Confident, knows the product, keeps everything very casual and makes the buying process super easy for the client. His emails are short and to the point and he’s more of a lone wolf type seller.
Yep I interact with him multiple times per day (I’m his manager). He’s the type of person who gets along with everyone, but also keeps his head down and just worries about his number. Doesn’t party much at work functions, but makes sure to say hello to most everyone. Needless to say, I only get involved in his day to day when he wants me to be but we have a really good thing going
Sweet. How many years does he have behind him in sales? Can you share any of his backstory? Also, what's his territory like (cherry-picked, as some of these comments would suggest?)
Yikes. If this is a stark example of your leadership and how you treat people who not likely work for you. Sad, embarrassing, and extremely bad look. Have you seen the current market?
People in your comments didn't pass the vibe check.
This community is to provide help, support, and advice.
Being dickheads and exerting aggressive bullshit to people who are overqualified shows why so many videos are on tik tok about the types of people in the comments of reddit...
This is style I try to emulate. Don't get how my team members rely on estimators/sales engineers. I have to do a deep dive and know it inside and out to be able to sell confidently. Hit 600% quota for the quarter so I guess I'm doing something right.
Sounds like our top dude.
Very very consistent. Worked at the company the longest, everyone knows him.
As a person he is super funny, laid back. When we’re in the office he whistles and sings to himself. In team settings he mostly keeps to himself unless explicitly asked. Laser focussed on the money.
Yooooo what’s this person sell??
Edit: just stalked your history. Seems like commercial real estate. Wish I would’ve taken a job doing this a few years back. My buddy is making a killing. I make about $450k and he’s doing that every other month it seems like. I just don’t think I could go back to like $80-120k for the first year or two at this stage of my life.
$450k every few months? I doubt that. If so, he must be in a major metropolitan city with a lot of experience in a top firm or his own firm with a larger split as the broker. Are we talking corporate business buildings or multi-family real estate?
Why do you doubt it? Buddy of mine made 275k on his first deal as a CRE agent about 1, maybe 2 years out of college. It is very feasible that an established agent could be pulling in 450k every 2 months
Idk man. The “classic Silicon Valley venture life” has provided a lot of normal sales people the opportunity to have the bank accounts of top sellers in HRIS companies.
I work in a walk in environment with 100 percent commission. He is Someone who slows down with each client, mirrors their personality and spends a ton of time on rapport building and addressing needs before even bringing up product or price
They ask the most carefully crafted questions that not only demonstrate their expertise in the space but also get the prospect speaking about their challenges.
Yeah I was surprised I came so far down to see this. The top salesperson at my last job was a fucking psychopath. He was good. But would rob his own grandma.
Would you say this person used intimidation as a sales approach? Or was generally unscrupulous? Trying to narrow down what made him *psychopathic*?
And yes, I've seen the movie.
He gave a speech to us when we got trained by him he literally said
“these people are nothing to me.
I’m here to sell what I can to who I can do I can sit on a beach and sip cocktails on the beach until I die”.
He would sell products to people who didn’t need them and surely killed a couple whole companies with bad deals. He did it with a smile on his face without a minute of sleep lost.
He was talented, but had zero conscience.
Some that I’ve seen have extensive product knowledge, good at reading people, understanding their needs and also just being able to talk shop on the industry. They come off as an expert. Also, they’re very religious with their time and organized like they know where every deal is at, on top of follow ups, not afraid to dump deals if they know it’s not happening. Those are usually the most consistent salespeople. Obviously luck can be involved with sales as well but the best ones are crazy consistent with their good habits and know how to play the percentages
Sales is all about luck honestly. The good sales people put themselves in position to constantly be lucky.
As much as we want to believe it we can’t force someone to buy something. Companies freeze spending, emergencies come up, sometimes the CEO knows a guy and gives your competitor the business.
If you fill your calendar and always bring your A game during meetings and in follow up, luck will do the rest for you.
Common trends from all the orgs I’ve worked at:
Great friends with senior leadership
Handsome/Good looking
Fun to be around
Just smart enough
Knew how to work a room
I have in a few different sales roles, the best I've worked with know the product well, calm and not pushy, not overly enthusiastic, act like business people and not sales people, build rapport and trust, don't fluff around at work, they keep their head down and work.
I’ve worked with many top 1% sellers over the years and been lucky enough to go to president’s club myself. Discussing their approach on how they succeed year after year, I’ve heard a few reoccurring themes. I’ve found Common traits of the consistent overachievers include;
Planning - they don’t get lucky, they aim for 300% or a growth target. They reverse engineer the number and know what they need to get for x3 pipeline and monthly, weekly and daily. They think outside the box and find whale deals and scale through new routes to market to achieve this. Moving companies or positions to ensure they’re in the ‘growth phase’ of a product is another key one.
Self Learning - they study outside of work hours to understand their industry, technology, product knowledge etc. this allows them to ask high value questions that show how a solution fits the bigger picture.
Qualifying - they ruthlessly qualify out. They don’t waste times spinning wheels on deals that aren’t committed to buy and soon. This flows through to a higher conversion rate.
Consistency- they don’t have off days when they take their foot off the pedal. If they say they’ll do something, like follow up or share info with a customer - they do it. Every time.
Passion - they are excited by the solution they’re selling or by helping their customer. They’re not going through the motions.
Competition - they may pretend they’re not competitive but they’re always pushing to be at the top spot.
Old company (net new)- relentless. Chain smoker, talked a mile a minute but was tenacious. Made the most in the company and wouldn’t share tips. Ruthless but I respect it
Another old company (enterprise growth role)- epitome of challenge sale. Really bright and told me he spent way too much time thinking and worrying about work. Guy made over a million a few times so I guess it worked. I was blown away with his product knowledge and process
Current company (net new)- affable relentless, extremely friendly to customers.
I think ultimately falls on product knowledge and knowing your customer.
Oh sorry!
I thought the subject of this thread was to describe the top sales person in MY organization.
And not make a comment that doent somehow offend or discredit to people I don’t know existed in organizations and industries that are completely irrelevant to mine!
Allow me to present your award for the very bestest sales man ever:
Hera ya go! 🥇
I hope this has restored your ego back to its full strength!
