[FUNd]

I'm thinking about hiring a couple new people from inside the industry, and I want experience, but also don't want to be too picky or set my expectations too high. Tired of training people from scratch. They rarely work out.

With a good mix of outbound, semi-scripted dialing on non UCC lists on a predictive dialer and also inbound leads (about 75% outbound, 25% inbound) what do you think a good salesperson (not necessarily a 'superstar') should be capable of in loan volume per month? We have all the sources and a very good understanding of processes and underwriting, so assume good back end support for these reps in making your estimation.

Thanks in advance.

[Zach]

Depends on the quality of the list. If it's an aged lead list or something of that sort a solid salesperson should be able to produce 100-150K per month.

If it's UCCs, anything over 100 is indicative of a high skill set.

Straight cold calling 75K plus is good for starters unless you specifically teach them how to market themselves, in which case you can expect more depending on your marketing strategy.

Also, don't calculate it based on volume. Calculate based on revenue. I have salespeople that average 15 points and some that average 5. Volume is a faulty reflection of true value.

[jotucker1983]

It totally depends on the data and leads you are feeding them.

- For outbound, they are going to be calling non-UCCs, but are they going to be fed another type of warm data record to call on, or would they be fed cold data? Cold data would be like targeting a particular SIC list of companies, Warm data would be like targeting merchants who are currently in the process of adding a second location and your team would follow-up with them to see if they could use your product to help fund the second location.

- For inbound, are these coming from quality sources that's been pre-qualified? Or will these just be a generic pile of leads from whatever was entered on the online form? If it's just a generic pile, a lot of these leads will be start-ups that can't be funded.

It totally depends on the outbound data and the inbound leads that are being fed to them firstly, secondly, it depends upon the work ethic and professional competency of the agents you are hiring. You would have to sit down, look at everything on the table, configure a compensation system and an expected volume based on everything you are viewing on said table.

[Drizzle]

Fund..... If you are looking to hire someone that is already in the industry make sure you vet them with a fine tooth comb. Ask them in an industry this lucrative why are you leaving your current position? I have found that all too often those with industry experience are just a bunch of mediocre at best and partially disgruntled salesmen. They are quick to send a file to their buddy someone in a different office.

What makes a good salesperson is a good manager/trainer. A good salesperson can call a phone book and have success.

Good salespeople are cultivated over time.

[AndyYSCISOdept]

I have a completely different idea about what a good salesperson is and what makes one.

I believe that a good salesperson is a reflection of the organization they work in and the leadership given to them by those in management positions.

Having said that, I have found that the best guys I have working for me were guys who knew nothing about the industry but had a willingness to learn and work hard. They didn't come in with an attitude of "I know everything, just give me a phone and computer and F-Off!"

The reason I reference the attitude is because I have tried hiring people from within the industry and it never worked out because we were always butting heads over the fact that they disregarded my requesting them do things a certain way which in turn shows a lack of respect etc etc we all know the end to this story.

[KTK]

*raises hand* "I have my series 7 license"

"Good for you, you can get out too. We don't hire brokers, we train new ones. That's it skippy, pack your sh@t, let's go"

Now I understand - bad analogy, as they wanted new so that they don't know any better - and they could train them improperly. But I think the opposite holds true in this industry as there are so many being trained the WRONG way of doing things that a lot of new hires with experience will come in programmed with improper and unethical strategies tattooed on their eyelids. It's then an uphill battle to attempt to teach that old dog new tricks as Andy stated.

Although FUNd is right that then you have to do the hard, frustrating, and costly work of weeding out the 85% that just aren't cut out for it to find the true gems.

However, that said, I think that a true candidate that you trained from scratch on your methodology will usually be a better investment then those hired with experience. That's my experience anyway. Not solely in this industry either, I truly feel that holds true across the board.

[AndyYSCISOdept]

KTK I think you raise an interesting point. One of my biggest questions is, "When an old dog comes in that is unwilling to learn new tricks, who is responsible for their being unqualified"? Do we lay the blame at the feet of those that trained them before that did it in the "wrong way" or do we blame the hire for being unwilling and or unable to adapt to a new set of principles?

[jotucker1983]

Let me ask you guys some questions.

When you reference "training", what type of training are you talking about? Are you talking about Professional Competency? Professional Competency would include knowing everything there is to know about the product, the competing products to it, the challenges/issues it resolves for XYZ market sectors, what type of merchant it fits well for, sister products to your product (i.e. factoring), and understanding the industry from a Macro (regulatory bodies and trends) and Micro perspective (funder underwriting processes and criteria).

Is this the "training" that you guys are referring to? When I usually hear Sales Managers (or people that are close to Sales Managers) talk about "training", it's always more along the lines of something within the Professional Competency area.

But what about "training" in relation to the production of a high quantity and high quality stream of new qualified leads on a daily basis? Do you train them to do that? Because that's 95% of the position, Professional Competency is the other 5% of it. You can take a guy that's less competent, but with a high quantity network of quality leads coming in, and he will always out sell the more competent guy with a lower quantity of quality leads.

