Maximising Sales ROI: How to Create a Top Sales Team Without Breaking the Bank

As a founder launching, growing, and scaling a business, building a high-performing sales team is crucial to your success.

However, hiring top salespeople can be a challenging task, especially on a budget. In this blog post, brought to you by Pranary, a practical business school for entrepreneurs, we will share expert strategies and practical tips on how to create a top sales team without breaking the bank.

We will cover the following:

1. The top mistakes business owners make when hiring salespeople
2. The three secrets to hiring and keeping top salespeople
3. The tell-tale signs of a mediocre salesperson.

Get ready to maximise your sales return on investment (ROI) with actionable takeaways for each point. PLUS we have some resources you can download that will help you on your way.

Let's dive in!

1. The Top Mistakes Business Owners Make When Hiring Salespeople

Hiring the wrong salespeople can be costly and detrimental to your business. Avoid these common mistakes to ensure you hire top talent without wasting time and resources.

• Relying solely on resumes: Resumes can be deceiving, and relying solely on them may lead to hiring mediocre salespeople. Look beyond the resume and assess candidates' skills, attitude, and potential during the interview process.
• Overemphasising experience over attitude: While experience is important, attitude is equally crucial in sales. Look for candidates who demonstrate a positive and motivated attitude towards sales, as it is a key indicator of their potential success.
• Neglecting cultural fit: Cultural fit is essential to ensure that salespeople align with your company's values and goals. Hiring salespeople who fit well with your company culture increases their likelihood of staying long-term and performing well.

TAKEAWAY ACTION: Create a well-rounded interview process that assesses candidates beyond their resumes, prioritises attitude, and includes cultural fit as a crucial factor.

2. The 3 Secrets to Hiring and Keeping Top Salespeople

To create a top sales team, you need to attract and retain top talent. Here are three secrets to doing so without breaking the bank.

• Offer competitive compensation: While you may not be able to offer the highest salaries, ensure your compensation package is competitive and includes performance-based incentives to motivate your sales team.
• Provide training and development opportunities: Investing in the training and development of your sales team can yield long-term benefits. Provide ongoing training and coaching to enhance their skills and keep them motivated.
• Create a positive work environment: A positive work environment is crucial for salespeople to thrive. Foster a supportive and encouraging culture that recognizes and rewards achievements, provides feedback, and encourages collaboration.

TAKEAWAY ACTION: Design a competitive compensation package, invest in training and development, and create a positive work environment to attract and retain top sales talent.

3. Three Tell-Tale Signs of a Mediocre Salesperson

Identifying mediocre salespeople early on can save you time and resources. Look out for these three signs to ensure you have a high-performing sales team.

• Lack of motivation and initiative: Salespeople who lack motivation and initiative are unlikely to drive results. Look for candidates who demonstrate self-motivation, proactivity, and a hunger for success.
• Poor communication and listening skills: Effective communication and listening skills are fundamental in sales. Salespeople who struggle to articulate their thoughts or fail to actively listen to customers are unlikely to excel in sales.
• Inability to handle objections: Objections are a common part of the sales process, and a top-performing salesperson should be able to handle objections with confidence and professionalism. During the hiring process, test how well potential salespeople handle objections. Raise objections intentionally and observe how the candidate responds. Do they become defensive or flustered, or do they calmly and confidently address the concerns? A mediocre salesperson may struggle to find a way through objections, whereas a top-performing salesperson will be able to navigate objections effectively and find solutions to overcome them.

TAKEAWAY ACTION: During the hiring process, assess candidates' motivation, initiative, communication, listening skills, and their ability to handle objections to identify potential mediocre salespeople and avoid hiring them.


Building a top sales team is possible even on a budget with the right strategies in place. By avoiding common hiring mistakes, prioritising attitude, cultural fit, and providing competitive compensation, training, and a positive work environment.

NOTE: Remember to comply with all applicable laws and regulations related to hiring and employment, including anti-discrimination laws, during the hiring process.

REMEMBER: Download your resources. We have a sales hiring checklist and a sales candidate assessment form that you can use to assist you as you build your sales team.