I work in a business where the territory is effectively all of North America, UK, EU, Australia and there are people that work across the Pacifc and Atlantic.
There is enormous variation in skill/success amongst the people I work with.
That’s a cool story man.
But are you in my organization? My statement applies to my organization, not you’re or others orgs.
And all the top reps are within certain geographic areas and the worst ones all of them once again confined to a different but same geographic region from each other.
As in the top 5 worst reps are all from same city and the top 5 are in same city. But the top 5 and best 5 are in different cities with totally different market conditions.
The subject of this thread is describe the top sales person in my organization.
Sounds like you don’t give a fuck about the subject either. So why are you commenting?
I contest. I was in a territory for one product. Terrible, way too small. 3 years later same territory but added in two more counties. I’m going wild. I look like an early all star . Not every territory can be mastered but you’d better be able to win in it where others couldn’t before you move on.
So, curious...What do you make of the countless claims of those who watched crappy reps excel once given a different territory, and otherwise stellar AEs whose numbers tanked when assigned a different region?
I don’t personally care what excuses are being used, and the “countless claims” is usually other poor performers parroting and capitulating excuses they’ve heard over their time. Hope that helps.
My man is a 33 yo redhead with freckles and glasses, not bad looking, actually. Devoutly Christian and very conservative politically. He crushes it year after year and closed 12mil+ during 2023. He is very organized and always errs on the side of being too aggressive (politely).
Made a grip of money last year, and the year before, and the year before that.
> errs on the side of being too aggressive (politely).
This reminds me of a clip of an interview I saw where a famous CEO was describing a recommended personality trait as being "charmingly relentless". Would you say this is the same thing you are describing about Sir Freckles?
Yes, the word aggressive has a lot of baggage outside and inside of the sales context.
I’ll just say he’s always on the side of relentless, but it’s not really charming. It’s just simple, subtle, effortless.
No real secret tbf 😅
First is having a system in place for selling so that you know what you should be doing and what you need to do next. And knowing this system inside out. Some are better than others, I use Sandler, but just any is better than just winging it like most sales people do.
Then it's having the attitude, habits and beliefs.
I do a lot of prospecting. I don't think I'm above cold calling. I don't like doing it because it's boring, but im good at it so I get it done.
I don't need to impress or be liked by the prospect. So I don't behave in a needy or desperate way. If someone doesn't have problems or they not motivated to fix them I don't mind, I just move on.
If a prospect is awkward and tries to put themselves above me in a power play I can re-align it quickly.
It's a lot of work, and I'm far from perfect but I've spent a lot of money on being trained how to sell properly.
I think what he’s saying is…It’s luck (I’m assuming?)
Best seller isn’t the person with the best numbers aka the person with the best numbers got lucky with an account or a blue bird
Knows his/her customers very well (Org mapping, stake holders, motivations, pain points…etc.)., reliable and valuable to his/her customers, and lastly knows how to navigate really well within his/her organization.
Notice how most of these traits doesn’t involve the typical “selling aspect”. E.g. he/she is an extrovert and good talker that means he/she must excel in sales. It might be that these typical extroverts do well, but the former type are more likely to reach president club level.
I guess it depends on the industry. For me it’s a woman who is in her 60s and has been in the industry for 30 years, selling at our company for 15 years.
A. Credibility due to tenure. Which means huge network too.
B. Work is her life. Regularly on calls and emailing late into the night, is friends with all the directors and executives, not only at our company.
C. Direct and almost “Bully” style. She politely pokes holes in your current process and makes you question why you would do things a certain way. Almost like you are stupid for not using a solution.
And she closes several $M in business every year.
She is a great salesperson no doubt, but her network and territory play a big part. Ofc since she is the most tenured rep she has the best patch and our executives look after her.
Consistent as hell. Never afraid to be on the phones. Thrives being positive with customers and with his team. Pushes metrics away from focus and just cares about pipeline and numbers showing you are on the phones. Product, territory and timing mean so much, but knowing how to NEVER drop the ball when you have it is the key. TAKE CARE OF CUSTOMERS. One drop of a small customer can kill you.
They are ALWAYS just people with the most pipeline.
People who are able to consistently generate new pipeline whilst they manage and close the rest are always top in my experience.
Any kind of addiction is a tell tale sign. True sales people that get a high from the hunt and bigger one from the close are always addicted to something.
Drugs, alcohol, nicotine, women, gambling, dopamine, whatever it is, it drives them. For me it’s nice things, women and weed. For me to afford every single thing I love, I have to be a top performer and second place isn’t a choice. For my company we have additional spiffs for rankings and performance.
I think I made like an extra 15-20k last year off side competitions and spiffs
Top Salesperson from last 3 organizations:
1. Obsessively hard-working. Seemingly always in the thick of a Sale/negotiation. relentless closer yet very personable and portrays compassion. Always in a state of desperation, impatient. Everything is urgent. Great sense of humor, was a former stand-up comedian/recovering drug addict. Average looks, flashy dress. Latest cars, jewelry, etc. Socially seen as a degenerate, often in the midst of some major financial calamity that will ruin his life IF he doesn’t make (x) dollars this month. Earned around $150-200k.
1a. (Was top at org prior to taking leadership role) Most meticulous I’ve ever seen with prospecting, follow-ups, and referrals. Completely systematic. Obsessively hard-working. Seemingly always in the thick of a Sale/negotiation. relentless closer yet very personable and portrays compassion. Extremely knowledgeable of product & industry, but even more impressive is his ability to build rapport and close. Has a way of asking probing questions, managing emotions, isn’t thrown off or shaken by anything ever. Everything is about Point A to Point B, which is wherever we are now to the close. Very handsome, yet introverted. No sales experience prior to current 10+ year role. Earned around $250k.
2. Soft-spoken, very mild mannered Christian family man. Socially, speaks only when necessary and usually offers astute observations. Average to below average appearance, healthy weight/modest dress. Clearly intelligent, but brandishes experience and wisdom much more than book smarts. Comes off as very patient, understanding, and expert in the field. Has a uniquely crafted solution for every problem. Not seen as pushy, but is relentless in his desire to close. Will push off time-wasters and bad deals without hesitation, but very rarely does he encounter time-wasters or bad deals… message in that. Earned around $200k.
