Listing 30 Common Sales Interview Questions and How to Impressively Answer Them

Sales interviews are where employers aim to gauge an applicant's selling abilities. Due to the unique nature of this field, sales interviews are often considered some of the toughest interviews, as employers rigorously assess an applicant's persuasion skills. Below is a list of common sales interview questions that recruitment experts frequently use in the sales field to help you prepare and increase your chances of success.

1. What was the most recent product or service you were involved in selling?

Suggested Answer:

This is a sales interview question that assesses your past business experience and your honesty as a candidate. In this case, you should provide an honest account of your past business experience and demonstrate to the employer that you have a clear understanding of that particular product or service.

Here are some details to include in your response:

• Product or Service: Provide a detailed description of the product or service you were involved in selling, including an understanding of its features and benefits.

• Target Audience: Share information about the target customers you worked with in the past. This could be end consumers, large businesses, or customers in a specific industry.

• Responsibilities: Clearly outline your role and responsibilities in the marketing and sales process.

• Business Skills: Highlight important business skills and abilities you believe are crucial for a successful salesperson, such as communication skills, persuasion abilities, patience, and the ability to work independently.

• Sales Performance: Describe the sales performance of the product or service you sold. This could include information about sales growth, conversion rates, or any achievements you attained.

2. How do you assess our company's product or business potential?

Suggested Answer:

This sales interview question is meant to evaluate your business acumen and intelligence in the sales field. In your response, you should present your honest perspective on the product. Consider yourself a regular customer and assess the product from this perspective, including its strengths and weaknesses, pricing, and quality.

Additionally, you should evaluate the product's potential from your own viewpoint. Share your thoughts on how the product could improve or evolve in the future. This could involve suggestions for new features, enhancing the customer experience, or strategies to boost sales.

If possible, present relevant market statistics to illustrate your points. These statistics may relate to market growth, market size, or significant trends in the product's field. This will help you impress the interviewer and demonstrate your thorough research and knowledge of the industry you're interested in.

You need to answer honestly about your sales experience

3. Do you know who our customers are?

Suggested answer:

Candidates should proactively research information about the company before participating in the interview. It is important that you learn about the company through online information sources such as the company's website, official fanpage, customer reviews on social networks, and feedback from previous customers. From there, it helps you get good preparation and complete answers.

In your answer, you need to show your seriousness in learning about the company's business and how you have researched information about the customers the company is targeting.

4. When consulting a customer, what do you advise?

Suggested answer:

This question is used to evaluate your Sales ability. Understand that to be successful in selling products, you need to understand and advise on what customers really need, instead of just focusing on presenting the product's benefits. Therefore, answer this question by clearly stating that you will put yourself in your customer's shoes, identify the needs and difficulties they are facing, and then provide solutions based on real values that the company's products provide.

5. In your opinion, what factors help customers choose you and our products?

Suggested answer:

The decisive factor for customers' choice is the ability to provide the right solutions they need, solve the challenges they are facing or provide good, reputable after-sales services. When this is combined with an enthusiastic attitude and excellent after-sales service, customers will favor and choose the company's products.

Read now: Mastering the Art of Tactful Salary Negotiation During Interviews

6. Do you understand what customer care entails?

Suggested Answer:

Customer care involves addressing and resolving customer inquiries and issues during product usage. If there are any product malfunctions or defects, a commitment to repair or replace the product for the customer is essential. Customer care also extends to sending emails or messages on special occasions. We believe that only when customers are well taken care of can a new product truly establish its position in the market.

7. What do you know about our competitors?

Suggested Answer:

This is a question that assesses a candidate's research and understanding of the product market. In your response, you should demonstrate that you have conducted meticulous research on the market and the product. Mention and introduce some strengths of your product and company compared to those of your competitors.

8. How would you handle a customer who criticizes your product?

This is a commonly used sales interview question. In reality, you may frequently encounter such situations with demanding customers. To answer this question, you can say that you would start by understanding the reason behind the customer's objection or complaint. Then, you would carefully analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the product, paying special attention to and clearly explaining any issues or concerns the customer mentioned. This way, you would ensure that the customer understands and has confidence in the product.

9. What are your ambitions for the future? What do you plan to achieve in the next 5 years if you are hired by our company?

Suggested Answer:

Share your goals for the next 5 years while striving in a sales role. These goals can be personal, such as buying a new house, acquiring a car, accumulating exciting experiences, or even advancing to the position of Director of Sales within the company. It's important to demonstrate that you have clear goals and commitment in your work.

