Every business owner, of all sized businesses, understands how important it is to find, and keep, good staff. During the JA New York Spring show, Kate Peterson, President and CEO of Performance Concepts, gave the audience important tips for hiring and keeping sales superstars.

“Hiring top salespeople has major implications on both short and long-term success of your company,” Peterson explained. “Employers in the jewelry industry should look for experience, personality, skill, and education in potential staff.  When the right salesperson IS hired, capitalizing on their talents most efficiently is key.”

 Kate Peterson breaks down the best practices for hiring and creating a team that will improve and grow your business, using her formula of recruiting, selection, orientation, and training for retention.

Having Tactic vs. Strategy for Hiring

• Tactic is a means through which you meet an immediate need.
• Strategy is solving an immediate problem with a long term plan.

Have a Strategy!

It is a seller’s market in HR and there are fewer top quality people.  You must be web relevant.

• There are 2 billion smartphone users so your website must be mobile friendly.
• Offer online accessible and mobile-friendly learning/training programs.
• Your e-reputation is critical. Not only consumers rely on it but potential employees use it to evaluate your company.

Recruiting

• Use who you know (personal contacts) and people who made it easy for YOU to spend money (previous salespeople that sold you things).
• Current employees are consumers too and everybody talks about purchases so ask questions.  Ask “Who sold that to you?”
• Personal networking is essential to attract younger people.
• Best source is BMI (Business Meeting International).

What to Look at in Potential Employees

• Flexibility vs regimented (go with flexibility).
• Use spherical thinking rather than linear or circular in your search for people with big picture processing and creative problem-solving skills.

The Application

• Use questions that allow for evaluation of thought process.
• Ask for narratives.
• Best to fill application at the store.

Reference checking is essential. 360-degree feedback.  Get opinions from previous/current manager, subordinates, peers, mentors, customers. 

Advertising for Employees

• If you want ordinary people, run ordinary ads.
• Make sure your ad evokes the personality of the person you want to hire.

Selection

• Don’t do credit checks! Liability is too high (alternatives are background checks or graphology).
• Non-verbal and behavior cues are as important as actual answers to questions.
• Look for significant thought and situational response patterns.