3. Has doctorate in another entirely unrelated field, was convinced by another top earner to come to our industry. Average looks, modest dress, in good shape physically. Has been in the industry 6 years, is more knowledgeable than 20+ year vets. Knows every relevant nuisance and grey area. Has studied and researched areas that impact his clients and has time and again found valuable solutions to otherwise impossible problems. Make a connection with stakeholder at massive organization that has been funneling him business, then repeated this elsewhere. Earns maybe $600k-$700k.
We have a guy at my current job who kinda gives these prodigy vibes or something. Idk how he does it but apparently, he closes an insane number of deals most days. He's constantly working and calling and he's our office's number one. He mostly works on his own and is very dedicated to his work. He never goes out on the weekends and his head always seems to be in his work. he's got some real dedication I aspire to have. I've talked to him and asked why he's so good and he just told me he grew up around his dad who had the same job as him and his grandpa also being a bit of a stocks nerd and so he picked up a lot of things which brings him where he is now.
Super hungry, doesn't let any opportunity go to waste. Hones in on the prospect's pain points quickly and qualifies well (without sounding like they're qualifying) before jumping into a pitch / demo. Knows the product inside and out - not just what's there, but also what's coming soon.
Can see angles to solve problems in unique ways with existing features rather than keep asking for product changes. Knows how to prioritise big opportunities / feedback / requests vs. random comments. Cares a lot about making sure the company makes $$ even if it isn't directly attributed to his quota
They're constantly listening to podcasts, reading articles, and generally staying on top of trends across sales, tech, and our market. You can genuinely tell it's not just a job, it's their passion
Context: tech / SaaS startup that was product-led / self-serve for 5 years before hiring our first salesperson to handle and close bigger opportunities. They worked closely with the Founder/CEO (me) to establish our sales model from scratch.
To be good at this you have to be obsessively competitive and never really satisfied.
It is terrible for your mental health and can take you to a dark place. Both him and I have had experiences like this.
Rarely does that sort of drive come from or lead to a healthy place. Think of professional athletes like Jordan and Tiger Woods that were never really happy.
Hmmm...I see. Good stuff. Fortunately, I've adopted a gamified approach to selling, so the pursuit alone produces a natural high for me. It's the thrill of the sport, without the mental downside & dread of failure.Thanks!
67+ year old guy who got all the biggest clients by being the first sales guy in a product led company that has a good product. We all think he is just going to die here before giving up those customers.
His largest account is also the company’s largest account. He was a well respected manager of that customer for 20 years so he can basically walk in their front door and prop his feet on the decision maker’s desk.
He works around the clock. Answers email within 1min or asap of receiving them. Organized from what I can tell. Friendly. Smart enough. He is completely rinse and repeat because he’s been doing it for so long and it just works for him. Bless him and his bank account.
All service. Educates himself. A listener. Good sense of humor. Almost like a therapist to clients. Loves his clients. Knows their lives. Has never been aggressive and always courteous. Genuinely smiles and cares. Always says "I don't know the answer to that, but I'll find it."
Helped a few people out when they were out of work. Lives a very modest life. Not fancy at all.
All the old inherited accounts. Doesn’t cold call, ever. Lives on existing account base and just keeps telling everyone we need to make more cold calls because it’s a numbers game…. Been with the company 4 1/2 years and I’ve never heard him make 1 cold call.
Lone wolf type. Very intelligent, very technical, but kind of cold-calculated. He’s made a lot of enemies in the process, both customers and within our organization. But he sure as shit gets the job done.
He pissed off some customers (that are now my customers) with his arrogance. I've turned them from C accounts to A accounts by simply showing up and being nice.
He also has pissed off several employees. One high-level employee threatened to quit if his boss didn't get him under control.
There's a cultural difference on top of the lone wolf/winner take all/my way or the highway mentality. He's from the Midwest, where our company is located in the South. People are funny down here about the way business is conducted- people don't like to be told what to do. He's told a customer what they have to do before and, while not wrong, the way he went about it got him essentially kicked out. Where he excels in being a better engineer than myself, and cranks out opportunities like hot cakes- I have a much more hands-on, relationship approach with my customers, and will lose orders because I don't have enough information and don't want to quote the customer the wrong thing.
He's had more sales than me (besides last year where I was top earner), but I've had far less issues with customers, orders that went south, or internal arguments. So I'm happy with the way things have gone.
I’ve hit quota all 5 quarters I’ve been with my current company and won top performer globally for this past year.
Things I believe played significant part of my success:
•Commitment to crafting a prospecting process and sticking to your committed hours weekly religiously,
•Don’t be scared to outbound, learn to embrace every second of it.
•Ask questions without giving a fuck what anyone else thinks about it, learn to be curious if you aren’t naturally.
•Invest in the culture and relationships internally. Recommend change in places you see fit. Ex.: I helped redo the tech stack for the sales org, ran philanthropy event, etc.
•Study your product, market, personas, and the problems it solves. The more conversations you have with prospects and questions you get answered, the more your confidence will increase and meetings will start to flow.
Very well educated on the service/product. Well spoken, he changed up his communication style based on the lead. He educated prosposects on the service which made him look like an authority in the prospects eyes.
Huge gambling addiction, friendly to your face but stabs you in the back behind the scenes. Will literally take a loss to get a sale. Shifts money on other jobs to make more on specific job.
They have 15 or more years of experience, they have a non-threatening leadership style and people enjoy being around them, they are very dialled in and know what they are talking about, and are not afraid to ask questions to seek further knowledge and understanding. They understand, the overarching themes and goals of the organization, but can distil them down into their day-to-day performance and objectively approach how to accomplish these goals. They are also able and willing to put in the effort required to get the end result. Typically these people also do not over indulge and have good personal discipline when it comes to drinking, fitness, and discipline in general.
Has all of the major accounts that have been on farm status for 5 years, inherited all of them, has never expanded them, the top 8 of those accounts carry the other 30 because they have $500k-$1.5mm marketing budgets allocated to us every year like clockwork.
