Black Sales Journal

You are back in the job market, or recently out of college, and you need to get hired as quickly as possible.  There are bills, potentially including college loans, to be paid, and you are having trouble even getting an interview.  There are some things that you might consider to put you on the radar screen and these things revolve around your resume.

_______________________

What Do Employers Look At?

Recruiters and hiring managers look at a variety of inputs. The most important item you have what it comes to creating interest is your resume, so we will start there.  The resume can have a positive effect, but the other items can have a deleterious effect. The group is as follows:

• Your resume
• Your LinkedIn Profile
• Your Social Media
• Google, Bing, Yahoo Search
• Public Records

Any of these items any of these items can harm your job search if you aren’t careful. It’s your job to construct them or police them, or at least be able to explain them.

Resume

Your resume is that fact-filled item which creates the interest in you, and hopefully gets you the opportunity for a phone or face-to-face interview.

I cannot stress the importance of having a superior resume, because your competition is honing his or her own resume, and someone will get the call. Recognize that this is an area that deserves as much of your time” cheesy”.

I note the following the following articles to help you get that resume looking as good as possible:

Constructing Your Resume? I Will Give You One!

6 Ways to Sharpen Up That Sales Resume’

Should You Hide a Termination?

Race and Your Resume – Part 1

Race and Your Resume Part 2 – The 3 Ps

The resume is something that you should be proud of it after it’s completed, and remembers, always lock your resume down by only sending PDF copies of it to prospective employers if you are forwarding it electronically.  As you will read in the articles I offer, bullet point your accomplishments, and quantify your results. Also, be prepared to back-up what you have with proof sources.

LinkedIn Profile

Your LinkedIn profile is nearly as important as your resume. It is a way for prospective hiring managers as well as HR professionals to check you without actually making contact using this business-networking site.

With that in mind, make sure that your profile is well done and professional.  It should mimic your resume.  Remember that it is a “tease” more than a complete “platter” of you and your accomplishments. With that in mind keep it reasonable in length, and it should accentuate the important things that you have done.

Below I’m going to attach an article that might help you with your LinkedIn profile. It is incumbent on you to have a solid, well done LinkedIn profile.  People will view it, and you will potentially be contacted without doing anything else.

Keeping in mind the fact that the LinkedIn profile can potentially include a picture, recognize that a picture on the LinkedIn profile obviously erases any possibilities of racial anonymity. In other words they will know you’re race and your gender by taking a look at the profile picture.   It is just the way it is now days. It can work to your advantage, or it can work against you in cases where people are being close-minded.  I suggest a well-done shot from the shoulder up.   No web cam shots and no shots of you at the party at the club.

This article can help you with the link in profile:

Are You LinkedIn? The Best Have Been For Years!

Social Media

If you have read BSJ before coming you know my feelings about social media, and your ability to get employed.

42% of hiring managers and human resource professionals indicate that they would reconsider an applicant after a visit to the applicant’s social media sites! Think about it.  This is a window to the type of person that you are.  Your actions and your likes and dislikes can be seen there.

Take a good look at the links below, and make your decisions consciously before you lose the chance to get a job.

Employers Checking Your Social Media Profile? Bet On It!

Social Media – Friend or Foe?

I see many individual’s social media sites and they often include pictures that may be funny and novel, but might make me reconsider whether I would consider them for a position.  Note the posts above and make the necessary changes.

Search Engines and Public Records

I will put these two topics together as they are similar.  This is important, and I cannot emphasize it enough:

Be the expert on yourself!

I have included one of my favorite posts on this subject, because too many job seekers forget to “investigate themselves”.  It is the very first act you need to take in preparing to seek employment.  If you neglect this step, you could get a rude surprise in the job search.  Know what is on-line which ties you to any problem activity.  Check your name, and all variations of your name, so that you can have explanations ready.

Remember this is your first step:

Investigate Yourself! The First Activity of Your Job Search!

You cannot get a job without getting the first interview, so please recognize that now is time to make the changes. Long before start looking at the want ads, get straight your online personality and investigate yourself!

I welcome your comments. Please write me at Michael.Parker@blacksalesjournal.com.

There are always gambits and tactics that you could learn from the best sales professionals.  Some of these useful tools might present ways to become more effective and some might be ways to be more persuasive.  Whatever the thrust is, there are procedures that are working for some of the highest earning sales professionals out there, and you would be missing something not to try them.

