AMA: InVision Vice President, Global Sales, Brian Tino on Sales Interviews

From my experience, most candidates coming into an interview put their best foot forward and perform well, however, here are some of the most common pitfalls before, during, and after a sales interview... 1) Lack of Preparation - candidates who have not done even surface level research on the following is a massive red flag: * The company - reviewing the website, blog, etc. to understand what we do * Myself and the other interviewers - looking at the LinkedIn/social presences of those who they are meeting with * The job itself - reading & understanding the job description, and * The product - signing up for a free trial if there is one and at the very least understanding the basic value proposition 2) Lack of Narrative - being able to effectively tell your personal story & professional story is critical and usually one of the first questions asked during an interview ("So tell me about yourself"). Not only does this give the interviewer a deeper understanding about your career & the decisions you've made along the way, but it also gauges your ability to effectively craft a narrative. Make sure you practice it over & over, until you have it just right! And also make sure you can articulate what you are looking for in your next role/company, and do not be afraid to be explicit about it. If the role/company isn't a fit, it's best to identify & address it early. 3) Not Following Instructions - usually this comes up during a role-play, demo, or craft demonstration, but I can't tell you how many candidates have ended up falling out of the hiring funnel for not following instructions in a prompt given during later stages of the interview. Hint: if there is something you don't fully understand or is vague around the expectations that have been asked of you, then make sure you contact the recruiter or hiring manager to get clarity. 4) Asking Non-Relevant or No Questions - typically at the end of an interview, there will be an opportunity for you to ask your questions. Make sure those questions are relevant to the person you are speaking with and avoid asking questions you could easily research on your own ("so what does the company do", or "who are some of your competitors", etc.). Non-relevant questions signal a lack of research, preparation, and engagement. And worst of all is asking no questions at all! 5) Not "Closing" at the End - especially for a sales role, I expect candidates to be willing to ask hard questions and "close" at the end of a call. If you are not able to ask questions like the following, then how could I expect you to ask hard questions & close with a prospect or customer: * "So after meeting with me, are there any questions or concerns you may have outstanding?" * "Is there any reason you would not feel comfortable recommending me to move into the next round of the interview process?" And at the very least make sure you are clear on the expectations, next steps, and timing of the remainder of the interview process. 6) Not Following Up - at the end of every sales conversation, there is an expected follow up recapping the discussion & making explicit the next steps. The same is true for an interview. Call me old school, but if a candidate does not follow up with me after an interview, it's a signal they are not engaged, or worse, not capable of crafting an effective follow up message. The hand-written note is a thing of the past. If you have my email address, send me a message and if not (or you're just looking for another touchpoint), then connect with & message me on LinkedIn.

One of the most important ways to help you stand out during a sales interview is to come into that interview well researched & prepared on the following: * The company & product * The interviewer * Your personal narrative * Relevant questions 1) Researching the company & product - be clear you understand what the company stands for, how they make money, and what value they deliver to clients (and be able to articulate it). You can usually do this by: * Reviewing the company website (especially blog posts, customer stories, and case studies) * Researching the company missions, vision, and values (usually in an "About Us" section) * Look at their social presence on Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, LinkedIn, etc. what are they posting about? * And if they have a free or trial version of the product, sign up for it & use it yourself 2) Researching the interviewer - get a feel for the interviewer's career path, their role & experience at the company, and what they personally care about. You can do this by: * Reviewing their LinkedIn profile to see prior work history & history with the current company * Check out social media Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn to see what they are posting about, and if they have written any blog post or articles themselves * See if you have any mutual connections and if you can do some back-channeling ahead of time 3) Preparing your personal narrative - make sure you have your professional story, what you want in your next role/company, and why you think you'd be the right fit for this specific role/company nailed: * Be able to tell the story of your professional journey, why you made the changes you made, and your track record of success along the way * Speak with conviction about your own personal values and what you are looking for in the next role/company (it's important there is mutual fit) * After reviewing the company, job description, and expectations, be able to speak to why do you think you are the right fit and what you can uniquely bring to the position 4) Preparing relevant questions - as an interviewer, I often get more from the questions a candidate asks because it can often provide insight into their own research & preparation, values, curiosity, and interest in the role/company: * Prioritize your questions based on what is most important to you (you'll likely only be able to get to a few of your questions in the first interview, so make them count) * Ensure the questions are relevant to that specific individual (executives will have a unique perspective on the company strategy & future, while potential peers & cross-functional partners can share more about the day-to-day and company culture) * And NEVER say you don't have any more questions (as this signals you are not well researched enough, aren't curious, and/or don't care about the role/position) Finally, as a BONUS TIP - always "close" on a sales interview by understanding definitive next steps and if the interviewer has any concerns or hesitations following your conversation

