Hiring a first or second salesperson is an expensive decision and hard to reverse. The most common mistake is not choosing the wrong person; it is hiring before deciding what that person will sell, to whom, across which territory and against what measure of success. Those answers belong to the company, not to the candidate.
Check that the gap is really a headcount gap
Before hiring, separate three situations that look alike from a distance. A shortage of selling time: enquiries exist and nobody handles them fast enough. A shortage of method: meetings happen but quotations go nowhere. A shortage of direction: nobody decides which segments to work. Only the first calls for a hire. The other two are addressed through training or sales management, and hiring into them adds a person to a system that does not yet work, which makes the situation worse rather than better.
Define the role before looking for the person
A useful profile is not written by listing general qualities. It is written by describing the actual working week: how many visits, what share of existing customers versus prospects, how much technical independence, what level of contact, what negotiation latitude, how much administrative work. That description lets you judge a candidate, because you discuss their probable day rather than a job title. It also prevents the mirror-image disappointment, where someone recruited to develop new business spends their year processing repeat orders.
Allocating territory and portfolio
A clear allocation prevents half of internal conflict. Three logics exist: geographic, by industry, or by customer type. Geography suits high visit counts and standard products; industry suits technical selling that needs precise vocabulary. What matters more than the logic chosen is putting it in writing: who owns which account, who handles an enquiry arriving from a neighbouring area, and how a customer with sites in two regions is treated. Without those rules the best accounts attract several people and the difficult zones belong to nobody.
Compensation: fixed, variable and the basis of calculation
The variable element steers behaviour more reliably than an annual appraisal. Based on turnover alone it produces discounts; based on margin it requires margin to be known and communicated without ambiguity. In an SME, a simple variable built on at most two criteria and left unchanged for twelve months beats a sophisticated scheme nobody can recalculate. The fixed part must stay high enough to make the role liveable during the learning phase, particularly in long-cycle selling where first orders arrive late.
The first ninety days
Good onboarding is prepared before arrival: tool access, the list of accounts handed over, product documentation, a named person for technical questions. The first weeks belong to product learning and accompanied visits, not to an immediate sales target. It is equally important to state what the newcomer will not take on at the start, otherwise they become the destination for every task nobody else wanted. Formal checkpoints at thirty, sixty and ninety days allow correction before habits set.
The weekly management routine
A sales team without a management routine drifts within months, not from ill will but because each person optimises their own week. The minimum routine is short: a brief weekly discussion of live deals, one accompanied customer visit per person per month, and a monthly review of quotations issued and lost. That framework is also what makes management possible remotely or part-time. It is not about controlling how hours are spent; it is about discussing specific files, the only level at which a manager genuinely adds something.
What is reasonable to expect in year one
Unrealistic expectations destroy more sales hires than poor selection. In technical B2B selling the first year goes to learning the product, taking over existing accounts and opening the first new business; net contribution often appears during the second year. That timeline must be stated to the candidate and budgeted by management, because a role judged too early is cut at exactly the point where it was starting to pay. Short cycles allow faster judgement, but rarely before six full months.
When external reinforcement beats hiring
Three situations argue for waiting. An uncertain market: better tested with temporary capacity than with a permanent role built on an assumption. A need for management without enough volume to justify a full-time manager. An absence to cover without losing the accounts concerned. In those cases sales representation or a shared sales director creates movement and allows a later decision based on facts. Once volume is established, hiring is preferable, because an internal salesperson builds relationships and product knowledge that nothing else replaces.
How Swiss Sales Partners works
Swiss Sales Partners works under a written mandate: role definition, territory allocation, compensation structure, content of the first ninety days, management routine and review dates. Swiss Sales Partners does not perform recruitment and does not replace a search firm. The approach rests on more than 30 years in B2B sales, field sales, commercial management and sales management, with experience gained in the environments of Hilti, Egli Fischer (efco), Berner and Bouygues. The decision to hire and the choice of person remain with the company's management.
FAQ
Should we hire or use temporary reinforcement?
It depends on how certain the volume is. An uncertain market is better tested with temporary capacity; established volume justifies an internal role, which is more durable and cheaper over time.
What should the variable pay be based on?
At most two criteria the person knows and can recalculate themselves. A purely turnover-based element encourages discounting; a margin-based one requires margin to be communicated openly.
How do we split territories without conflict?
By writing down who owns which account, who handles enquiries from a neighbouring area, and how a multi-site customer is managed. Clarity of the rule matters more than the logic chosen.
When can a sales hire be judged?
Rarely before six months, and often only after twelve in long technical cycles. Until turnover becomes readable, activity and progress indicators are the basis for judgement.
Do we need someone from our industry?
Not necessarily. Sector knowledge speeds up the start; learning ability matters more across three years. The choice depends mainly on how much training time the company can genuinely provide.