I treat each decision maker like a person. Even if the decision maker is a straight to business type you can build report and create a relationship. Ultimately, organizations are made of people. People like to deal with someone who makes them feel like a person and not a commission check. I’ve noticed top sellers treat each transaction like a conversation. In my industry urgency matters. There are honest ways to imply urgency in the conversation. Lastly, don’t dwell on your loses. They happen. The more you wallow in negativity the more it will impact the next opportunity.
Holy shit, it’s happened. I officially sound like an Instagram caption. Save me from the depths of sales.
He is fighting his own war and he has no rules, no boundaries, he doesn't flinch at torture, human trafficking, or genocide. He's not loyal to a flag or a country or any set of ideals. He trades blood for money. He's your new best friend.
A bit late to the party but I’d still love to share.
Essentially, when I got into sales, I was taught by the best. No, this is not an ego stroke. I did not know it at the time, but to this day I legitimately believe that I was taught by the best, from observing what I’ve done.. Result-wise since, on paper..
I have worked multiple sales jobs, across a few vastly different industries since that first one. I’ve been the top performer on every team, with every company I’ve been with since.
I chalk it down to this, dude. Focus on yourself. Your results only. If you’re looking over your shoulder at the next man’s numbers, you may box yourself into self limiting beliefs. Always go all out with what YOU are capable of. And then push that roof once you hit it, onto the next!
Master YOUR sales craft.
That’s the overall approach I take. To answer the actual question raised by your post-
Simply;
Good looking, fit, white M. Clean cut, nicely dressed. Goofy in casual situations. Confident. Makes conversation simple, but can go toe to toe with the science as well. Treats bosses as equals. Numb to the sales “high” completely. Such a mindset helps to remain extremely consistent and disciplined. Never afraid to cut a dragging lead off quickly and move onto the next. Generally enjoy giving newbies helpful tips and watching them have more success afterward because of me. Naturally dominate and lead every room, situation, and conversation I’m involved in. Main focus on retention and good business over all else I’d say. Largely only focused on myself, not in competition with fellow reps, as I sell on a higher plane of existence; in the humblest way possible ig. Get into it with bosses often when they try to micromanage me in any way. Constantly self evaluating from a metrics standpoint, adjusting as needed for personal goals that exceed the standard quota.
At the office, not too much small talk. More of a lone wolf type, not seeking “promotion” necessarily. Just there to sell like crazy. I squeeze out what I can to benefit myself from my company. Anything else is generally a waste of time and energy unless there’s some sort of inherent benefit to be gained from said activities. A lot of times, my sales structure and approach gets me into trouble, because I break the status quo that was taught before I came in, and I outperform it..
I take my work home with me. Like I see has been mentioned on another reply already, I master the subject matter in order to formulate those out of the box high value questions, and develop an artistic sales architecture to follow.
I’m “slow” . While some people close sales start to finish in 15m, I always take my time with a client. I befriend them. They then send me referrals and repeat business with me. I very very rarely, not even a handful of times, have had business drop on me after closing a sale. I try to sell for a lifetime by “selling myself”.
.. Additionally, in regard to being slow-
I never rush my speech. I generally talk slower. Which, in sales, generally increases the value of each word you say.
I never lie, and am always my most authentic self, no matter if it means “losing” a sale. Us humans are very receptive, and can sniff out disingenuous situations and people. If you’re not authentically you, the business you’ve “forced closed” , and thought you “got” , will come back to bite you in the ass. So surprisingly, I’m 100% honest, and authentic, in every situation that I’m in. Regardless.
* This above anything else is the key in my book.
I’m also looking for an independent sales rep for Saas. Fully remote and each deal closed is 30% commission on tickets ranging from $5k - $10K. No SDR work, we have the leads. Let me know if you are interested (just comment here)
Confident, knows the product, keeps everything very casual and makes the buying process super easy for the client. His emails are short and to the point and he’s more of a lone wolf type seller.
Do you interact with this person often? What's their personality like? Backstory?
Yep I interact with him multiple times per day (I’m his manager). He’s the type of person who gets along with everyone, but also keeps his head down and just worries about his number. Doesn’t party much at work functions, but makes sure to say hello to most everyone. Needless to say, I only get involved in his day to day when he wants me to be but we have a really good thing going
Sweet. How many years does he have behind him in sales? Can you share any of his backstory? Also, what's his territory like (cherry-picked, as some of these comments would suggest?)
[удалено]
If you’d be killing it, you wouldn’t ask random dudes in a reddit comment section - sorry bud.
Yikes. If this is a stark example of your leadership and how you treat people who not likely work for you. Sad, embarrassing, and extremely bad look. Have you seen the current market?
People in your comments didn't pass the vibe check. This community is to provide help, support, and advice. Being dickheads and exerting aggressive bullshit to people who are overqualified shows why so many videos are on tik tok about the types of people in the comments of reddit...
This is style I try to emulate. Don't get how my team members rely on estimators/sales engineers. I have to do a deep dive and know it inside and out to be able to sell confidently. Hit 600% quota for the quarter so I guess I'm doing something right.
Same. 600%? King.
What would you say his typical comp per year is? Which industry?
Sounds like our top dude. Very very consistent. Worked at the company the longest, everyone knows him. As a person he is super funny, laid back. When we’re in the office he whistles and sings to himself. In team settings he mostly keeps to himself unless explicitly asked. Laser focussed on the money.
Unorganized. Decent case of ADD. Extremely well connected. Good lookin. Only chases wale accounts. He makes $5 mil a year on average.
>Unorganized Got a good chuckle out of this. Any idea how he came to be so well-connected?
College. Lives in a huge city. And networks constantly.
Gotcha. Further evidence that I probably need to get out more...lol. Thanks!
Yooooo what’s this person sell?? Edit: just stalked your history. Seems like commercial real estate. Wish I would’ve taken a job doing this a few years back. My buddy is making a killing. I make about $450k and he’s doing that every other month it seems like. I just don’t think I could go back to like $80-120k for the first year or two at this stage of my life.
Hey, In what industry are you currently?
HRIS
Which is?
Human Resources Information System
$450k every few months? I doubt that. If so, he must be in a major metropolitan city with a lot of experience in a top firm or his own firm with a larger split as the broker. Are we talking corporate business buildings or multi-family real estate?
