The four sales personalities managers should want in their sales team

I know what you might be thinking: the ultimate sales team would be comprised entirely of ESTJ Myers-Briggs personality types – extroverted, analytical and driven characters who would go out and exponentially grow sales month on month. While each ESTJ member of your team might excel in individual capacities, chances are tensions and competition will mount if you get them working as a cohort. Dream sales teams are made up of a diverse and complementary assembly of personality types: each one bringing their own strengths and attributes to the team. Read on to find out the four sales personalities every manager should want in their sales team:

1. The hunter-gatherer

This personality type is probably the quintessential picture of what a hungry sales person looks like: they’re bold, ambitious and they go out for the kill. They can make sales anytime and anywhere: whether they’re after small accounts or large ones. Hunter-gatherers are fuelled by their own confidence, hard work and, most importantly, charm. An exemplary networker, hunter-gatherers know how to work a room and speak directly to their prospects’ pain points. Their traits might be envied by other members of your sales team, but hunter-gatherers lack the persistence of other personalities: they like to make sales quickly, and if they can’t see a fast return, they’ll move on to other prey.

2) The silent assassin

Introverts have the potential to be fantastic salespeople, despite the stereotype that to make sales one needs the gift of the gab. The silent assassin is just that – they’re not one for small talk, banter or boasting, instead preserving their energy to seek out and make sales. These personality types are so effective because during the the time that their colleagues might spend discussing sales tactics, they’re gathering vital information about leads. During pitches, they let the leads do most of the talking: which flatters the prospect and gives the silent assassin yet more information about them. This type can also be an effective example-setter to the rest of the team when the office becomes too rambunctious.

3) The yuppie

These young guns have limitless energy and live off the thrill of competition and achievement (read: money). Yuppies very often come straight out of school or uni, with nothing but the drive to succeed propelling them to bigger and better bonuses. These types are the polar opposite of the silent assassin: they’re loud and pride themselves on making sales through good old-fashioned persuasion. A typical workday for them ends with pints in the pub, and maybe a bar or two – but they’re able to power through their hangovers the next day, fuelled by their high spirits. Yuppies bring life and soul to a sales team and are great for keeping up morale. Just don’t have too many of them on the same team!

4) The slow and steady

Sales and slow are not two words you normally want to hear in a sentence: the faster sales are made, the more sales can be made in a month, right? While there is some truth in this, the reality is that your sales team is made up of human beings, not robots. And like the tortoise in the fable, slow and steady can win the race. The slow and steady salesperson is methodical when it comes to reaching their sales targets. They use tried and tested techniques for approaching prospects, and don’t take risks when it comes to going after new accounts. They think with a team mentality, and rely heavily on the other members of your sales team to help them achieve their goals. Though this might sound like a weakness, these people are vital for maintaining cohesion within your team and also for tempering the egos of the hunter-gatherer and yuppie types.

To really harness the true potential of your sales team, you need to understand the things that makes each one tick. Exactly the same logic applies to understanding your prospects, which is why prospect profiling is a crucial part of converting leads into sales. At GCL, we have years of experience helping sales teams improve their sales efficiency. Download our guide to sales pitching for advice on acing your next sales pitch:

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