Sales Interview Questions & Answers

The interview process was smooth and organised, I was kept up to date with the progress of my application and told what each step would involve. I was asked about my previous sales and tailoring experience and how it would benefit me in the role. At the end of my interview, I was given the opportunity to ask any questions about the role that I may have.

Knowledge of the brand- as this took a lot of research

Research the company, knowledge on the brand is key and can aid both your presentation and sales techniques.
Research on tailoring techniques and current trends is also key, to ensure you can give great customer service and advise accordingly.

The assessment day consisted of tasks, groups actives and Q and A. I found it incredibly beneficial as it gave me a better understanding of what the job would entail. We were asked to prepare a presentation on 'The importance on Image' , followed by different sales exercises. This was helpful as it gave insight into different peoples views on image, and how the company would fit in to this. The team were approachable and friendly, giving advice as we went through the day.

I applied to Pareto through their website-I did apply for a specific role but I cannot remember what this was now. Within a day or so, I was left a voicemail from a very pleasant female recruiter. I called her and we had a brief chat about what I wanted , what sectors I was interested in. She then invited me to proceed with a telephone interview with her, which took around ten minutes. The questions were what you might expect-
- Why Sales
- What do you know about Pareto
- Tell me about a time you worked on a problem and solved it
- Tell me about a time you had a goal or target and what you did to hit or exceed it.
These were the sort of questions-mainly competency based. So my advice hear is as with any application, do the research and know what sort of qualities they are looking for and link these back to your experiences.
I passed this stage, and was actually offered there and then a chance to go to a tailored assessment day for a role with Virgin Media. I could not attend this, so we rescheduled and I went to a general day about a week later. The recruiter sent me a detailed email itinerary so I knew how the day would go and what to prepare for.
On the day, I arrived at the Wilmslow office and was registered, name badge etc. I then proceeded into a reception room with about 40/50 other grads (this was the case on both days I have been on). Yes it was a bit hot, but I don???t think this is a big deal. My advice here is to introduce yourself professionally to the others in your area, just be brave and shake hands and be friendly. This is a skill important in nearly every career so it is useful practice whatever happens. As a group we were taken into a large room with chairs (air-conditioned for those concerned) and given a short talk about the day. The staff I found were very professional, relaxed and interesting and not robots or somehow terrible in any way. I say things like this because I have read other reviews that criticise everything from the appearance of the staff to the temperature in the room, so I am trying to address these points as an aside. Try to be as un self-conscious as possible, it is only for one day after all! Try to think of something original for this section, something perhaps business focused, related to the role etc. Many people have travelled around South-East Asia on their own???I once went to Turkey all by myself, even took a public bus while I was there! We were asked to state our name, a celebrity we admire (dead or alive) and our greatest non-academic achievement.
You will then do two group tasks in the group you are assigned-make sure you listen out for your group as the self-introductions are run through. These range from a reasonably complex points and colours based exercise to ranking essential items for a survival situation. I found, contrary to other reviews, that the ones that shouted the loudest did NOT get through. They assess your skills of communication, persuasion, logic and teamwork. I actually noticed I struggled to get a word in edgeways on both occasions-but I made contributions that were impactful, and I made sure to say ???you said this, but what about if we thought about it this way???? or ???Shall we review what the actual objective is so we do not come off track????. Take the lead if you feel the opportunity arises- read the group.
Eat something at the break to keep your energy up-biscuits are always good for the sugar. The 3-minuite presentations come in the afternoon. It is essential to practice beforehand and focus on what they want you to do the presentation about. I broke mine down into three distinct points for each section. Weave in your experience to interact with what they look for in a candidate. This is the time to show the assessor that you are professional, confident etc. It will only be you and them in the room. [Personal presentation is important at this point, so make sure your suit fits you well and does not drown you. Same with the shirt (pale blue or white are safe bets) and a SILK tie properly done up to the neck, not skinny. Shape the knot with your fingers. Polish your shoes well. I promise this will help with confidence and making you look the part]
Later you will be told if you are successful. I followed the above formula an I have landed a fantastic job through Pareto. Just try your very best, because they do work hard for you-I have been offered countless interviews and gone through to four different ones. The opportunity I have is astonishingly good-so the Pareto process does work for those willing to work hard.

(For the specific assessment) Tell me what you know about X company and this role.

1) Look the part-Present yourself well. A suit that fits, a proper shirt and shoes and a silk tie properly shaped and done up. Buy a GQ for inspiration if needs be.
2) Do your research and think about how you can present yourself as a person that fits their competency needs
3) Be confident, talk to others and be conversational.
4) Show yourself as the professional you are-no inappropriate remarks at any time.

