Interviewing a salesperson can be very challenging. After all, you are interviewing a person who is skilled at selling. Auto sales is a unique section of the sales industry. You’re selling high ticket items, and the vast majority of your sales will be face-to-face interactions.
As recruiters, we know you want to hire the best candidates possible – indeed, only top-notch talent can get hired for a great sales position by a headhunter at a prestigious company. Here, then, are some useful car salesperson questions to ask during the interview process.
First and foremost, ask why they want to sell cars. People have many reasons for applying to work as a car salesperson. Asking this question will give you some insight into why they applied for the job and their underlying career objectives and motivation – perhaps it is personal, like a means of following in their family’s footsteps, or they simply have a passion for sales and cars.
Secondly, it’s important to ask what they like about auto sales. While this may seem like an innocent question, it can tell you a lot about the potential salesperson. It can tell you where their focus is – whether or not they like people or are more interested in making money via commission will come to the forefront of the conversation with a line of questioning like this at your disposal. You can, in other words, learn about someone’s moral character.
There is no shortage of car dealerships for candidates to apply to. Why they chose your car sales business is important. Perhaps they drive a vehicle you sell or are a fan of your car brands. Asking this question will give you insight into how much research and thought they put into their decision to apply.
Performance matters. How a candidate performed in the past is definitely an indicator of how they will perform for your company. Therefore, asking about car sales numbers, sales quotas, and other performance metrics will give you insights into what you can expect from them if hired.
Seeing the salesperson in action will give you a chance to see their approach to auto sales. Giving them a car to sell, or even allowing them to choose the vehicle, will let you see them work through a sales process. You will get some insights into the strategies and tactics they use.
There is a reason some salespeople sell more than others. For car salespeople, it can be a variety of things. For some, it’s following up, referrals, how they communicate, and other factors. Asking this question will provide you with some insight into what the candidate believes is important to their success.