____________________

The best sales professionals have benefited from learning these things from others as well, although some of them have worked hard to construct the tactics.  I am a believer that the tactics are “fair game”, and the best will feel flattered that they are being ‘copied’.

12 Lessons You Can Learn and Benefit From

We all have certain tricks of the trade.  The best sales professionals have some rather simple ones that they brag about.  I think that the ease is in knowing them, and that they can be effective. You will need to remember and practice them, as they don’t necessarily come naturally.

Remember that you are not without your own time-proven gambits, yet these can supplement anything that you have been doing.

• Before You Leave – Secure the Next Appointment
• Each Meeting Have an “Action” in Mind
• Be an Effective Listener
• Know When to Say “I don’t know”
• Be an Expert
• Recognize that Rejection is Part of Sales
• Show a Personality
• Always be Dressed for Business
• Have multiple “touch points” at Each Customer
• Prospect Every Single Day
• Develop Deep Enduring Relationships
• Be Responsive

Before You Leave – Secure the Next Appointment – Never walk out without the next chapter being planned.  One of my favorite sales authors, Stephan Schiffman (101 Successful Sales Strategies, 2005 Adams Media), makes this suggestion about the first call.  I certainly suggest it for a first appointment, yet suggest as well for much of the early going with a customer.  End each session setting up the next encounter.

Each Meeting Have an “Action” in Mind – Know your end game for each session.  Make sure that you have an action step in each meeting.  Your update to the customer keeps you in contact, and keeps things moving along

Be an Effective Listener - The best sales professionals let the client talk.  They ask open-ended questions that generate complete thoughts and answers.  They let the client completely finish those answers before giving their input.  Then…they listen! Customers know when you are listening, and they appreciate it.

Know When to Say “I don’t know” – No customer expects that you will have an answer for every problem during your call or meeting.  It is safe to say that you don’t know.  Follow-up is the key, be responsive and do your research.

Be an Expert – You all know my sentiments about being an expert.  It is that angle that you can take which can define you in the future.  Everyone needs expertise in some particular area, and once they have it, the recognition and acclaim begins to flow.  Whether it is an industry, geography, or a product, you should recognize that “expert power” is effective and can mesmerize a customer in addition to giving the requisite value.

Recognize that Rejection is Part of Sales – A sales professional does not take rejection personally.  The Black sales professional needs to be able to separate rejection in the sales process from preference and prejudice.  They are different!  Rejection is part of the process, and the more you have rejection, the more you are able to determine its common nuances,  Don’t sweat it.

Show a Personality – Don’t put on a show, but show that you are a human being.  If the only thing the customer/prospect thinks is that you want his check, you have missed an opportunity.  Remember to be personable, not personal.

Always be Dressed for Business – Dress as if you are serious, and always dress for the part.  Business dress is your “uniform”.  Don’t find yourself being lulled into dressing down as you are on a mission.

Have multiple “touch points” at Each Customer – The “deeper” your contact points go into a customer, the more assured that you can be of having an “ear” in an organization.  When there is change in your customer’s organization, you will appreciate this suggestion.  Know more than one solid contact in each of your customer’s organization.

Prospect Every Single Day – Every single day you should be preparing for the future.  Prospecting is not the sole source of new business prospects, but it is most effective use of your time on a daily basis.  It needs to be a planned routine and it needs to consistently be executed.  Only then can the “law of large numbers” work for you.  Religiously execute the prospecting plan.

Develop Deep Enduring Relationships – Everyone that most of us sell to is a current customer and a potential repeat customer.  Relationships “rule” in the end and can change “preference” as two whom one prefers to do business with.  Develop relationships with a purpose, and work at them.  If you are truthful, and give value, they will start to increase in depth.

Be Responsive – The best sales professionals are responsive to the highest degree.  They answer their phones, return missed calls methodically, respond to questions and do all follow-ups against the clock.  Responsiveness does not mean that you grant all wishes, but it gets answers so people can move to the next important item.  It is always appreciated, and creates an expectation that many sales professionals cannot match.

I know that there are probably more things that could be learned, yet if you live by these simple rules you can generate more success.  If you are good at internalizing them, the difference will be reflected in a professional demeanor and the success should follow.

Maybe you are doing many of these, although maybe not all.  Try them and let me know the results.

We welcome your comments. You can reach me Michael.Parker@blacksalesjournal.com.