10. How do you view future trends in the business industry?

Suggested Answer:

Provide specific data and illustrative examples of the product's potential for development and how it can enhance people's lives. Talk about the opportunities the product can bring when serving a market in the future, as well as the product's positive impact on customers.

11.What are the prospects for a salesperson?

Suggested Answer:

The first prospect in a Sales career is to increase sales revenue for the company, creating opportunities to connect and interact with various individuals and customers. It provides opportunities for professional development and the necessary skills to meet and satisfy customers. Over time, business professionals can confidently open their own businesses or hold senior management positions within a company.

12. What would you do if you don't meet your sales target this month or if a customer complains?

Suggested Answer:

In your resume, you may have focused on highlighting your outstanding achievements; however, reality shows that nobody is perfect, and there may be times when you don't meet your KPIs. In such cases, what's important is your attitude and how you handle the situation.

Stay calm and sober, sit down to self-assess your strengths and weaknesses. Analyze why you faced difficulties and didn't achieve the KPIs. This will help you gain a better understanding of the challenges you're facing.

Next, consider how you can improve the situation. Make a list of specific steps you will take in the next month to address your weaknesses. This may include learning from experience, finding ways to work more efficiently, or, if necessary, seeking support from colleagues or your manager.

Remember that learning from mistakes and correcting them is an essential part of personal development and your career.

13. Which customers do you want to sell to? Why?

Suggested answer:

With this question, you need to emphasize mastering information about the company's target customer base. Only when you clearly understand the target audience your company is targeting and are able to properly meet their needs will you have a chance of success in selling your product or service.

Identifying the right customer base and the ability to serve them effectively will help you make a positive impression in the eyes of the interviewer and increase your chances of being selected as a sales employee.

14. How do you always stay cheerful and enthusiastic with customers?

Suggested answer:

To create joy for customers, always maintain a positive mindset and passion for life. Every time you face a problem that makes a customer upset, remember the memorable and happy moments in your life, take a deep breath and regain your composure. At that time, your optimism and enthusiasm will spread to customers, so they can feel how important the positive qualities that shine in you are.

15. Name your biggest failure in sales? How did you solve it and what lessons did you learn?

Suggested answer:

Share your personal experiences honestly. In the field of sales, there is no easy path, so the most important thing is not to assume that you are always good without ever failing. Instead, talk about the challenges and difficulties you've faced and how you overcame them to achieve your goals. Tell about those experiences and how they helped you change and grow more positively.

By sharing about difficult moments and how you overcame them, you will demonstrate your honesty and ability to learn, which can make a positive impression on the listener during the interview. 

Show your honesty and ability to learn

16. What was the size of your work team in your previous organization?

Suggested Answer:

In this sales interview question, focus on highlighting your leadership skills and the positive impact you had on your work team in your previous company. Even if the team may not have been large, emphasize how you demonstrated influence and contributed to the team's achievement of common goals. Stress that this ability will be an important factor in your future career advancement within the company.

This way, you can showcase your confidence and leadership capabilities gained from your previous experience and make a lasting impression on the interviewer regarding your potential to influence organizational development.

17. What were the sales targets in your previous organization?

Suggested Answer:

Be honest in your response. This is an opportunity for the interviewer to assess the scale of your previous company and, in turn, evaluate your sales abilities. It also helps them assess the candidate's potential accurately.

18.Describe the recent sales process in your most recent previous organization. What in the process was effective, and what wasn't?

Suggested Answer:

Demonstrate a genuine understanding of the company you worked for. Provide information about the sales process, the work environment, and the company's development to show your ability to synthesize and report to the employer. Provide a detailed overview of your former company's working process and evaluate its effectiveness in the overall business operation.

19. Describe once there was a change or correction in the sales process. Why did that process change? Tell me the results of the change?

Suggested answer:

Describe the time you have gone through, you should outline the things that need to change and show how it is interconnected. And how to be able to sell products proficiently with the new process. Show the employer the results of that change. How positive it is for the company's sales as well as the sales team's ability to work increases significantly.

This is indeed not an easy question to answer. Therefore, think carefully and break down each small idea and answer with the right focus. Because it is likely that in your upcoming job you will have to face a similar situation.

