initiation, the candidate is self-assured and is confident in his/her opportunities for success. He/she knows how to pique the potential client’s interest. In other words, the candidate has a gift for initiating contacts and getting to know potential clients with a view to offering a product or service well adpated to their needs.
Sales Acumen	The candidate considers the sales process to be a game in which each stage is a “set” to be won. He/she rarely makes concessions so as to maintain his/her margins. Backed by a good strategic plan, the candidate likes to negotiate and to be up against difficult sales in order to change the point of view of potential clients. A born entrepreneur, the candidate is quite simply drawn to sales.
Closing Contracts	This candidate is bold and tenacious, which is generally associated with good physical resistance. He/She has the high level of assertiveness and risk orientation found in successful closers. He/she does not back down from a challenge, seizing opportunities to gain clients or to earn income for the company. This candidate is very comfortable with and even stimulated by competition. He/she knows how to be insistent with hesitant clients and to follow up with them when necessary. The candidate’s motivation to attain his/her objectives will incite him/her to use all the means available to succeed. The candidate will be able to deal with any objections that arise and regain control of the conversation afterward.
2-Sales Force "Business Development"	Talented at the art of negotiation, quiet charismatic, a salesperson "Business Development" likes challenges and to indulge in important sales or strategic partnerships with niche markets.
Building Business Networks	A candidate with a high score is sociable and likes to build a network of contacts. He/She has the art to seek out influential persons, decision-makers or purchasing advisors, and knows how to make reliable acquaintances among them by creating an atmosphere of trust and confidence. Which could in turn prove very helpful in realising sales and strategic partnerships. He/ She does not hesitate to use their contact network whether personal or professional to initiate a business negotiation.
Strategic Negotiations	With a good disposition on strategic plans, the candidate likes high level negotiations that he considers as a challenge. He/she positions himself/herself as the clients partner and takes time to study closely the situation and the clients needs to close an important sale.
Charisma	The candidate knows how to impress his/her audience during professional negotiations, putting to use his/her skills in eloquence, his/her personal presentation and his/her natural charm. He/she knows perfectly how to play the role of “ambassador” of the product he/she is responsible for promoting. For him/her, winning the friendship of his client/prospect plays in his favour to close the sale.
3-"CLIENT RELATIONS" Dimensions	Always available and open to the clients needs, he/she would assure proper information and client satisfaction, with a personal follow-up and care of the technical aspects of the clients files.
Sense of service	The candidate demonstrates his capablilty to ensure client loyalty by regular contact. He/she likes to do regular follow-up of his/her clientele and demonstrate a willingness to maintain and ameliorate the service offered. For him/her the satisfaction of the client is above all.
Self-control	The candidate generally appears to be calm and poised and remains enthusiastic, despite setbacks and events beyond his/her control. The candidate is a good thinker and expresses his/her views thoughtfully, even in stressful situations. He/she is skilled at controlling his/her emotions and at finding appropriate solutions. The candidate is rarely upset by refusals, complaints, accusations, delays or last-minute schedule changes.
Technical expertise	The candidate especially likes the technical aspects of his/her job, and is at ease with computers and various technological tools used in sales. He/she enjoys receiving training about products and shows a special interest in analyzing markets, clientele, competition, etc. The candidate may also display a tendency to improve sales processes or techniques. This person likes to learn and pass on his/her knowledge.

The Questionnaire

The questionnaire consists of 75 short questions about daily and working life (duration: approximately 15-20 minutes). Some questions require the candidate to consider a business relation context.

Examples of questions::

* At the theatre, I would probably be:
a ) an actor in "a one-man show"
b ) the director of "a Greek tragedy"

* I am shopping for a digital camera at an electronic store. I search by:
a) technical specifications.
b) brand popularity and user-friendliness.

* I can sometimes offend people, like when I make a joke.
1(+: agree); 2 (It depends); 3 (-: disagree)

There are 7-9 questions for each of the 9 traits evaluated, as well as 9 questions to assess social desirability.

Customized Report

The report provides a profile of the individual based on 9 behavioural traits and three key dimensions: Client Relations, Sales Force "Business Development", and Sales Force "Field Sales" (see table above).

It compares the results to eight business tasks:
- B2B sales force,
- B2C sales force,
- Telemarketer,
- Bank/Insurance agent,
- Client support/service,
- Business development (major accounts/SME),
- Shop assistant/store manager (retail sales)
- Technical sales engineer.
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You can even include your company's job positions with qualities you think are essential for that post.


(Adobe PDF file, to download just right click and save to computer)


Two other indicators were added to the report:

- Social Desirability (score out of 10), measured from 9 test questions (e.g. “I am always on time for my appointments”). If the score is 7/10 or more, the recruiter could have some doubts about the candidate’s sincerity.

- Sales Potential score (Sales Score), measured from 40 “sales related questions ” questions in the test that are separate from the scores for the main factors. These items were selected from a comparative study between salespeople and non-salespeople (test t). There are more items in the factors Contact Initiation, Charisma/Eloquence, Sales Acumen and Tenacity.

The Sales Potential score was adjusted based on the last sampling done (1163 individuals from January 2007 to March 2007). More specifically, different weightings were introduced based on the item (a coefficient of +2, +1 or -1).



Psychometric Validation

The was subjected to a psychometric validation study. The behavioural model was confirmed. The Cronbach coefficients indicate good homogeneity in each dimension evaluated (Alpha Cronbach score between 0.65 and 0.75). The 3 key dimensions (Field sales, Business development and Client relations) have been defined using the methods of ascendant hierarchical classification (ACH).

Overall, more than 4,000 salespeople have taken this questionnaire, which has been revised successively several times


Average of factors

It corresponds to a population distribution sample of March 2007 (N=297).

Description :
- The factors related to Field Sales and Business Development are more dominant among sales professionals.
- Factors related to client relations are not part of a sales professional's personality.


Distribution of the sales Potential score (SALES SCORE)

(Population distribution sample of march 2007, N=297)

This indicator corresponds to an average % of "sales related" responses chosen by thecandidate (based on 33 questions in the test). The distribution is on a scale from 0 to 100.


Distribution (Frequency table) :

The distribution of the indicator follows a normal law. For example, in the table below, the individuals obtaining a score from 0 to 36 correspond to the lower section of the 10% of the population. The individuals obtaining a score from 77 to 100 correspond to the higher section of the 10% of the population.

Averages observed among sales professionals :

Averages observed among other professional functions :

Statistics based on age.

* (significative correlation at p<0.05)

The sales potential score does not depend on age. However :
According to our analysis, a younger person shows a more tendency to be combative (i.e. in closing contracts).
The more a person is older (i.e with experience), the more a person shows a tendency towards developing a business, particularly in building Business networks and Strategic negociations.

Averages depending on sex