1) A self introduction
2) A 3-min presentation

Phone interview was with the recruitment agency (Certus) and I was spotted in the generic assessment day held by the recruitment agency. I later then had a quick one to one interview with them at the assessment day. I got invited for a trial day with them to see how I felt about being at the job and for the staff to see how I interact with their clients and colleagues.

What was the most difficult thing I have done
What are my weaknesses

Have to sound really optimistic and energetic at the initial one to one interview with management. The director had a very stern face on him so I managed to make him smile and laugh which I thought was a good sign. Give lots of examples to back up what you are saying, even if it is from the same job. It shows you are not just talk. Do mention you are money driven and can work under pressure or tight deadlines.

If you are offered the trial day, be really pro- active and energetic throughout the day, with clients or colleagues. The senior colleagues will be watching you throughout the day and providing feedback to management. If you impress them, they will pass on positive feedback and more likely to get the job I believe.

Split into a group of 6 and had to perform 2 exercises. The first exercise was to rate the level of importance of each question, and which should be used to qualify a sale with a potential client. The next exercise was how to go about gaining sales. There was a 30secs self- pitch after the exercises, it had to include education, qualification, location and why I would be good for a sales role.

I went to a 3-hour Assessment day whereby the group of around 15-20 were split into 4 groups. Prior to the assessment day we were given the task of producing, individually, a 3 minute presentation (no powerpoint, just speaking) about why we would like a career in business to business sales and why we would be suitable for the role. This was presented to 2 members of the metamorphose team, after this they asked a few questions about my degree and work experience, what my key strengths and weaknesses were, what's my biggest success and what my greatest challenge has been so far.
After this, each group was given an object which they had to present in front of all the other groups and the metamorphose team in a QVC style. Following this, each group was given a list of 10 characteristics of which we had to pick our top five and rank the five in order of how important it was for a sales person to possess these characteristics. We then had to debate our choices with the other teams. Finally, we had to come up with an idea and pitch it to our target market, which was one of the interviewers in front of the other interviewers and teams. At the end of the 3 hours we were told if we had passed the assessment day.

What has been your biggest success and/or challenge to date?

Be assertive and ensure you make yourself known in the group tasks, but don't be over-dominating - make sure you're still polite and don't interrupt when other people are talking. Otherwise, be outgoing, confident and friendly.

Sell a product in a QVC style presentation, develop an idea and pitch/ sell it to our target market, debate the ideal characteristics for a sales person to have.

The first stage of my interview was a phone interview. This was very informal and friendly, and mainly focused on my career to date, and why I wanted to work for a company like Hilti. I was also asked what my greatest achievement to date was.

My second interview was infront of a panel of people including a regional sales manager. This was a formal interview which was again conducted in a friendly manner, but there was a lot more competency based questions, and quesitons about my CV and career in general.

The third interview was a day out on the road with a current Account Manager. This was great as it gave me an insight into the job, and also enabled me to learn more about the company before my final interview.

My final interview was with the sales director, and my regional manager. This was similiar to the second interview, but involved more indepth conversations about the specific job role.

What is your biggest weakness?

Make sure you learn about the values of Hilti as this is of upmost importance not just for the interview, but for the entireity of your career with Hilti, more so that any other company I have seen before.

Make sure you can explain how your work experience to date has given you cross transferable skills to the role at Hilti.

N/A

During a telephone interview with a recruitment company for this role, I was asked questions on why I wanted to work for them, when I have sold before, when I have used initiative and when I would be free for an assessment centre. The assessment centre happened to be the week after my phone interview so it was a fast turn around.

Upon turning up to the interview (hard location to find, taxi driver didn't know it so make sure you know it), I walked into a boardroom style room, with a table full of other candidates. When myself and two others turned up, this table was full so I had to sit behind them and this made me less viable. We were all given simple English and maths tests, nothing to worry about. Then there were three talks from people within the company who gave us details on the company itself, the role, and how we could progress within the company. The day was assessed on how much we asked them, how we responded and how well we did on a one minute (pre-prepared) presentation of ourselves. There were no one-to-one questions, so if you didn't feel you knew the answer, you were fine. Also, I took a copy of my CV and application and this was not needed.
All candidates were in smart attire but the people already working there were casually dressed. Although I turned down the next stage (a one to one interview, and then another telephone interview), I am pleased that I went and it helped me learn a lot about assessment centres and how they are run.
It lasted two and a half hours, instead of the five hours I was told.

To do a one minute, no note presentation on myself, the company and the role using four of eight key words.

