Which Disney Characters Make the Best Salespeople?

Disney characters have always drawn a lot of comparisons with real-life parallels so we decided to ask the question, which Disney characters would make the best salespeople and why? 

Below is the short list of the final contenders for Disney characters with the best sales skills which we admit they did not always used with the best intentions! Whilst it is not exhaustive, we hope that you find it at least mildly entertaining!

1.    Ursula

The terrifying sea witch from Disney’s classic adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid, Ursula would have probably had made an excellent, if frightening, salesperson. After all, she managed to convince a mermaid to give up her voice, not to mention her fins, in exchange for a dubious shot at getting a prince to fall in love with her. Apart from selling the teenaged mermaid on the notion that she could win the prince’s love, Ursula also managed to convince her that she could do it all without benefit of speech. In an unforgettable musical number, Ursula vamps about her cave, her tentacles flowing, belting out the lyrics “You’ve got your looks, your pretty face” with a knowing smirk. Unsurprisingly, Ariel falls for Ursula’s sales tactics hook, line, and sinker, believing that the impossible could come true purely on the strength of the sea witch’s reputation. Indeed, Ursula begins her sales pitch by treating the mermaid to a macabre proof of her own powers, by a garden of withered souls.

2.    Rafiki

The Lion King is a tale about coming of age and accepting one’s place in society, however frightening or onerous it might be. When the young lion cub, Simba, is forced to flee into exile thanks to the cunning machinations of his Machiavellian uncle, Scar, he is befriended by Timon and Pumba, a pair of lovable outcasts who become his new family. Simba grows up taking his new friends’ philosophy of Hakuna Matata to heart, living his days in a peaceful blur of contentment and freedom from all responsibilities. So when his father’s old advisor Rafiki turns up to convince Simba to return home, he has a tough job ahead of him. Yet, he manages to bring the truculent young lion around by being persistent and playing to Simba’s own interests, in this case, the preservation of his ancestral kingdom. By appealing to the latent feelings of the young lion to get his way, Rafiki beautifully demonstrates the importance of playing to a person’s emotions when trying to make a successful sale.

3.    Scar

Any salesperson knows how important it is to have strong communication skills in order to make a successful sales pitch. And of all the Disney characters ever drawn, Scar, the villainous uncle from The Lion King, certainly draws top honours for his ability to talk others into doing his bidding. From arranging for Simba to amble into the path of a stampede to convincing the hyenas to support his scheme to take control of the pride, Scar always manages to sell his plans successfully to his audience. Indeed, Scar’s rousing rendition of “Be Prepared", when he calls the hyenas to join him in his quest for power, is a perfect example of the character’s highly persuasive communication skills!

4.    Mother Gothel

A high level of confidence in what you believe in is one of the keys to being successful in sales. In the growing catalogue of Disney's characters, Mother Gothel, the evil, insecure witch who imprisons Rapunzel in a tower, manages to keep her adopted daughter a prisoner by selling her on the idea that it would be too dangerous to leave.  Anyone who has ever dealt with a headstrong teenager knows how impossible it can be to keep a determined seventeen-year-old  indoors when they want to be free. However, Mother Gothel is so confident in her assertions that the world outside the tower is too dangerous to explore, that Rapunzel believes her.

Being a successful salesperson essentially comes down to having the right combination of confidence, communication skills, persistence, and a certain amount of nerve!  These Disney characters possess all of these traits in spades and with training, perhaps in the art of consultative selling, achieving win-wins and a large dose of customer service, they may have just fitted into the competitive world of modern selling!

Finally, who do you think should have made it into our list, and why?

Happy selling!

Reap the Benefits of Recruiting Before Christmas

With Halloween and Bonfire night out of the way the lead up to Christmas is amongst us, the latest John Lewis advert is out and Christmas jumpers are on sale. It is a time to plan for the start of 2015 and having new members of your sales team bedded in ready to start with a bang!!!

It is prime time for taking on top sales talent; candidates are now to looking for their next move in time for the New Year.

The benefits of recruiting before Christmas for Employers:

·         Candidates can engage with other members of the team at a very social time.
·         With fewer employers recruiting this side of Christmas, you have access to a full talent pool.
·         Less risk of losing your candidate to an alternative offer.
·         Having the candidate fully trained up before Christmas gives you a greater chance of a commercial return early on.
·         Avoid offering a higher salary when competition is fierce in January.
·         It is a quiet time to complete induction & training.
·         December is a great month to meet your clients in a more relaxed environment.
·         Spend that remaining budget!!

Recruit now and get ahead of the game, beat your competitors to the best sales talent and take advantage while it is an employers market.