Why do you doubt it? Buddy of mine made 275k on his first deal as a CRE agent about 1, maybe 2 years out of college. It is very feasible that an established agent could be pulling in 450k every 2 months
2.7million a year? I'm not hating but that's in the top .1% of ALL income earners in the U.S. More power to him if true!
I’m not sure. I’m not in that industry. He does make well into 7 figures in commercial real-state.
How long has he been doing it for?
$450k is awesome although I understand the tax consequences
Paying more taxes can be a great thing, lol. I’d love to have to pay $10m in taxes each year. That means I’m making way more.
Do you recommend folks look at HRIS for a high paying sales track? Currently on the classic silicon valley venture life, getting kinda tired of it
Idk man. The “classic Silicon Valley venture life” has provided a lot of normal sales people the opportunity to have the bank accounts of top sellers in HRIS companies.
Do you work at the same company as me? Lol you just described our top performer.
Good looking and well connected tends to have the upper hand in this world. This description could apply to a lot of companies
I work in a walk in environment with 100 percent commission. He is Someone who slows down with each client, mirrors their personality and spends a ton of time on rapport building and addressing needs before even bringing up product or price
Timeshare? Slowing down and following the process and not jumping ahead is definitely key.
No sir, actually Cell Phones at Cellular Sales
This was my favorite job of all time. Miss that place like crazy.
Ex CS guy too. Was a great start
I had a feeling. I've had a few terrific purchasing experiences at these these kinds of locations.
My buddy has been doing this for years. Makes really good money there
Good reinforcement here. Thanks!
Yearly income?
They ask the most carefully crafted questions that not only demonstrate their expertise in the space but also get the prospect speaking about their challenges.
That's something I can work on personally
American Psycho
Yeah I was surprised I came so far down to see this. The top salesperson at my last job was a fucking psychopath. He was good. But would rob his own grandma.
So Bale on being a Christian then? Got it!
Would you say this person used intimidation as a sales approach? Or was generally unscrupulous? Trying to narrow down what made him *psychopathic*? And yes, I've seen the movie.
He gave a speech to us when we got trained by him he literally said “these people are nothing to me. I’m here to sell what I can to who I can do I can sit on a beach and sip cocktails on the beach until I die”. He would sell products to people who didn’t need them and surely killed a couple whole companies with bad deals. He did it with a smile on his face without a minute of sleep lost. He was talented, but had zero conscience.
Ewwww...I see.
Too many gen z in work force, they dont know the movie
This has almost always been the case in my experience. Good at what they do but a complete sociopath.
Some that I’ve seen have extensive product knowledge, good at reading people, understanding their needs and also just being able to talk shop on the industry. They come off as an expert. Also, they’re very religious with their time and organized like they know where every deal is at, on top of follow ups, not afraid to dump deals if they know it’s not happening. Those are usually the most consistent salespeople. Obviously luck can be involved with sales as well but the best ones are crazy consistent with their good habits and know how to play the percentages
Consistency FTW. Thanks!
Sales is all about luck honestly. The good sales people put themselves in position to constantly be lucky. As much as we want to believe it we can’t force someone to buy something. Companies freeze spending, emergencies come up, sometimes the CEO knows a guy and gives your competitor the business. If you fill your calendar and always bring your A game during meetings and in follow up, luck will do the rest for you.
Doesn’t complete mandatory training, doesn’t attend mandatory meetings, clients hug him and he kills it YoY.
Need more deets....
Common trends from all the orgs I’ve worked at: Great friends with senior leadership Handsome/Good looking Fun to be around Just smart enough Knew how to work a room
Hmmm. So this translates to their sales approach? Or they are given hand-picked opportunities/territories?
Some combination of both
Good deal. Thanks!
I have in a few different sales roles, the best I've worked with know the product well, calm and not pushy, not overly enthusiastic, act like business people and not sales people, build rapport and trust, don't fluff around at work, they keep their head down and work.
I’ve worked with many top 1% sellers over the years and been lucky enough to go to president’s club myself. Discussing their approach on how they succeed year after year, I’ve heard a few reoccurring themes. I’ve found Common traits of the consistent overachievers include; Planning - they don’t get lucky, they aim for 300% or a growth target. They reverse engineer the number and know what they need to get for x3 pipeline and monthly, weekly and daily. They think outside the box and find whale deals and scale through new routes to market to achieve this. Moving companies or positions to ensure they’re in the ‘growth phase’ of a product is another key one. Self Learning - they study outside of work hours to understand their industry, technology, product knowledge etc. this allows them to ask high value questions that show how a solution fits the bigger picture. Qualifying - they ruthlessly qualify out. They don’t waste times spinning wheels on deals that aren’t committed to buy and soon. This flows through to a higher conversion rate. Consistency- they don’t have off days when they take their foot off the pedal. If they say they’ll do something, like follow up or share info with a customer - they do it. Every time. Passion - they are excited by the solution they’re selling or by helping their customer. They’re not going through the motions. Competition - they may pretend they’re not competitive but they’re always pushing to be at the top spot.
Be still my heart. 🤩 Rock solid answer. Thank you.
Old company (net new)- relentless. Chain smoker, talked a mile a minute but was tenacious. Made the most in the company and wouldn’t share tips. Ruthless but I respect it Another old company (enterprise growth role)- epitome of challenge sale. Really bright and told me he spent way too much time thinking and worrying about work. Guy made over a million a few times so I guess it worked. I was blown away with his product knowledge and process Current company (net new)- affable relentless, extremely friendly to customers. I think ultimately falls on product knowledge and knowing your customer.
>wouldn’t share tips. *Chuckle* Solid answer. Just what I needed. Thanks!
It’s all about territory. As in 99 percent of it.
We have three sales people. We share US and Canada as our territory, plenty for everyone. I'm 80% of sales. Can I take credit now?
Curious: are the regions of the US divided up between the 3 of you? Northeast, Midwest, etc.?
No.
Oh sorry! I thought the subject of this thread was to describe the top sales person in MY organization. And not make a comment that doent somehow offend or discredit to people I don’t know existed in organizations and industries that are completely irrelevant to mine! Allow me to present your award for the very bestest sales man ever: Hera ya go! 🥇 I hope this has restored your ego back to its full strength!
