Competency-based interview questions for Sales

There is no denying an interview can be daunting for even the most experienced of candidates. Our sales recruitment experts are here to provide excellent advice to support your preparations.

When applying for any sales job, no matter what level, it is inevitable that you will face some competency-based interview questions. Like with any question you answer at interview, how you respond will indicate how you will perform in your future role, so it is crucial that you are well prepared for any that come your way.

We asked Sales Divisional Manager, Stephanie Bowers, for her steer on the most frequently asked competency-based interview questions to help set you up for success in your sales interview.

Top five sales competency-based interview questions

• "Give an example of a time when an important deal fell through, and how did you deal with it? "
• "Tell me about a time when you negotiated for your employer, and what were the challenges?"
• "Tell me about a time when you have had to manage a busy workload and meet delivery expectations."
• "Describe a situation where you were struggling to meet targets and used your initiative to meet them."
• "Describe a time when the cause of a problem was not initially clear, and how you dealt with this."​

Additional questions to prepare for:

• "Give an example of a situation where you have taken something from start to finish in terms of growth, be that a territory, set of accounts or a team."

Also, it’s important to prepare to talk about your career rationale and the moves you’ve made previously. Talk openly and put a positive spin on previous roles and decisions you’ve made.