Drizzle said that a "good salesperson" can have success randomly calling a phone book, I fundamentally disagree with that. It's this mentality that a "good salesperson" can function in a bad territory, with a bad product, with bad leads, and with outdated data, if they just have a certain level of high professional competency. Thus, Sales Managers focus their "training" only on certain aspects of Professional Competency (mainly, the features/benefits of the product) and say nothing about secondary market research, strategic partnerships, marketing budgets, etc., you know, the 95% of what will make a rep succeed or fail lol.

[mcaguru]

test

[GoodCustomerService]

All the great sales reps are loyal and stay put. They are usually well taken care of and you'll never poach them because nothing comes with a guarantee in this business. Now, I like hiring guys that know the product, and yes there is usually a really good reason why they are leaving where they are. The number one reason is they aren't making money, and some just suck as sales people. But other issues like lead sources are weak, or my managers a dick, or they have no organization, those are things that I listen to. If they fit your environment, try a new style of training, your way of doing things, and if they click in the first 30 days, awesome. If not, move on. But training from the ground up right now is way too tough. This product is still very simple to learn, but if you are an ISO and deal with 10 different funders, you need to know them inside and out and the other 50 funders you aren't dealing with how they operate inside and out. That kind of knowledge is necessary to get in my door.

[MCNetwork]

A good salesperson is coachable, hard working, likeable, positive and enthusiastic. Also, he or she must have GREAT communication skills! I prefer people without industry experience because they tend to be stubborn and set in their ways. Customers do business with people that they genuinely like. Without this trait, all the industry knowledge in the world won't overcome a salesperson without much of a personality.

When it comes to sales books, my all time favorite is "How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success in Selling" by Frank Bettger. I also love "The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin" (even though it's not technically a "sales" book).

[Michael I]

Depends on the quality of the list. If it's an aged lead list or something of that sort a solid salesperson should be able to produce 100-150K per month.

If it's UCCs, anything over 100 is indicative of a high skill set.

Straight cold calling 75K plus is good for starters unless you specifically teach them how to market themselves, in which case you can expect more depending on your marketing strategy.

Also, don't calculate it based on volume. Calculate based on revenue. I have salespeople that average 15 points and some that average 5. Volume is a faulty reflection of true value.

without hot leads you will never do 75k in pr a month and if your referring to dollars funded how do people stay if they are making so little ?

[AndyYSCISOdept]

In the interest of full disclosure, I haven't added a new member to my team in almost 2 years, but the guys I have all new NOTHING about the industry and they are all rockstars now! Take that for what you will.

[Funder Mark]

without hot leads you will never do 75k in pr a month and if your referring to dollars funded how do people stay if they are making so little ?

If by hot leads you mean incoming, fresh leads, you are incorrect. There are people doing $100k+ on UCC's. Is it easy? No, but it is possible. And I know some places where they only have old UCC's, but because they are so cheap, the owners give a larger % on any deals that fund off those lists.

[Zach]

without hot leads you will never do 75k in pr a month and if your referring to dollars funded how do people stay if they are making so little ?

75K volume is a minimum for starters (seasoned reps need to do more).. if they can't hit that, they're gonna have problems

[AndyYSCISOdept]

Im glad you clarified Volume because I thought you meant commission and I was wondering what Im doing wrong!@

[Zach]

$100K of commission per month is a bit much for a new rep.

Lol

[Drizzle]

What are your expectations on monthly pr for reps?

[Chambo]

I'm thinking about hiring a couple new people from inside the industry, and I want experience, but also don't want to be too picky or set my expectations too high. Tired of training people from scratch. They rarely work out.

With a good mix of outbound, semi-scripted dialing on non UCC lists on a predictive dialer and also inbound leads (about 75% outbound, 25% inbound) what do you think a good salesperson (not necessarily a 'superstar') should be capable of in loan volume per month? We have all the sources and a very good understanding of processes and underwriting, so assume good back end support for these reps in making your estimation.

Thanks in advance.

those #'s completely depend on the leads you are providing. Crappy leads will yield crappy results.

[FUNd]

those #'s completely depend on the leads you are providing. Crappy leads will yield crappy results.

To clarify, the leads I provide are self gen, not bought from anywhere. Generated through a squeeze page, response to a direct mail piece, or live transferred from an in-office telemarketing person.

[Chambo]

if you are looking to hire MCA experienced sales folks, you had better be willing to pay for the quality. You aint gona get an experienced guy coming in for 25-30% rip

You want all stars on the team, you have to pay all star type money

[GoodCustomerService]

Think that's one of the questions here, Chambo. For an All Star rep, what's the cost to get them in the door and with anticipating solid marketing how much should they close?

[Chambo]

They will close depending on quality of marketing. you give LeBron a crappy team to play with, he aint winning any championships.

But most decent reps are already making 30-40% payout. The better ones more. So if you think you are going to come in with 20-25% payout, you are fooling yourself.

Not to mention, the truly good ones can just go solo and take 100% payout, so why even bother with you?

[MCNetwork]

The best reps start up their own shops or are pretty high up in their respective organizations and are doing well. The ones that are bouncing from shop to shop are usually the disgruntled underperformers. That's why I always prefer to groom and train newbies.

[AndyYSCISOdept]

I think that is one of the perks of newbies is you have an opportunity to mold them in a way that is the most conducive to a productive sales rep that does things in the "right way" (which is defined by each individual sales manager)
However, I will agree with Chambo that if you want a lebron-like all star on your squad you aren't going to get away with paying him like a rookie.