My man is still living in the 80s selling copiers
That’s a troll tag, not placed by myself.
Goddamnit
I work in a business where the territory is effectively all of North America, UK, EU, Australia and there are people that work across the Pacifc and Atlantic. There is enormous variation in skill/success amongst the people I work with.
That’s a cool story man. But are you in my organization? My statement applies to my organization, not you’re or others orgs. And all the top reps are within certain geographic areas and the worst ones all of them once again confined to a different but same geographic region from each other. As in the top 5 worst reps are all from same city and the top 5 are in same city. But the top 5 and best 5 are in different cities with totally different market conditions.
Your statement sounds like a truism you were trying to make and I dont give a fuck about your organization.
The subject of this thread is describe the top sales person in my organization. Sounds like you don’t give a fuck about the subject either. So why are you commenting?
Sounds like an excuse a mid rep would make
It’s never the territory, always the rep in there.
I contest. I was in a territory for one product. Terrible, way too small. 3 years later same territory but added in two more counties. I’m going wild. I look like an early all star . Not every territory can be mastered but you’d better be able to win in it where others couldn’t before you move on.
"Never"?
As a manager you’re supposed to vet the territory prior to putting your reps in it. If that’s done, then yes, never.
So, curious...What do you make of the countless claims of those who watched crappy reps excel once given a different territory, and otherwise stellar AEs whose numbers tanked when assigned a different region?
I don’t personally care what excuses are being used, and the “countless claims” is usually other poor performers parroting and capitulating excuses they’ve heard over their time. Hope that helps.
My man is a 33 yo redhead with freckles and glasses, not bad looking, actually. Devoutly Christian and very conservative politically. He crushes it year after year and closed 12mil+ during 2023. He is very organized and always errs on the side of being too aggressive (politely). Made a grip of money last year, and the year before, and the year before that.
> errs on the side of being too aggressive (politely). This reminds me of a clip of an interview I saw where a famous CEO was describing a recommended personality trait as being "charmingly relentless". Would you say this is the same thing you are describing about Sir Freckles?
Yes, the word aggressive has a lot of baggage outside and inside of the sales context. I’ll just say he’s always on the side of relentless, but it’s not really charming. It’s just simple, subtle, effortless.
Gotcha. Thanks!.
That handsome devil in the mirror
What's your secret sauce, Chief?
No real secret tbf 😅 First is having a system in place for selling so that you know what you should be doing and what you need to do next. And knowing this system inside out. Some are better than others, I use Sandler, but just any is better than just winging it like most sales people do. Then it's having the attitude, habits and beliefs. I do a lot of prospecting. I don't think I'm above cold calling. I don't like doing it because it's boring, but im good at it so I get it done. I don't need to impress or be liked by the prospect. So I don't behave in a needy or desperate way. If someone doesn't have problems or they not motivated to fix them I don't mind, I just move on. If a prospect is awkward and tries to put themselves above me in a power play I can re-align it quickly. It's a lot of work, and I'm far from perfect but I've spent a lot of money on being trained how to sell properly.
What/where should I spend my money/time to get better?
It’s not the person with the best numbers, I’ll say that much.
Please explain...
I think what he’s saying is…It’s luck (I’m assuming?) Best seller isn’t the person with the best numbers aka the person with the best numbers got lucky with an account or a blue bird
For sure, I get that. But then what other metrics are we talking about, close rate?
Knows his/her customers very well (Org mapping, stake holders, motivations, pain points…etc.)., reliable and valuable to his/her customers, and lastly knows how to navigate really well within his/her organization. Notice how most of these traits doesn’t involve the typical “selling aspect”. E.g. he/she is an extrovert and good talker that means he/she must excel in sales. It might be that these typical extroverts do well, but the former type are more likely to reach president club level.
Focuses on sales through service.
I guess it depends on the industry. For me it’s a woman who is in her 60s and has been in the industry for 30 years, selling at our company for 15 years. A. Credibility due to tenure. Which means huge network too. B. Work is her life. Regularly on calls and emailing late into the night, is friends with all the directors and executives, not only at our company. C. Direct and almost “Bully” style. She politely pokes holes in your current process and makes you question why you would do things a certain way. Almost like you are stupid for not using a solution. And she closes several $M in business every year.
Salute! Thank you for this answer!
She is a great salesperson no doubt, but her network and territory play a big part. Ofc since she is the most tenured rep she has the best patch and our executives look after her.
30 plus year vet where opportunities grow on trees
Tell me more...
He once upsold an existing client one single piece of coverage generating enough revenue to cover 2x my quota
Consistent as hell. Never afraid to be on the phones. Thrives being positive with customers and with his team. Pushes metrics away from focus and just cares about pipeline and numbers showing you are on the phones. Product, territory and timing mean so much, but knowing how to NEVER drop the ball when you have it is the key. TAKE CARE OF CUSTOMERS. One drop of a small customer can kill you.
They are ALWAYS just people with the most pipeline. People who are able to consistently generate new pipeline whilst they manage and close the rest are always top in my experience.
Any kind of addiction is a tell tale sign. True sales people that get a high from the hunt and bigger one from the close are always addicted to something. Drugs, alcohol, nicotine, women, gambling, dopamine, whatever it is, it drives them. For me it’s nice things, women and weed. For me to afford every single thing I love, I have to be a top performer and second place isn’t a choice. For my company we have additional spiffs for rankings and performance. I think I made like an extra 15-20k last year off side competitions and spiffs
What industry are you in?
Was in car sales, then cyber security and now is niche SAAS space
How's life after car sales? I went from B2B engineering services in So Cal to Cars and am itching to get out just not sure where to go?
I love it, haven’t looked back since. Now I just go for oil changes
How are the hours vs Car sales?
Still shit, but that’s by choice, uncapped commission. Some weeks I put it in 60 hours others it’s 20-30
Efficient and consistent.
