What makes the best type of salesperson?
Many people are aware that when it comes to acquiring new customers there tends to be a blurring in the lines between sales and marketing.
Marketing is responsible for the strategy, for generating new leads and interest. The line blurs when it comes to conversion.
In sales, you may have heard of the “Hunters vs Farmers Model”, well now I want to add the “Fishers”.
The different traits of a salesperson means you can categorise them as either “hunters”, “farmers” or “fishers”.
Who is a hunter?
Salespeople that are hunters are driven by numbers. They will cold call and follow up until they get a yes. They are hungry, independent, persistent and have the gift of the gab. They will have a keen eye on their commission and focus mainly on new business.
A hunter will use social media platforms like LinkedIn to connect with as many potential prospects as possible and get the marketing teams to spend as much as they can on bringing in new leads.
Who is a farmer?
The farmers of the business world tend to focus their attention on existing clients. They will nurture their crops and try and get as much out of them as possible.
A farmer will build lasting relationships with their clients, focus mainly on rapport and providing the best customer service possible.
They will be more tactile and know exactly when to go for the upsell or when to back off.
The renewal is the most important part of their job, and they pay less attention to new business or their commission.
A farmer often has softer interpersonal skills and uses these to their advantage to collaborate effectively with others.
So, what makes a fisher?
A fisher is someone who takes the best skills from a hunter and a farmer and combines them with their own expertise to reap the benefits of both.
A fisher will place themselves in the spot where they know the fish will come to them. They place themselves within trade bodies, join industry groups, and become thought leaders in their sectors.
They use angles to talk to the people they want to talk to and go after the most valuable prospects.
Rather than casting their net too wide they use customer relation management systems (CRMs) to their advantage and seek out the best areas to focus their attention.
How can these benefit a business?
A fisher may seem like the “golden ticket” salesperson, but in reality, you need all three to survive.
A mixture of personalities is ideal for a business to thrive. You need people with varying skillsets to enable a business to penetrate different areas of the market.
Account managers, customer service experts, business development executives – whatever job title you give them, these are the key players that make your business work.
It’s important to take these personal attributes into account when recruiting. Remember to get the balance right and take on board how these people will work together to deliver the best possible service.
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