Written by Liam Oakes

Liam is the Recruitment Office Manager at Aaron Wallis and has been with the company for 4 years after having a career with the RAF; Liam has helped hundreds of Sales Professionals secure a new Sales role and ensures that Aaron Wallis runs smoothly.

Liam.oakes@aaronwallis.co.uk

www.aaronwallis.co.uk

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Just Simply Straightforward Job Searching Tips

Get The Job That You Deserve With These Simple and Straightforward Job Searching Tips

Searching for a job can be one of the most frustrating experiences a person can go through; especially in an economy that is still feeling the effects of the recent recession.   Whilst it is once again becoming a ‘candidates market’ the job market continues to be fierce, with many candidates vying for the most attractive posts.

Even though the job market has dramatically improved over the last few years, whether one is a seasoned professional or a recent graduate, it can still be incredibly difficult to get hired. By using a defined and directed job search strategy, job seekers can find positions that they are ideally qualified for, meet their criteria, and that they stand a good chance of getting.

Map Out Your Plan:

When embarking on a serious job search, your first step should be figuring out what your personal career goals are and the types of roles you are truly interested in pursuing. Take some time to make a list of what your own criteria are when it comes to job description, growth potential, and compensation. It may help you to download our ‘job search checklist’ as part of this plan.

Establish a time frame for finding a new job and make a list of achievable goals along that timeline. Start with polishing up your CV or having a fresh one written for you if it has a number of years since you applied for a job.  Finding a job can be a bit of a full-time job in itself so determine how much time you are able to devote daily or weekly to applying for jobs and stick to your schedule.  

Keep a careful record of all the responses you receive and stay organised when it comes to scheduling interviews.   If you are serious about finding a new role, you will simply have to find the time to attend interviews. 

Specialist Recruitment Agencies:

There are thousands of recruitment agencies out there so channel your energy into one that is right for you. Are they a specialist or a generalist agency, i.e. are they regularly advertising the kind of roles that you are looking for and do their consultants have links to workers in your industry sector within their LinkedIn profiles? 

If so, they will probably have access to a mine of terrific jobs that are not available on the ‘open market’.  Recruiters, including ourselves, get inundated with applications so make the difference by detailing in a cover note exactly why you are the ‘stand out candidate’ and detail precisely what you are looking for in your next role in terms of industry sector, role types and salary (and indeed if you’re prepared to work for a competitor). Then recruiters can quickly see whether they have the roles that will be right for you. 

Traditional Networking:

Networking is still one of the best ways to get a new job, with studies showing that over 50% of all hires are made through referrals and recommendations. However, if you are a recent graduate, or school leaver, you may not yet have this 'work-network' so start with your University alumni association or career office. Speak to friends and family members and even your old teachers about any jobs they might know of in your field of interest. 

Social Media Networking:

Use your social media accounts to highlight your career accomplishments and goals, especially on sites like LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook, all of which are routinely used by recruiters to announce job openings and scout for potential candidates. If you are unemployed or your current boss knows that you are hunting for a new job, it is alright to mention that you are actively looking for a new position in your status, and can help drive more interest your way from hiring managers.  

Regularly update your LinkedIn profile as this will signal to recruiters that you are proactively looking.  Whilst managing your social networks remember to ensure that they show you in your very best light! 

Direct Your Energies:

The old-fashioned techniques of cold calling for jobs can still be a very effective way to find job openings in sales.  What better way to experience your sales prowess than to actually pitch yourself in to gain an interview!

However, it is important to make sure that you are directing your energies towards companies in which you are seriously interested and know something about. Take the time to research companies in your industry and make a list of those that appeal to you, both for what they do and how well you think you might fit in.  Make the call to the hiring managers, send an updated CV and write a short bullet pointed cover letter, which specifies why you are particularly interested in their company and why you would be a good fit for them. 

Follow Up:

Whether you approached the company proactively or responded to an advertised opening, make sure to follow up with the human resources department or hiring manager, either by phone or email.

Let them know why you are interested in the job and briefly re-iterate your skills. Hiring managers often sift through hundreds of CV's a week and taking a few minutes to check in on the status of your application will go a long way towards making you stand out from the crowd.

The job hunt can certainly be a frustrating experience, but by employing the right strategy, you can make your search that much more successful and rewarding. Perseverance is also essential – don’t give up if it takes a bit of time. Finding the right job is simply a matter of patience, research, and following a solid plan.

Finally:

We’re in the process of overhauling our Career Tools section for candidates in preparation for 2015. Why not take a look at it for more career advice that has been specifically written for sales professionals.