Why Sales? Answers and Examples for This Common Interview Question

At Uvaro, our top priority is to prepare you to ace any job interview you might earn throughout your time with us. In our experience, a successful career in software sales requires more than a thorough education. It also requires a range of soft skills that you can't necessarily practice unless you know what to expect well ahead of time.

One of those skills is the ability to interview well for the position you've always wanted – and walk away confident that you gave it your best shot! Everyone gets nervous when interviewing for a lucrative job, especially if they are in an entirely new field like software sales.

It's OK to be experiencing a bit of apprehension thinking about what you'll say during a job interview. Everyone goes through it, but not many have Uvaro's expertise to help them avoid common pitfalls and mistakes. It seems like such a simple question, but of all the questions a job interviewer is likely to ask, the most challenging by far is: why sales?

• Are you interested in software sales to earn an above-average salary?
• Do you like working and helping people with technology?
• Or is there something more to your ambitions, something you're not seeing quite yet but sense instinctively?

All education is self-discovery, and every moment of self-discovery is an opportunity to challenge yourself to earn a career that you're both proud of and happy to do.

But to get there, you have to know how to answer the question and answer it with authority – and maybe a big smile when you shake hands with the interviewer, walking away knowing you did your best.

Why sales? 3 short go-to answers that can't fail

First, let's get into why an interviewer would ask you the question at all. The interviewer already knows that you're applying for a sales position. Your resume says as much, and you have a Uvaro education under your belt. So why ask the question?

The essence of a career in sales is convincing consumers to purchase one product over the other ethically and effectively. You have to get your point across, make it stick, and do it seamlessly.

But during an interview for a sales job, you're selling yourself, not a product, at least not yet. There might be a dozen applicants competing for the same open position, so why are you the best choice? Are you...

• Smart?
• Hard-working?
• Motivated?

A company wants to know how you'll handle unexpected situations and uncomfortable moments off-the-cuff. So when an interview looks you square in the eyes and asks the question, you can turn to one of these three go-to answers if you draw a blank.

1 – It puts my skills to the test.”

The catch is that the skills you're putting to the test are your communication skills, your ability to get messages across to individuals. The general rule is that you don't hard sell an interviewer to why you're the best candidate.

Instead, our recommendation is to mention that you're craving new challenges, finished with the mundane, and want more from a career!

2 – I know the product or service I'm going to sell inside and out.”

The trick to this answer is that you have to mean it. In our experience, job seekers who don't deliver on what they promise fail. Our recommendation is to research the company you want to work for and pay close attention to their core line of business.

If the position is a sales job for an online education platform, you want to know why the product is helpful in the real world. Remote schooling is here to stay worldwide, so you'd like to know the pain points educators are experiencing by heart.

If you can't convince an interviewer that you're knowledgeable about the product and what problem it solves, how are you going to convince a client?

3 – I find sales personally fulfilling.”

At Uvaro, we pride ourselves on preparing you for the unexpected. There will be periods when sales are slower than usual throughout your career, clients are leaving the company, and income won't be as lucrative. There's a natural ebb and flow to sales, so an interviewer wants to know what will fulfill you during tough times.

An interviewer doesn't need to hear that you think of your career as a mandatory chore to earn income, just a job. What would be more helpful is to walk them through what drives you personally when it comes to sales.

Examples of great answers

Our go-to answers are only the starting point since it's the interviewer's guilty pleasure to present you with the unexpected and then judge how you respond. Remember that an interviewer may not ask the question outright, but the gist will still revolve around why you chose sales.

Interviewer: Sales is a tough, competitive field, so why even get involved?

You: I'm not afraid of a challenge! Really, it's what drives me to find a job that will fulfill me. I can sympathize with how badly educators need a reliable, stable platform to teach remotely. This company can truly make a difference.

Interviewer: OK, there are a lot of applicants, you know? My job is to separate the wheat from the chaff. So why you?

You: That's great to hear because I never back down from a challenge. If something is hard, that only drives me to be good at it. I know sales are competitive. That's why I'm here, and I want to put in the work to be great at it too!

* Note that the interviewer, in this case, is likely intentionally mimicking a grumpy, half-sold customer. They want to see how you'll fill in the blanks when customers don't greet you with open arms.

Interviewer: Why do you think you'd be a good fit for our team?

You: I feel I can contribute on several fronts. First, I want to learn. It's what drives me to greatness because I know I'm new to sales, and that's OK. Also, joining a successful team is just what I need to challenge myself even further. I may be new to sales, but I want to come up to a professional level quickly.

How not to answer

We want to point out that the answers in these examples show how to answer the question and then steer the interviewer to where you want to go next: your strengths and background at Uvaro!

But there are many, many ways to botch an interview, and it's infeasible to list them all in one article. However, the top two mistakes are well known in the sales industry.

1 – I'm mostly here for the potential salary.”

The irony of a sales position is that you don't want to make financial gain your primary motivation. That may be a big part of why you're even at the interview, but it's a tremendous mistake to put financial goals above your potential contributions to the company.

2 – My last job was nothing but trouble.”

We want you to notice how this answer immediately tilts the conversation to the negative. You want to always be positive, if not energetic, during a job interview. If you talk about how awful your previous career was, the interviewer may think twice about your qualifications.

Of all the terrible answers you could give, this one is like shooting yourself in the foot on purpose.

3 – I live by the ABC motto: always be closing!”

Not only is this answer cliché it's also ridiculous. The last thing you want to do is start throwing around cliches as sales pitches. Shrewd consumers – and shrewd HR pros – will see right through such lazy language.

In summary

Overall, we recommend the following during an interview:

• Be yourself
• Sit up straight
• Talk slower
• Always maintain eye contact
• And smile genuinely

If you can do these things, you'll be set up for success. Best of luck!

Uvaro can help you excel

At Uvaro, our goal is to prepare you for the unexpected, and that includes job interviews. Our commitment is to help you know what to expect from a sales career before you even apply for a position.

If you're looking to land your dream role in sales and would like some help in the process, Uvaro is a goldmine of free tech sales resources. If you'd like to start your journey today with the help of our team, reach out today to get started!