Everybody sells something, whether it’s goods, services, or expertise. But is the target market for our products the same? No. Is the selling procedure comparable? Actually, no!

Selling involves a set of specialized abilities, some of which are universal and others which are very specific to the offering’s setting. As a result, before talking about employing salespeople or evaluating them through a sales skills exam, we must first grasp the specific sales context of each organization. This comprehension will serve as the cornerstone for determining who should be evaluated, what should be evaluated, and how he or she should be considered.

Sales are one of the most important functions of any organization. With good salespeople, a company can grow and succeed. It is, therefore, essential for recruiting teams to identify top sales talent. One way to do this is by using a sales assessment test. In this article, we will explore what a sales test is, the benefits of using one, the different types of sales assessment tests available, and how to prepare for and pass a sales assessment test.

What is a Sales Assessment Test?

A sales assessment test is a tool used to evaluate a candidate’s sales skills, abilities, and potential. The test measures a candidate’s aptitude for sales by analyzing their personality traits, behavioral patterns, and cognitive abilities. The results of the test can help recruiters identify whether a candidate has the necessary skills to excel in a sales role.

These days, many businesses use sales tests to find the best hires. Employers realize that spending more time on hiring the appropriate people results in better recruits, reduced turnover, and greater sales numbers—despite the fact that they take time and work to set up.  Candidates can exhibit the reasoning and sales abilities necessary to be successful in a sales profession, including adaptability, numeracy skills, teamwork, goal-setting, and ambition through the sales test.

Benefits of Sales Skills Assessment Test

Sales hiring processes are improved by sales assessments, which also guarantee that you and the firm discover the perfect match. The majority of sales managers use these tests to;

• Increase Your Understanding of a Candidate’s Personality: Sales assessments make it simpler to compare applicants based on critical sales competencies that may not be obvious in a formal interview, such as whether they are a good fit for the company’s culture.  
• Boost Sales and Revenue: The development of a high-performing sales department and the creation of winning sales techniques by that team can all contribute to sustainable growth, better accounts, and improved retention rates for your company.
• Saving Time And Money: The culture of the team, your business’s financial line, and your customer connections are all impacted by a poor hire. Invest in sales tests early on to accurately evaluate weaknesses before they cost your company money and time. 
• Identify a Candidate’s Fit for a Specific Sales Position: The growth and income of your company are largely attributed to the strength of your sales team. By selecting the best candidates, you can guarantee the highest level of service to both your current and prospective consumers.

Types of Sales Assessment Tests

For sales employees, there are various kinds of sales skills assessment tests available. Some are built around multiple-choice questions, while others are concentrated on sales test questions that simulate a real-world sales scenario. Both are intended to determine how applicants communicate or approach potential clients. Here are a few test varieties that can be used in assessments:

Sales Aptitude Test

Sales aptitude tests evaluate a role’s fundamental sales abilities. Businesses may demand different levels of talent, but the general categories are the same. A sales aptitude exam measures a variety of abilities, including numerical aptitude, product and market comprehension, verbal reasoning, analytical skills, problem-solving, and decision-making.

It’s the perfect test for pre-employment screening of applicants for a range of sales roles, such as account manager and salesman. A strong candidate for a B2B sales position will be able to demonstrate competence in prospecting for new clients, building and maintaining relationships with clients, sharp problem-solving skills, understanding numerical data, evaluating written communication, and drawing logical conclusions from given data.

Through a series of multiple-choice questions, this online sales aptitude test challenges candidates to exhibit ability with various sorts of reasoning as well as experience with handling interactions with both present and potential clients.

Sales Personality Test

Every sales position needs a specific set of personality traits and behaviors to be successful, regardless of whether your company sells IT solutions, shoes, or residences. Every business also needs successful salespeople. Additionally, highly effective salespeople have a thorough understanding of the three things they are selling: the product, the consumer, and the selling process.

A candidate’s attitude, interpersonal skills, ability to handle pressure, thought process, ability to be innovative, ability to adapt to change, and other traits are assessed using personality tests. Candidates who perform well on this test have a solid grasp of B2B financial sales and practical experience advancing new opportunities through the sales process.

These are the people who can help you establish a stronger connection with potential clients, increase sales, and shorten the buying cycle. Although there are other personality tests on the market, including the MBTI, the disc sales assessment, and others, sales personality tests that employ the Big Five Model of Personality have emerged as the most accurate at forecasting candidate performance.

Importance of a Sales Assessment Test

Why is a sales assessment particularly important in identifying a potential candidate’s sales strength?

• A sales evaluation test provides more information about a candidate’s attributes and genuine abilities than interview questions alone.
• An interview is no longer sufficient. Indeed, research indicates that a great deal of what occurs during the pre-hiring process cannot be believed, with 85% of candidates’ resumes containing some level of deception. Isn’t it terrifying?
• But an interview will help you sort out any possible lies or exaggerations on the resume.

No, not necessarily.

As most interviews ask the same type of general questions, it is common for a sales candidate to have prepared and practiced responses. In other words, your candidate may deceive you into believing that they will be the salesperson of your dreams, when in reality, they may become the salesperson of your worst nightmare.

Thus, a sales assessment is required to navigate the jungle of faked resumes and practice interview questions and responses. Consider a sales evaluation test to be a fact checker for the interviewee’s responses.

An effective sales evaluation will offer questions that evaluate the common personality qualities seen in the most successful salespeople, such as Drive, a non-teachable trait that only top-performing salespeople possess. The drive is comprised of three characteristics: the desire to succeed, competitiveness, and optimism.

