A construction-sales brief should explain how the product reaches the customer. Does the salesperson build interest with consultants, develop contractor relationships, work through distributors or manage an existing account base? The answer affects which experience you should look for and how candidates explain their suitability.
Map the decisions behind the order
Start with a typical customer journey for your business. Identify who defines the requirement, who evaluates the product, who buys it and who needs support after delivery. The same individual may cover several steps, or responsibility may sit across different organisations.
Do not assume a candidate’s contacts tell the whole story. Explore what they did in those relationships: opened a conversation, resolved a technical question, maintained a specification, negotiated terms or developed repeat business.
Define the commercial task
Be clear about the balance between winning new customers and growing existing accounts. Explain the territory, product range and expected travel. State whether the incoming salesperson inherits active accounts, an undeveloped area or a mixture of both.
Describe the measures the business actually uses. If project opportunities develop over a long period, explain how progress is reviewed before an order arrives. Avoid attaching targets to the brief until the business has agreed them.
Explain the technical support
Candidates need to understand how much technical work belongs to sales. Who answers application questions, reviews proposed alternatives or supports a demonstration? Where does a salesperson escalate a question they are not qualified to answer?
A useful interview exercise is to discuss an anonymised customer enquiry. Ask the candidate which questions they would ask first, what information they would gather and when they would involve an engineering colleague. Assess judgement as well as product familiarity.
Agree what happens after the order
Clarify who owns delivery updates, installation queries, complaints and the ongoing account relationship. Sales, operations and technical teams should understand the same handover. Candidates should know whether they remain the main contact or transfer particular responsibilities to colleagues.
For applicants, this is also a way to test the role. Ask: “What would I still own after the order, and what support would I have?” That conversation can reveal more than a broad promise of account ownership.
Discuss construction-sales recruitment with HunTek
HunTek covers UK construction and construction-sales recruitment. If you are building a sales team, tell us where the role enters the customer journey, who it needs to influence and what the person will own. Contact HunTek to discuss your hiring brief.
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