what personality is required to succeed in sales?

Question

assuming u sell at c-level b2b consultative complex sales process e.g. IT solution sales, what personality does it take to suceed ?

or is it still the same universal personality like the one u need for selling insurance or used cars ?

r u a successful sales person yourself?

Answer 1

I think the main key is to not push people into buying something. Thats the technique of most salesmen, but real turn off. You end up running off customers. Use your job to educate and let the customer make their own decsion. This way, the customer feels they can trust you and they have time to really consider if that is what they really want. By doing so, you end up with a satisfied customer and plenty of referrals.

Answer 2

It's not so much about personality as the ability to listen and use information as it is presented to you. Other than that you should enjoy interface, contact, and conversation with people. Be empathetic, upbeat, and positive.
I don't think there is a universal personality that makes for successful sales people. You either know what you're talking about, or you don't. Your attitude towards your company, product, and career all come through in your presentation so it helps if you can have some enthusiasm and enjoy the process of selling.
As long as you're not a toxic person, sales is easy to be successful at. People base their buying decisions on how they are feeling about the sales conconsultant, the product, and the company. Be nice to people. Treat them with respect. Practice your selling skills everyday. Train yourself to be a professional. And increase your income as a result of that professionalism.

Yes. I am a sales consultant.

Answer 3

No, I'm not a successul sales rep: I'm a successful IT systems administrator.

What skills would you need to sell your IT solutions to me? First, don't bother with the fast pitch -- I ditch those guys really fast. To sell to IT you have to convince the geeks that you know your stuff... and that means not just your product but the whole platform.

For example, suppose you want to sell me your superduper new directory services system for Unix-based systems. I ask you how it handles integration with OpenLDAP. If you don't *at least* know what I'm talking about then we have NOTHING TO DISCUSS because you don't understand what I need.

That's simply a matter of "know your customer's business". If you don't, you won't sell much...