Every point-of-contact with a hiring manager (or the HR department) is a make-or-break one. Each one is a “weeding” opportunity for them: your resume, your cover letter, your online presence, your phone interview, and your first interview. They’re looking for a reason to throw your name out and narrow down the field to make their jobs easier.
In response to that, the smart candidate will prepare, refine their job search and interview techniques, and give it all they’ve got. But there’s one other trick you could have up your sleeve:
Today’s job search is unlike any we’ve seen before. Competition is especially fierce in this economy, and candidates get weeded out quickly. If you’ve landed the interview, you need to bring your best game right off the bat and knock the socks off the hiring manager. One of the most effective ways to become an all-star candidate is to hire an interview coach. Individualized coaching takes your personal work history and talents into account and customizes solutions for you.
Did you ever wish you had the “inside track” at your interview? Or that you knew exactly how to explain that slightly difficult/embarrassing/sensitive situation in your job history? Or even the very best way to explain who you are and what you do in a compelling, “hire me” kind of way? Maybe you’re getting interviews, but you know that something’s not going quite right because you’re not getting called back for the second one.
Are you going to interviews, but not getting the offer? Or not even getting called back for a second interview?
Maybe there's some issue you don't have a great explanation for: a gap in your employment history, why you're willing to take a pay cut in a new job, why you've been out of a job for so long, you're overqualified/underqualified, or something.
Maybe you don't even know why--you think you're doing a great job, but you're not getting the call back.
It's time for you to invest in interview coaching. Great interview coaching can help you with confidence, communication, presence, wording, emphasis, and other areas that are stopping you from getting the job offer you want and deserve. It focuses on your particular situation and your individual personality and style to give you the boost you need.
In this video, I'll give you some examples of how I helped real candidates with roadblocks in their job searches that gave them a breakthrough and got them job offers. And we did it in less than an hour.
Jennifer had little experience in sales and was having trouble getting a job offer. She was doing what everyone thinks of as "all the right things": networking, had her resume professionally done, and applied to more than 50 positions online, with no success. With a 1-2 hour coaching session, we tailored her resume, taught her how to use social media, and more....within weeks, she received many offers and landed her dream job. See her story for yourself here:
As a sales recruiter, I get almost daily inquiries from people who have no sales background but would like to transition into a sales job and want to know what they should do. Landing a sales job can be difficult, but not impossible. There are 3 ways you can go (or you can mix and match):
Hire a career coach. There's no substitute for the advice of an expert. An hour will do it for most people, generally split up into short sessions over days or weeks, as you implement the suggestions. It might look something like this:
First 20 minutes: Review your resume, identify your goals, and pinpoint which areas you need to improve. You'll get a list of sales books to read (so you don't have to take a class), and we'll set up a job-shadowing opportunity, if you'd like.
Next 20 minute session: Once you've read the books and made your resume changes, we'll discuss the concepts and review your resume.
Final 20 minute session: We'll put together a plan for your job shadow, discuss what your goal is, and talk about how to incorporate the keywords you'll get from it into your resume so that it will get the attention of hiring managers and their Applicant Tracking Systems.
But the best thing about working with a career coach is that it's personalized. If you need help with another aspect of getting the job, that's what you'll concentrate on. You'll talk about your specific situation, in detail, to determine the most effective steps you can take to land the job.
Consider getting the How to Get Into Medical Sales kit, even if you're not interested in medical sales. The core principles are the same, and what works to get a medical sales job will work with other sales arenas. I have organized everything I've learned from the last 15 years in the business into a a step-by-step, comprehensive guide:
* tips and tricks from 15 years of working and placing people in medical sales
* a resume template designed to be your marketing brochure
* a bold and persuasive cover letter
* a technology sheet –your “secret weapon”
* a thank you note that will be another selling tool for you
* A 30/60/90-day plan – you’ll be the most prepared candidate the hiring manager has ever seen
The tools available in this kit are a complete, step-by-step map for you to follow to land your dream job.
Work the "Do-It-Yourself" plan.
Research what it takes to transition into a sales field from a non-sales background. Here are some key tips:
Go for a ride-along with a sales rep. See what a typical day is like. Ask questions about the job, find out how to be competitive in the job search and once you get the job. Get a few names to call from places they sell to.
