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Should Introverts Consider A Career In Sales?

Posted by Chris Berry on July 24, 2008 in Introversion, Jobs and Careers

Most people would consider a career in sales to be the exclusive domain of type A extroverts, but under the right circumstances, introverts can be quite successful. I actually spent 10 years as a top 1% sales performer in the commercial printing industry before veering off on a completely different path. The key to success is maximizing your natural talents and abilities, without trying to become something that you’re not.

Let’s begin by narrowing down our definition of sales as a career field. There are two very broad categories to consider; Business-to-Consumer (B2C) and Business-to-Business (B2B). B2C is selling at the retail level and generally involves small transactions with a large number of customers. In most cases, these are one-time interactions with people you do not know. I would not recommend this type of selling for introverts.

B2B sales is an entirely different concept. The object is to develop long-term working relationships with companies who will purchase your product or service on an ongoing basis. As strange as it sounds, this can be an ideal scenario for an introvert. The trick is having the technical expertise to represent your product or service effectively, along with the correct support mechanisms to ensure your success.

Products or services that require extensive technical knowledge are ideal for introverted sales people. While most extroverted sales reps rely on developing personal relationships with their customers, the savvy introvert works to become a valued technical resource instead. If you can get your customers to think of you first whenever complex questions arise, you’re well on your way to success.

My own experience bears this out. Printing is an incredibly complex process, and I worked diligently to develop and maintain a high level of expertise in my field. As a result of this I became known as an expert on very complex projects. While other companies were often called in to submit bids, I was the one sought out for my advice during the initial design stages of a project. The final specifications were frequently based on my recommendations and on the specific manufacturing capabilities of my company. Under these circumstances I didn’t lose very often.

Becoming a recognized expert also has advantages when it comes to developing new business. Customers are often reluctant to recommend a sales person to their colleagues and co-workers for the simple reason that most sales people don’t add much value. When you become an expert in your field, that situation changes dramatically. Customers are happy to make introductions on your behalf because they are now doing their colleagues a favor rather than doing you a favor. After a very short time in sales, I was able to abandon traditional extrovert-style prospecting methods completely and rely entirely on personal introductions from satisfied customers.

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