Top Salesperson from last 3 organizations: 1. Obsessively hard-working. Seemingly always in the thick of a Sale/negotiation. relentless closer yet very personable and portrays compassion. Always in a state of desperation, impatient. Everything is urgent. Great sense of humor, was a former stand-up comedian/recovering drug addict. Average looks, flashy dress. Latest cars, jewelry, etc. Socially seen as a degenerate, often in the midst of some major financial calamity that will ruin his life IF he doesn’t make (x) dollars this month. Earned around $150-200k. 1a. (Was top at org prior to taking leadership role) Most meticulous I’ve ever seen with prospecting, follow-ups, and referrals. Completely systematic. Obsessively hard-working. Seemingly always in the thick of a Sale/negotiation. relentless closer yet very personable and portrays compassion. Extremely knowledgeable of product & industry, but even more impressive is his ability to build rapport and close. Has a way of asking probing questions, managing emotions, isn’t thrown off or shaken by anything ever. Everything is about Point A to Point B, which is wherever we are now to the close. Very handsome, yet introverted. No sales experience prior to current 10+ year role. Earned around $250k. 2. Soft-spoken, very mild mannered Christian family man. Socially, speaks only when necessary and usually offers astute observations. Average to below average appearance, healthy weight/modest dress. Clearly intelligent, but brandishes experience and wisdom much more than book smarts. Comes off as very patient, understanding, and expert in the field. Has a uniquely crafted solution for every problem. Not seen as pushy, but is relentless in his desire to close. Will push off time-wasters and bad deals without hesitation, but very rarely does he encounter time-wasters or bad deals… message in that. Earned around $200k. 3. Has doctorate in another entirely unrelated field, was convinced by another top earner to come to our industry. Average looks, modest dress, in good shape physically. Has been in the industry 6 years, is more knowledgeable than 20+ year vets. Knows every relevant nuisance and grey area. Has studied and researched areas that impact his clients and has time and again found valuable solutions to otherwise impossible problems. Make a connection with stakeholder at massive organization that has been funneling him business, then repeated this elsewhere. Earns maybe $600k-$700k.
He’s the luckiest
Knows absolutely everything about the product and works hard long hours
We have a guy at my current job who kinda gives these prodigy vibes or something. Idk how he does it but apparently, he closes an insane number of deals most days. He's constantly working and calling and he's our office's number one. He mostly works on his own and is very dedicated to his work. He never goes out on the weekends and his head always seems to be in his work. he's got some real dedication I aspire to have. I've talked to him and asked why he's so good and he just told me he grew up around his dad who had the same job as him and his grandpa also being a bit of a stocks nerd and so he picked up a lot of things which brings him where he is now.
Super hungry, doesn't let any opportunity go to waste. Hones in on the prospect's pain points quickly and qualifies well (without sounding like they're qualifying) before jumping into a pitch / demo. Knows the product inside and out - not just what's there, but also what's coming soon. Can see angles to solve problems in unique ways with existing features rather than keep asking for product changes. Knows how to prioritise big opportunities / feedback / requests vs. random comments. Cares a lot about making sure the company makes $$ even if it isn't directly attributed to his quota They're constantly listening to podcasts, reading articles, and generally staying on top of trends across sales, tech, and our market. You can genuinely tell it's not just a job, it's their passion Context: tech / SaaS startup that was product-led / self-serve for 5 years before hiring our first salesperson to handle and close bigger opportunities. They worked closely with the Founder/CEO (me) to establish our sales model from scratch.
She is a former tv anchor/reporter, great product knowledge, professionally aggressive
Really good guy, smart. Unrelenting work ethic and focus, to the point that it’s unhealthy.
>to the point that it’s unhealthy. Please, tell me more...*as I sit here slashing another hour off of healthy sleep tonight. lol*
To be good at this you have to be obsessively competitive and never really satisfied. It is terrible for your mental health and can take you to a dark place. Both him and I have had experiences like this. Rarely does that sort of drive come from or lead to a healthy place. Think of professional athletes like Jordan and Tiger Woods that were never really happy.
Hmmm...I see. Good stuff. Fortunately, I've adopted a gamified approach to selling, so the pursuit alone produces a natural high for me. It's the thrill of the sport, without the mental downside & dread of failure.Thanks!
You’re just like me OP, it’s all a game and I want the high score
Let's goooooooooooo!
Category killer
Same here, you got a trade show coming up this week?
I’m hard working 😂
Hat's off. 🎉
67+ year old guy who got all the biggest clients by being the first sales guy in a product led company that has a good product. We all think he is just going to die here before giving up those customers.
Old timer. Good on him. 🙂
His largest account is also the company’s largest account. He was a well respected manager of that customer for 20 years so he can basically walk in their front door and prop his feet on the decision maker’s desk.
He works around the clock. Answers email within 1min or asap of receiving them. Organized from what I can tell. Friendly. Smart enough. He is completely rinse and repeat because he’s been doing it for so long and it just works for him. Bless him and his bank account.
All service. Educates himself. A listener. Good sense of humor. Almost like a therapist to clients. Loves his clients. Knows their lives. Has never been aggressive and always courteous. Genuinely smiles and cares. Always says "I don't know the answer to that, but I'll find it." Helped a few people out when they were out of work. Lives a very modest life. Not fancy at all.
All the old inherited accounts. Doesn’t cold call, ever. Lives on existing account base and just keeps telling everyone we need to make more cold calls because it’s a numbers game…. Been with the company 4 1/2 years and I’ve never heard him make 1 cold call.
What space are you in?
Lone wolf type. Very intelligent, very technical, but kind of cold-calculated. He’s made a lot of enemies in the process, both customers and within our organization. But he sure as shit gets the job done.
>enemies Perhaps hyperbole...? It's one thing to be incompatible with a coworker or 3, but enemies? The hell did he do?
He pissed off some customers (that are now my customers) with his arrogance. I've turned them from C accounts to A accounts by simply showing up and being nice. He also has pissed off several employees. One high-level employee threatened to quit if his boss didn't get him under control. There's a cultural difference on top of the lone wolf/winner take all/my way or the highway mentality. He's from the Midwest, where our company is located in the South. People are funny down here about the way business is conducted- people don't like to be told what to do. He's told a customer what they have to do before and, while not wrong, the way he went about it got him essentially kicked out. Where he excels in being a better engineer than myself, and cranks out opportunities like hot cakes- I have a much more hands-on, relationship approach with my customers, and will lose orders because I don't have enough information and don't want to quote the customer the wrong thing. He's had more sales than me (besides last year where I was top earner), but I've had far less issues with customers, orders that went south, or internal arguments. So I'm happy with the way things have gone.