20. Why do customers buy your products and use your services? Are there any alternatives?

Suggested answer:

Think of the employer as a special customer, and approach them the same way you would approach a potential customer. Clearly state the competitive advantages of the product you are selling compared to your competitors' products. This can include aspects such as price, performance, features, geographical location, and many other factors.

Focus on highlighting all the advantages you see in the company's products. This could include convenience, time savings, product quality, or any other strong points the product has. You need to clearly show the benefits that employers can benefit from using that product.

21. Describe the customer's purchasing decision-making process? What conditions influence their purchasing decisions? What do you have to do to get them to close the order?

Suggested answer:

Demonstrate your understanding of how customers research and decide to purchase products. Describe in detail the process they go through from the moment they enter our store or website until they make payment. Describe how they search for information, consult with relatives or friends, and consider important factors before making purchasing decisions.

Show the employer in detail how you went about the sales process and the specific tips you applied to close the deal. How you approach and build relationships with customers, how you take advantage of sales opportunities, and how you ensure that each transaction goes smoothly and successfully. This helps clearly demonstrate that you are knowledgeable about the sales process and have the ability to actively contribute to the company's sales growth.

22. When do you stop pursuing a potential customer?

Suggested Answer:

Express your confidence in persuading potential customers to close a deal. Remember that if they have become potential customers, it means they have a need for your product. The most important thing is how you approach persuading them. Therefore, you should never give up and always strive to convert potential customers into actual customers.

23.When you are assigned to approach new potential customers by a business, what are your responsibilities?

Suggested Answer:

Respond by stating that your responsibility now is to ensure that the potential customers close the deal and become loyal customers of the brand. Most importantly, it starts with researching information about these customers, identifying the best solutions for them, and ultimately reaching out to them.

24.What sales closing methods do you typically use? In your opinion, which method is the most effective and least effective? Why?

Suggested Answer:

With this question, refer to the strategies you use to achieve success in closing deals and explain in detail to demonstrate your potential and expertise to the interviewer. Show that you have practical experience in the field of sales by outlining specific steps in the sales process that you propose.

25.Have you had any experience managing customer relationship management (CRM) software? Please name any (if applicable).

Suggested Answer:

Show professionalism in this sales interview question to persuade the employer. Start by understanding their needs, then delve into their work and family situation. Lastly, it is crucial to obtain the customer's contact information. Remember that understanding the customer deeply is extremely important for success in sales.

26. What data do you need before contacting a lead?

Suggested answer:

In this question, show your professionalism. First, research their needs, then learn about their work and family situation. Finally, collect customer contact information. Remember that to be successful in sales, understanding your customers is essential.

27. Have you failed to reach your sales target? If so, have you learned from that time?

Suggested answer:

In this answer, show the employer that you are someone who constantly strives to develop at work. Sometimes, failure in sales is inevitable, and it's important that we don't feel self-conscious or afraid because of it. Instead, we should take advantage of those experiences to learn and develop ourselves better, bringing better work performance.

28. Describe a time when you worked with a hot-tempered customer. How did you handle that situation?

Suggested answer:

Based on your experience, demonstrate the excellent qualities of a salesperson to the employer. Tell a success story, a very impressive end result - that is when an initial customer has become a loyal customer of the business. The important thing is that only customers who are truly interested in the product are so picky.

Additionally, state that when dealing with difficult customers, you will see it as an opportunity to demonstrate your professionalism. This way, you always have the goal of convincing your customers, no matter how difficult they are.

29. Tell us about your biggest career success? What do you want to achieve next?

Suggested answer:

Don't answer this sales interview question in a rambling, long-winded way about your achievements, but show the employer what you did to achieve that achievement and what you have met on your journey. What difficulties? How did you solve that difficulty? Thus, employers will appreciate your working ability.

30. What would you do in your first month at the company if you were hired?

Suggested Answer:

Clearly outline the tasks you need to accomplish, breaking them down into individual points and analyzing them so that the employer can see the reasons and purposes behind these tasks. Your response should demonstrate your organized and intelligent thinking. This way, the employer will be persuaded. For example:

• Immersing myself and understanding the company's organizational culture.

• Building relationships with colleagues.

• Learning and getting acquainted with the company's work processes.

• Clearly defining the assigned tasks and focusing on them.

• Understanding how superiors work and interacting effectively with them.

• Planning to complete tasks in the first month.

Above are some suggestions on common sales interview questions and how to answer them impressively in front of the employer. We hope this article has provided you with useful and interesting information.

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