Personally my favorite interview question, which I ask all of my hires from SDRs/BDRs to Sales Directors, is: "Of everything in your life (professionally, personally, academically, athletically, artistically, etc.), what do you consider to be your greatest accomplishment?" Of the hundreds of times I've asked this question, I've received so many incredible answers. Some people have talked about the accomplishments of building a family, qualifying for the Olympics, summiting mountains, changing careers, moving to entirely new countries and starting from scratch. All were great, and the reality is, there is no one "best answer". To me the reason I love asking this question early in an interview process is, I get to: * Quickly learn more intimate details about someone's life to begin to understand who they are as a person and discover what they value * Listen attentively and observe how they tell a story they are passionate about, and * Use that answer as a jumping off point to probe into other attitudinal & behavioral competencies From that simple question, you can then take the conversation into so many follow on questions like: * What were some of the biggest obstacles you needed to overcome to achieve that accomplishment? (which gets into the topics of resilience & adaptability) * If you were to re-live that experience again, knowing what you know now, what would you change? (which addresses self-reflection and learning) * Now that you've accomplished [insert accomplishment], what are you setting your sights on next? (which uncovers ambition & motivation) I'm curious to hear from you...what do you consider to be your greatest accomplishment?

You can usually gauge autonomy in a sales interview through the questions you ask while speaking to 1) the hiring manager and 2) members of the interview team who are currently in the role you are interviewing for. 1) Questions you can ask the hiring manager to gauge autonomy: * How would you describe your leadership philosophy and style? * If I were to ask members of your team to describe you as a leader, what would they say? * Can you tell me about a time you helped one of your current reps close their biggest and/or most complex deal? What role did you play? * If I have an idea that I believe can help improve my performance (or the performance of the team), what's the best way to raise that? 2) Questions you can ask potential future peers during the interview: * How would you describe the leadership of [hiring manager]? * Can you tell me about how [hiring manager] typically works with you? engages in 1:1's? expectations of deal reviews? * How does [hiring manager] typically support your biggest deals? * Can you tell me about a time you had an idea to improve the performance of yourself (or the team) and what your experience with that was?

YES! I highly encourage candidates go "above and beyond" in preparing for interviews, because the interview is your opportunity to show the best version of yourself, and I want to build a team of incredible salespeople who are willing to do "above and beyond" for our clients and prospective clients. If you're not willing to go "above and beyond" to get a job, then how I can trust you are going to be willing to go "above and beyond" to close a deal? This can be done before, during, and after an interview: * Before - connecting on LinkedIn or finding their email ahead of time to convey your interest in meeting with the interviewer & aligning on expectations * During - creating a presentation to showcase a deal review or outline your 30-60-90 day plan in if you were to be successful in landing the role * After - by sending a personalized follow up email with any relevant content (leave behinds, blog posts/articles that related to the discussion, etc.) from the conversation and clarifying your interest & next steps Always look for those ways to standout as the best-of-the-best!

If you're interested in a company (even if they are not actively hiring), I would recommend starting to build relationships and delivering value without expectation. That includes: 1) Connecting with members of the team - research key members of the team on LinkedIn (execs, managers, peers, key cross-functional partners, recruiters) introduce yourself, show interest in the company (including "why" you are interested), and let them know you understand they are not hiring but are still interested in making the connection to explore the potential opportunity to work together in the future. 2) Lead with value - find small ways to deliver value from the outside... * Did you read a blog post or article that may be relevant to something that company or individual? If so, share it with them proactively. * Did you catch a bug in the product or typo in a marketing campaign? Raise it in a way that is supportive and non-judgmental. * Do you have an idea for how their company could more effectively sell their product (new market, new persona, new approach, etc.)? Share it! 3) Stay updated on changes to the careers/jobs page - check every week or two for any changes to roles the company may be hiring for in the future 4) Look to set up "15-minute" coffee chats - reach out to see who is willing to spend 15-minutes sharing their perspective on the company, the story of how they ended up joining, and advice for what to do to be considered for a role in the future Finally, stay persistent and do not get discouraged or offended if individuals do not respond! Focus on controlling what you can control in a way that adds value and do not take unresponsiveness personally....the timing may not be right at this exact moment, but make sure to stay top of mind for when the timing is right!