Sales interview questions
Sales interviews are part conversation, part audition. Expect questions about your numbers (quota, attainment, deal size), how you build a pipeline and handle objections, and often a role play. Interviewers judge how you sell in the room as much as what you say about selling.
8 questions with sample answers
Sell me this pen.
Sample answer
Before I tell you anything about it, can I ask when you last used a pen and what for? Signing contracts. And how did that go? So signing is a moment that matters to you, and a pen that skips at that point looks bad in front of a client. This one writes first time, every time, and it looks the part on the table. Shall I put two aside for you?
What the interviewer is checking: Whether you ask questions and find a need before pitching features, and whether you ask for the close.
What was your quota last year, and how did you perform against it?
Sample answer
My annual quota was 600,000 EUR in new business. I closed 690,000, which is 115%, and finished second out of eleven reps. Most of the extra came from a referral programme I set up with existing clients, which produced four deals in the second half.
What the interviewer is checking: That you know your numbers precisely. Hesitation here suggests weak results or weak tracking.
How do you handle the objection "it's too expensive"?
Sample answer
I treat it as a question about value, not price. I ask what they're comparing it to, then go back to the cost of the problem we talked about. With a logistics client, their current process was costing about 8,000 EUR a month in errors, so a 3,000 EUR monthly subscription paid for itself. If the budget is truly fixed, I'd rather reduce the scope than discount the price.
What the interviewer is checking: Whether you defend value without discounting immediately, and whether you listen before answering.
Tell me about a deal you lost and what you learned.
Sample answer
Situation: I lost a 120,000 EUR deal in the final week to a cheaper competitor. Task: understand why. Action: I asked the buyer for a debrief call and learned I had only ever spoken to the operations lead, never to finance, who made the final decision. Result: I now map every decision-maker by the second meeting, and my win rate on deals over 50,000 EUR has gone from 22% to 31%.
What the interviewer is checking: Self-reflection and whether you change your process after a loss rather than blaming price.
How do you build your pipeline?
Sample answer
I block two hours every morning for prospecting before meetings start. I aim for 40 targeted contacts a week across email, LinkedIn and phone, focused on companies that look like our best existing customers. I also ask every new client for one introduction, which brings in about a quarter of my opportunities.
What the interviewer is checking: Discipline and a repeatable method. They want to know you will not wait for inbound leads.
How do you close a deal?
Sample answer
By the time I ask for the signature, there shouldn't be any surprises. I confirm the business case, the decision-makers and the timeline as I go, so the close is a natural next step. Then I ask directly: "Is there anything stopping us from starting on the first of the month?"
What the interviewer is checking: Confidence in asking for the business and a process that makes the close predictable.
How do you handle rejection?
Sample answer
Rejection is part of the numbers. If I make 40 contacts, I expect most of them to say no. I track my conversion at each stage, so a bad day doesn't feel personal; I look at the ratios instead. When they slip, I change something specific, such as my opening line or the companies I'm targeting.
What the interviewer is checking: Resilience and a data-driven attitude to the ups and downs of sales.
Why do you want to sell our product?
Sample answer
Because I can believe in it. I've spoken to two of your customers, and both said the onboarding saved them weeks. Selling something with real proof behind it makes every conversation easier, and your market is growing fast enough that there's plenty of new business to win.
What the interviewer is checking: Research and genuine interest in the product, not only the commission.
How to prepare
- Have your exact numbers ready: quota, attainment, average deal size, sales cycle and win rate.
- Research their product, typical customers and main competitors, so you can sell it in a role play.
- Prepare a story about a deal you won, one you lost and one you turned around.
- Practise handling the three most common objections in their market out loud.
Questions to ask the interviewer
- What does the top performer on the team do differently?
- How is the quota set, and what share of the team hit it last year?
- Where do most new leads come from today?