All three are necessary for a candidate to produce and sustain long-term sales. This magical trio makes an excellent salesperson.

How to Take a Sales Assessment Test?

Sales assessment tests can be taken online or in person. Online tests are usually more convenient and can be taken from anywhere with an internet connection. In-person tests are usually more comprehensive and provide a more accurate evaluation of a candidate’s sales skills.

How to Pass a Sales Assessment Test?

Preparing for a sales assessment test involves understanding what the test is measuring and practicing the skills being evaluated. Recruiters can help candidates prepare for a sales assessment test by providing them with information about the test and the skills being assessed. They can also provide candidates with sample questions and practice exercises. To pass a sales assessment test, candidates need to understand the skills being evaluated and practice those skills. 

Do research

There’s a considerable probability that the questions and situations in a company’s sales evaluation test will be related to elements like its industry and size. After all, selling for B2B SaaS can differ significantly from selling medical devices. Be sure to thoroughly become familiar with the company in query, the structure of its industry, and any trends that may result from those factors before you do your evaluation. If you do, you’ll have a lot better idea of what to anticipate from the test and be able to provide more in-depth, thoughtful responses.

Refresh Your Sales Skills

It always helps to glance over the material you believe you might require.

Have you recently had your cognitive aptitude tested, for instance? Consider looking online for a practice test you may take at home and then reviewing the incorrect answer choices.

You might also practice making cold calls by reading through a few scripts so you know exactly what to say. Even if you don’t apply this new knowledge directly during your assessment, you’ll feel more assured that you’ll perform well.

Do Practice

You can prepare for the other important aspects of a sales evaluation test even when you cannot practice for the personality component of the test. Roleplaying in sales is a great approach to increasing your self-assurance and practical knowledge. You can do this quickly by asking a friend or member of your family to act as a customer and provide feedback on your selling techniques. If you can enlist the assistance of someone you know who works in sales, bonus points.

Even though recreating a real-world selling scenario in your living room can be difficult, it’s a terrific approach to hone your sales skills and get ready for sales assessment tests.

Be Genuine

One of the assessments that companies pay the most attention to is the sales personality test. It assists them in figuring out whether you’ll match the existing team dynamic. It may be tempting to respond to the questions in a way that you think the organization wants to hear, but doing so is detrimental to everyone.

Companies respect the personality test for a good reason: Both sales abilities and blending in with the corporate culture and daily activities are crucial. You can find yourself working in a sales organization that isn’t a suitable fit for you if you are dishonest. You want to be hired by the company, not some manufactured replacement who might not be the best fit.

Candidates should also read the instructions carefully and take their time to answer the questions. It is also important for candidates to stay calm and focused during the test.

How to Interpret Sales Assessment Test Results?

Sales assessment test results are usually presented in a report that provides an overview of a candidate’s strengths and weaknesses. Recruiters can use this report to identify the most suitable candidates for a sales role. It is important to remember that a sales assessment test is just one tool in the recruitment process and should be used in conjunction with other recruitment tools and methods.

How To Choose The Right Sales Assessment Test For Your Company?

1. Adapted To Your Company’s Requirements

Choose a sales assessment that is appropriate for your company’s requirements. Determine what qualities your firm requires in a salesman before selecting an assessment. Once you’ve determined which attributes you’re searching for, you may ensure that the exams you’re considering will ask your prospects questions to assess for those qualities.

2. Insights And Reports Based On Data

One of the benefits of online sales candidate exams is that the findings are available immediately. Select a sales test partner with a team of subject matter experts to guide your organization through the process. Make sure the sales assessment tools you use can reveal or hide the information you need to make the best sales recruiting decisions.

3. Easy to Use

Whether you hire a candidate or not, you want all participants to have a positive experience when working with your company. Choose sales tests that are simple to use, easy to comprehend, simple to manage, and interesting for all parties involved.

4. Select An Effective Sales Assessment

Making certain that the evaluation you select has been verified is essential to its effectiveness.

Here are a few signs that the sales aptitude exam you’re considering has been validated:

• Was it intended to reflect modern sales managers’ problems and expectations?
• Does it pose questions that push the candidate to answer truthfully rather than choosing an answer that they believe you will want to hear?
• Does it meet the scientific validity criteria?

Conclusion: Why A Sales Assessment Test Is Essential For Recruiting Top Sales Talent

A sales assessment test is an essential tool for recruiting top sales talent. It can help recruiters identify candidates with the necessary skills, abilities, and potential for a sales role. Overall, asking situation-based questions based on real-life professional relationships is one of the most commonly used methods of assessing applicants’ sales talents. However, analyzing candidates’ technical capabilities, problem-solving abilities, and relationship-building abilities is tough in a single interview, making it impossible to fully appreciate their potential. By using a sales test, recruiters can save time and money by identifying the most suitable candidates for a sales role. Whether you are a recruiter or a candidate, understanding sales assessment tests and how to prepare for them can help you succeed in the recruitment process. 

SkillRobo‘s sales skills evaluation tests are created with your company’s sales scenario in mind. It can assist you in screening applicants with various profiles. The skillRobo pre-employment evaluation tool assesses a salesperson’s genuine capability for any career level or role. It uses data-backed insights to address your organization’s essential objectives, saving you time and allowing you to make smarter business decisions.

Boost your sales team’s success today – Try SkillRobo’s pre-employment tests tool now to make smarter hiring decisions and drive business growth! Sign Up!