Learn about the company - the CEO, the people in charge of each sector. The main drive for people who were there was for money, they liked people who were money focused. You do not need any prior IT knowledge.

All given English and maths questions, these were easy and no preparation was needed. We were given time at the start and in-between each talk from a member of the team to do these.

I applied for the job online by submitting my CV and after 2 weeks I received a call back from them where they interviewed my over the phone. After going through my CV, they invited me for an Interview at their Finsbury Place office in London. There were more than 15 other potential candidates on the day which built up pressure.

If you found out your company was doing something against the law, like fraud, what would you do?

I didn't like the role in particular as it needed too much relocation and the pay wasn't that good (base salary).
However if you do decide to go for the interview please ensure you do your research and ask as many questions as you can in the presentation and remember at any point of the day you are being analysed as a potential candidate and the more proactive you are the more chances of you getting the job.

On the interview day, to begin with we had a presentation to tell us about the company(at the same time asking us questions about the revenue, profit last year) to engage and pin point the potential candidates. You have to make sure you do your research as the selection process starts from that very first presentation. After this, I was sent to a meeting room where I had 3 people come to me and give me their brief and then asked me questions about myself, sales strategy etc. Two of them were rather calm and the other one was a little tough and giving me hard time.

After completing the initial online application, I was invited to take part in a video interview. Comparing it to phone interviews, it was much scarier. I am not someone who struggles to communicate but I found myself struggling to get my words out, panicking and getting my words mixed up. Luckily, there was a practice sitting which you could complete as many times as you wanted. Once you clicked go, however, you had one minute to read your question, 30 seconds to prepare and one minute to record an answer. After that the programme automatically moved you on, whether you were ready or not. Luckily it was very short, only 5 questions, I also liked the fact that there was not an interviewer there, as it is only the first round of interviews, this made it less pressurising. At the assessment centre, the day was split into 4 sections: role play, case study, role play and the interview. The first consisted of attempting to sell a pair of glasses with a certain criteria, as laid out in the information pack provided. The second involved being the manager of a shop, who had to choose which stocking fillers to sell in the shop approaching christmas. You then had to place them within the shop and give a presentation explaining your choices, the finance and the shop layout. Questions were asked at the end by the assessors in which you had to justify your choices.
After the first two, some candidates were unsuccessful and were sent home. There were only 5 of us left in the afternoon compared to 14 earlier on. The third section involved you being a manager and the assessor being a lazy, unhelpful and unhappy sales advisor. After a number of customer complaints, as the manger you had to sit down and have a disciplinary with him. Next was the interview. This was the part of the day I was most nervous for as I had never had an interview before. The questions were about myself rather than the knowledge I had of the company or industry. Questions such as "what do you see yourself doing in 5 years time" and "why did you apply for this role" were put to me. Some questions that I didn't expect such as "how would you feel if you were 27 and earning 'x amount'". The interview went better than I expected, all I had to do was answer the questions as honestly as possible and to the best of my ability. It felt much more informal than I thought it was going to be, I was imagining something out of the apprentice! But it did feel much more like a chat about myself and where I see myself in life and in the future.

"How would you feel if you were 27 and earning 'x amount'?"
"So you've said where you see yourself in 5 years time, but what about after that? Where do you see yourself in 7 or 8 years time?"

Although I can understand the nerves, and often nerves are a good thing, I would say just relax. The thing with applying for sales (particularly cars) is that the ability to sell is based on your personality. Good interpersonal skills, good rapport and a likeable nature are all necessities in sales. One could be the cleverest person around but if they can't connect with their customer, they won't sell. This is portrayed in the interview, Pendragon are not looking for the cleverest or smartest, they're looking for those with a personality.

At the assessment centre, the day was split into 4 sections: role play, case study, role play and the interview. The first consisted of attempting to sell a pair of glasses with a certain criteria, as laid out in the information pack provided. The second involved being the manager of a shop, who had to choose which stocking fillers to sell in the shop approaching christmas. You then had to place them within the shop and give a presentation explaining your choices, the finance and the shop layout. Questions were asked at the end by the assessors in which you had to justify your choices.
After the first two, some candidates were unsuccessful and were sent home. There were only 5 of us left in the afternoon compared to 14 earlier on. The third section involved you being a manager and the assessor being a lazy, unhelpful and unhappy sales advisor. After a number of customer complaints, as the manger you had to sit down and have a disciplinary with him. Next was the interview. This was the part of the day I was most nervous for as I had never had an interview before. The questions were about myself rather than the knowledge I had of the company or industry.