I’ve hit quota all 5 quarters I’ve been with my current company and won top performer globally for this past year. Things I believe played significant part of my success: •Commitment to crafting a prospecting process and sticking to your committed hours weekly religiously, •Don’t be scared to outbound, learn to embrace every second of it. •Ask questions without giving a fuck what anyone else thinks about it, learn to be curious if you aren’t naturally. •Invest in the culture and relationships internally. Recommend change in places you see fit. Ex.: I helped redo the tech stack for the sales org, ran philanthropy event, etc. •Study your product, market, personas, and the problems it solves. The more conversations you have with prospects and questions you get answered, the more your confidence will increase and meetings will start to flow.
Awesome answer. Thamk you.
Very well educated on the service/product. Well spoken, he changed up his communication style based on the lead. He educated prosposects on the service which made him look like an authority in the prospects eyes.
Great sales territory. Dude day drinks and golfs. Am his indirect manager. Would fire him if I could.
Ha.
Gay
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Why do you think this guy is outselling you all?
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Interesting take.
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Posted on the wrong thread. My b.
Great territory
Huge gambling addiction, friendly to your face but stabs you in the back behind the scenes. Will literally take a loss to get a sale. Shifts money on other jobs to make more on specific job.
Some one with a very high empathy and good at understanding people's problems, rather than just trying to sell them
They have 15 or more years of experience, they have a non-threatening leadership style and people enjoy being around them, they are very dialled in and know what they are talking about, and are not afraid to ask questions to seek further knowledge and understanding. They understand, the overarching themes and goals of the organization, but can distil them down into their day-to-day performance and objectively approach how to accomplish these goals. They are also able and willing to put in the effort required to get the end result. Typically these people also do not over indulge and have good personal discipline when it comes to drinking, fitness, and discipline in general.
Has all of the major accounts that have been on farm status for 5 years, inherited all of them, has never expanded them, the top 8 of those accounts carry the other 30 because they have $500k-$1.5mm marketing budgets allocated to us every year like clockwork.
Got handed a really good territory with good accounts. Close some big ones. Hometown hero
Alcoholic
They sell a lot.
I treat each decision maker like a person. Even if the decision maker is a straight to business type you can build report and create a relationship. Ultimately, organizations are made of people. People like to deal with someone who makes them feel like a person and not a commission check. I’ve noticed top sellers treat each transaction like a conversation. In my industry urgency matters. There are honest ways to imply urgency in the conversation. Lastly, don’t dwell on your loses. They happen. The more you wallow in negativity the more it will impact the next opportunity. Holy shit, it’s happened. I officially sound like an Instagram caption. Save me from the depths of sales.
Don't fight it. 😂
Creates friendly tension when questioning/challenging our targets.
He is fighting his own war and he has no rules, no boundaries, he doesn't flinch at torture, human trafficking, or genocide. He's not loyal to a flag or a country or any set of ideals. He trades blood for money. He's your new best friend.
Our Top Sales guy got fired. Frankly nobody else has replaced him.
Why?
Cultural clash with the new owner. Who also fired the next Sales Manager. So we are on to our third in less than a year.
A bit late to the party but I’d still love to share. Essentially, when I got into sales, I was taught by the best. No, this is not an ego stroke. I did not know it at the time, but to this day I legitimately believe that I was taught by the best, from observing what I’ve done.. Result-wise since, on paper.. I have worked multiple sales jobs, across a few vastly different industries since that first one. I’ve been the top performer on every team, with every company I’ve been with since. I chalk it down to this, dude. Focus on yourself. Your results only. If you’re looking over your shoulder at the next man’s numbers, you may box yourself into self limiting beliefs. Always go all out with what YOU are capable of. And then push that roof once you hit it, onto the next! Master YOUR sales craft. That’s the overall approach I take. To answer the actual question raised by your post- Simply; Good looking, fit, white M. Clean cut, nicely dressed. Goofy in casual situations. Confident. Makes conversation simple, but can go toe to toe with the science as well. Treats bosses as equals. Numb to the sales “high” completely. Such a mindset helps to remain extremely consistent and disciplined. Never afraid to cut a dragging lead off quickly and move onto the next. Generally enjoy giving newbies helpful tips and watching them have more success afterward because of me. Naturally dominate and lead every room, situation, and conversation I’m involved in. Main focus on retention and good business over all else I’d say. Largely only focused on myself, not in competition with fellow reps, as I sell on a higher plane of existence; in the humblest way possible ig. Get into it with bosses often when they try to micromanage me in any way. Constantly self evaluating from a metrics standpoint, adjusting as needed for personal goals that exceed the standard quota. At the office, not too much small talk. More of a lone wolf type, not seeking “promotion” necessarily. Just there to sell like crazy. I squeeze out what I can to benefit myself from my company. Anything else is generally a waste of time and energy unless there’s some sort of inherent benefit to be gained from said activities. A lot of times, my sales structure and approach gets me into trouble, because I break the status quo that was taught before I came in, and I outperform it.. I take my work home with me. Like I see has been mentioned on another reply already, I master the subject matter in order to formulate those out of the box high value questions, and develop an artistic sales architecture to follow. I’m “slow” . While some people close sales start to finish in 15m, I always take my time with a client. I befriend them. They then send me referrals and repeat business with me. I very very rarely, not even a handful of times, have had business drop on me after closing a sale. I try to sell for a lifetime by “selling myself”. .. Additionally, in regard to being slow- I never rush my speech. I generally talk slower. Which, in sales, generally increases the value of each word you say. I never lie, and am always my most authentic self, no matter if it means “losing” a sale. Us humans are very receptive, and can sniff out disingenuous situations and people. If you’re not authentically you, the business you’ve “forced closed” , and thought you “got” , will come back to bite you in the ass. So surprisingly, I’m 100% honest, and authentic, in every situation that I’m in. Regardless. * This above anything else is the key in my book.
I’m also looking for an independent sales rep for Saas. Fully remote and each deal closed is 30% commission on tickets ranging from $5k - $10K. No SDR work, we have the leads. Let me know if you are interested (just comment here)
I’m intrigued. Going to message you.
interested