At The Good Builder we are all about making good builders even better. We’ve asked two industry-leading GM’s to let us in on their secrets to attracting good sales staff and keeping them.

What’s your approach to recruiting quality salespeople? How do you go about it?

Izaac Mathieson – General Manager of Sales and Marketing, Hallmark Homes

At Hallmark Homes, we focus on seeking out individuals with the ‘will and tenacity’ to survive in this industry. It’s essential that they are customer-centric and creative in their thinking. As a sales leader, I make it a priority to stay informed about who is out in the market and who could be a great fit for our culture.

Over 50 per cent of my team didn’t come from the building industry.

Many of them were people I interacted with in other ways—whether it was a retail purchase or someone who served me coffee—individuals who left a lasting impression on me. I’d then invite them for a chat, and the rest is history.

Tony Gall, General Manager Retail, Creation Homes

I think if you can find yourself a good recruiter who can basically work in the alignment of what your business is and where your business is going, and have an understanding, essentially of the type of sales people that you require. Generally I look for drive, you need drive to succeed and drive to just go another step for your clients or for your customers. That’s not just giving up for everything for the customer, but it’s making sure their dreams, goals and ideas are heard, met, and they can walk away going, what a fantastic experience that was to deal with Creation Homes.

What do you do to retain your salespeople?

Izaac Mathieson – General Manager of Sales and Marketing, Hallmark Homes

Retention starts with fostering a positive work culture where team members feel supported and valued. As someone who honed their craft in the corporate world, I try to bring a balance of small-business mentality with just a little sprinkle of corporate processing. We offer professional development opportunities, regular feedback, and industry-leading remuneration packages. We also emphasise work-life balance, and I’d say we are one of the few builders who offer 1 in every 5 weekends off. We’re not here to “ring a bell” or push for that extra 10 per cent in sales. We recognise that life happens, and life is important. So, if one of my staff members needs to duck out for a school assembly, I see that as a positive contribution to their mentality, which in return is a positive contribution to our culture.

Tony Gall, General Manager Retail, Creation Homes

The first thing is to have an interest in your salespeople.

You have to understand salespeople, how they tick. It’s knowing their kids names, knowing their kids play soccer, knowing what their wives or partners do.

It’s having an interest in them, because then you can have an understanding that they’ve got a flat spot where the flat spot is and so on. So it’s making sure we have a relationship, that we can be open and honest with each other. A lot of managers will either micromanage the hell out of people, or they’ll just leave them alone and have no real interest and just say we can’t sell.

How long do your salespeople stay with you? And what are the advantages of retaining them for long periods?

Izaac Mathieson – General Manager of Sales and Marketing, Hallmark Homes

I’ve been lucky, as most of my salespeople feel valued and align with Hallmark’s great culture, so they tend to stay with my team for long periods. In fact, I have a few who worked with me at a previous company and now work with me here at Hallmark Homes. The company shares this trait, and I remember my first day when I walked around the office and met colleagues who not only had years of service, but decades. Loyalty and belonging are core elements of the company ethos.

Retaining long-term employees allows us to build strong relationships, create a sense of continuity, and maintain a high level of trust with clients.

Tony Gall, General Manager Retail, Creation Homes

You have them with a decent income, we pay really, what we believe is industry leading commissions and base wages to our sales people. We have to make sure that if we put them in display homes that they’re being fed with leads, that we’re doing our best to market our displays, and coaching them. And when people feel like they’re in a place that they can be happy with and they’re making really good money, and their ideas are heard, and they have an involvement in the strategy of your company, they’ll hang around. There’s a loyalty there.

Article feature image by Localspace Studios. More information here.

Author: The Good Builder

The Good Builder is a media platform that provides news and insights for Australia’s home building industry. From exclusive stories and curated insights to bold industry perspectives, we deliver the news and updates that keep builders, suppliers, and the entire home building industry inspired and ahead of the curve.