While it’s true that sales jobs can be very different from one another, the type of salesperson most sought after by hiring managers is the “Hunter.” Pick up the job classifieds section of any newspaper or look at job ads on any job board. The industry, company size, product or service being offered may be different. It won’t matter if the sales work is done outdoors or over the phone; One thing will come out loud and clear in many, many of the ads; the ability to open doors and develop new business is what the job is all about.
Talk to almost any Sales Manager and he or she will use the terms “Hunter” and “Farmer” in reference to types of sales. At the very least, they will have their own sense of what these terms mean to them. In many cases, they will use their own terminology for “Hunter” and “Farmer” within their own business.
What we call a “Hunter” doesn’t really matter. What I’d like to do here is help define the actual “Hunter” personality traits. By defining exactly what the traits of a “Hunter” are, managers will have a clearer idea of what they are looking for when hiring and will be less likely to misinterpret what a job applicant is portraying in the interview. Better hiring decisions result in higher sales, lower job turnover, and more effective day-to-day management.
All sales traits are like double-edged swords, so knowing what an individual’s strengths are will also give you insight into their weaknesses. Knowing both the pros and cons of a “hunter” personality will help you know how best to deal with that person, make the most of their strengths, and have less trouble with their weaknesses.
In our experience, “Hunter” has high levels of 2 of our trait boosts in combination. This is the critical combination that allows them to open doors.
The first is a HIGH LEVEL OF ASSERTIVENESS.
A high level of assertiveness means that the individual is highly competitive, dominant, authoritative, assertive, responsible, needs to “win”, needs to be in control and recognized, thinks big, is risk oriented.
The second is a HIGH LEVEL OF SOCIALITY.
A high level of sociability means that the individual is very outgoing, sociable, people-oriented, outgoing, needs a lot of interaction, is very persuasive, empathetic, needs acceptance and recognition, communicates in a persuasive manner.
This combination of high assertiveness and high sociability that the “Hunter” possesses is presented as an “iron fist in a velvet glove” style. He or she is people oriented but with a purpose. In sales situations, this allows you to be quite assertive, but in a very persuasive or “soft” way, so the prospect won’t be offended by your “push-pushing.”
In addition to having high levels of the above two traits, the “Hunter” has low levels of 2 other traits.
The first of these two is our measure of Patience.
The “Hunter” has a LOW LEVEL OF PATIENCE so he is impatient.
A low level of patience means that the individual is very impatient, restless and proactive, thrives on change/variety, has nervous energy, is deadline oriented, multi-tasks, bored with routine and repetition.
The following is our Dependency measure.
The “Hunter” has a LOW LEVEL OF DEPENDENCE so it is independent.
A low level of dependency means that the individual is highly independent, highly self-confident, dislikes rules, procedures, and guidelines, neglectful of details, risk-oriented, has little fear of failure, resists supervision, is incentive oriented.
The “Hunter” then is ASSERTIVE, SOCIABLE, IMPATIENT and INDEPENDENT. They can be authoritative, empathetic, or a combination of both depending on the situation. They have a sense of urgency, deadline and results orientation. They are entrepreneurs who need to get results by working through people. They need a very fast-paced work environment and love having “too much to do and not enough time to do it.” They are independent and therefore work best under broad, general directions without being so independent as to ignore a moderate number of rules and structures. They tend to feel stifled and cooperate with too many rules, policies, and details. They are detailed and organized to some extent. They are competitive and therefore like to be compensated based on effort and tend to do well working on commission or an incentive based compensation plan. Being impatient, they need to get results quickly and being independent and confident, if they are not happy, they are not afraid to move on to another job if necessary.
What are some things to consider when hiring a “Hunter”?
1. If you are interviewing, be especially careful, as people who are very outgoing (high on our sociability scale) but not very assertive (low on our assertiveness scale) may come off as “Hunters.” People with this style know what you want to hear and what to say during the interview. Highly sociable people appear assertive. Some of them are and some of them are not. The “Hunter” is both sociable and assertive.
2. “Hunters” have a business aspect. Make the sales position look like they are “running their own business.” They should not feel restricted by rules and procedures. Details should be kept to a minimum. The position must be very busy and fast paced. They must be compensated in a strongly incentive-based way.
3. “Hunters” don’t like to be handled. Their big egos mean they feel like they can probably do their job better than you. Fortunately they are very trusting so you can be very direct, almost blunt when communicating with them. When giving them direction, try to relate what needs to be done to what will impact your desired “bottom line” ie more freedom, more money, more authority and responsibility, etc.
4. “Hunters” are very impatient, so try to get him up and running on a new job quickly. Keep the training period as short as possible and let him know what to expect. As soon as it is reasonable, let him have the ability to run his own show as much as possible. You will find this highly motivating.
5. “Hunters” have a lot of nervous energy. Sitting in one place can be demotivating. If the position is mostly or entirely telephone sales, this can eventually demotivate the “Hunter.” Make sure they can break the routine if possible, even by being able to get up and walk around. If some outside activities can be added or if the position leads to outside sales, it will be motivating. Above all, keep the position as busy and versatile as possible.