Use the field preceptorship (job shadowing) to fill your resume with keywords that will make sure it's flagged by computerized tracking systems. Your resume should have a sales focus and also highlight your technical background.
Learn to handle phone interviews. Most initial contacts with recruiters and hiring managers are conducted by phone, because it's an efficient way to weed out candidates who aren't going to fit. You must know how to make a good impression so you can land the face-to-face interview.
Learn how to write a 30/60/90-day plan. This is a key element to your job interview process--especially if you have no sales experience. It helps the hiring manager understand that you know what it takes to be successful in the job, and helps him "see" you as a sales rep. A 30/60/90-day plan is a written outline of what you’d be doing in the first 30 days, the first 60 days, and the first 90 days on the job--like training, customer introductions, and going after new accounts. If it's specific to the company, it lets the hiring manager know that you've researched and prepared for THIS job, and you're very interested in working for this particular company.
It's hard work, but it's worth it. I wish you the best of luck.
A career coach can be a job seeker's best friend. Just as a coach trains an athlete to improve and achieve more, a career coach can help a professional focus and hone skills that will help him or her reach a higher level of success. A targeted approach to career coaching involves taking a candidate and setting him up for success in the job search--either as a transition into a new career area, an entry-level candidate, or to give a good candidate a powerful leg up in a very competitive job market.
As a career coach, I often get questions about it like:
"What's my best strategy for getting a job in this economy?"
"I've been downsized. What do I do?"
"I am currently in pharma sales, but used to work for XYZ Company selling radiology equipment. I would like to get back into medical sales or medical device sales, but nobody wants to hire someone from pharma. How can I make the transition?"
"I would like a professional to review my resume and cover letter. "
Most people only need about an hour, so it's not a big commitment.
How can it help you? Basically, I have years of experience in sales, building successful sales territories from the bottom up, sales managment and recruiting, and I use all that experience to offer you an objective, informed opinion on your personal situation. It can be as broad as a personal branding strategy, or as focused as a resume review. It's effective, and it's efficient. You can learn:
How to write your resume so that it highlights YOUR best qualifications
How to ace your interview--I can ask you questions and give you immediate feedback on your answers and style
What you should include on your brag book and 30/60/90-day plan--with specific ideas for your own situation
Which job offer you should take--discuss pros and cons with someone who knows the industry and has no agenda
How to negotiate salary--everyone is afraid of this one, but it's not that hard
Which follow-up techniques to use to make a great impression
How to build your personal brand so that you get farther faster
Figure out why you're not getting offers even though you're qualified
How to get an interview if you're having trouble--how can you contact that sales manager?
Anything you need to know about sales career success!
Want to know what others say about how I've helped them? See my LinkedIn page.
It's tough in the job market right now, and you need every advantage you can get. I would love to help you. Click here for more information.
Jobs in medical sales, laboratory sales, medical device sales, hospital equipment sales, and other health care sales are fairly competitive to get into (you're going to have to put some effort into it), but worth it in terms of compensation, commissions, and extras. Plus, it's an exciting place to be if you have an interest in science or medicine (but not blood), technology, business, and helping people.
You're going to have to go the extra mile (especially in this economy!) to land a position in health care sales, but there are several great ways to set yourself apart from the competition. Doing all of them will definitely make you a standout candidate! Here's how to prepare for a sales job interview:
I bought my husband Kraig a new electric guitar for his birthday in July. He'd wanted one for a while, and has tooled around with it pretty consistently, about 20 minutes a day--and he's not bad. But, as he told me, he's "plateaued". He's gone as far as his skills will take him, and he's just not going to get a whole lot better under his own power. So, for Christmas I bought him guitar lessons. My expectation is that access to a specialist (an expert--someone who does this every day and will teach him how to think about it, what to practice, what to do with his fingers on the strings, and so on) will increase his skills exponentially, making him a better guitar player.
You see where I'm going with this....if we are willing to invest in swim lessons for our kids and guitar lessons for our husbands (and we do these kinds of things all the time), then we should be willing to invest in ourselves and our careers with career coaching. Find out how career coaching can exponentially increase your career skills and help you get the job, the raise, or the promotion you want.
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