Sales training and coaching · Hiring and onboarding sellers
Keep a warm list of salespeople you would hire before you need one.
A sales talent pipeline is a list of twenty to thirty salespeople you would be glad to hire, kept warm with a monthly contact, so that a vacancy starts with names instead of a job post. This page covers the headcount forecast, the contact log and the check that notice periods fit your timeline.
Scope, fee, reporting and term are agreed in writing after we have read your brief and spoken to you.
In one paragraph
A sales talent pipeline is a list of twenty to thirty salespeople you would be glad to hire, kept warm with a monthly contact, so that a vacancy starts with names instead of a job post. This page covers the headcount forecast, the contact log and the check that notice periods fit your timeline.
A medical-equipment dealer in Pune loses a territory salesman who resigns on the first of the month. The notice period is sixty days. The owner posts an ad, waits three weeks for applicants, interviews for two more, and the new person's notice is ninety days. The territory has been unattended for five months by the time anyone is calling on the hospitals again.
Recruiting like selling means treating candidates as leads. You decide six months ahead how many people you will need, counting planned growth and the exits you expect. Then you build a list of salespeople worth knowing: from Naukri and LinkedIn, from industry WhatsApp groups, from referrals, and from the strong reps you meet at the other side of the counter.
You rate each name for fit from one to five and reach out about once a month with something useful, such as a note on a new product, an invitation to a trade event or a congratulation on a promotion. When the role opens, you call the warm list first.
The sales head keeps it, with the owner reviewing headcount every quarter. It follows the hiring scorecard, which tells you who is worth listing, and it feeds the interview kit.
Where this sits
Topic 7 of 8 in sales training and coaching: hiring and onboarding sellers. Building the early team, hiring against evidence and ramping new reps.
- The topic before
- Coaching the sales team
- The topic after
- Training programme design
If you want this done for you
The last three hires interviewed well and could not sell.
The work
What this is actually like.
“Notice periods decide your calendar”
Add the sixty or ninety days a good candidate must serve to your time to hire. If the sum is longer than the gap you can afford, you needed this list three months ago. Check it each quarter against the territories that would hurt most if empty.
“Ten months in a role is when people start looking”
A business development or inside sales rep who has spent nearly a year in the same chair starts thinking about what comes next. That is a good moment for a message. Note join dates on the list so the contact lands when the person is open to it.
“Contact without consent is a liability”
A list of people you pursue without telling them is personal data held without a reason they know about. Ask before you store details, tell them what you will use them for, and delete on request. Rules differ by state and change, so check with your adviser.
“The warm list can embarrass you if it is never used”
If you contact a person monthly for a year and then hire a stranger, they notice. Be honest on the list: some people are there as future leaders, some as backups for one territory. Telling them where they stand costs nothing and protects your name in the trade.
What we do
What you end up with.
The documents this topic produces, what each one is for, and how you know it is finished.
The six-month headcount plan
Planned new territories or roles, expected exits, and how many hires that adds up to by month. One line each with the reason.
Result: Finished when each hire has a month, a territory and a budget.
The talent list
Name, current employer, role, how you know them, fit score from one to five, notice period, and consent recorded yes or no. Twenty to thirty names is the target for a small team.
Result: Finished when you can read down it and name your first three calls.
The touch log
Date of each contact, what you sent or said, and the reply. Aim for one touch a month per name, and drop those who never reply after three.
Result: Finished when nobody on the list has gone unmentioned for more than two months.
The lead-time check
Time to hire plus notice period compared with the date the seat falls empty, reviewed on a date you set.
Result: Finished when each upcoming vacancy has a start-looking date.
The time-to-fill record
For each vacancy, the date it opened, the date the offer was accepted and the date the person joined. Compare roles filled from the list and roles filled from job posts.
Result: Finished when you know whether the list is saving days.
Why us
Why owners pick GullySales over an agency.
Marketing and sales, as one job
Most agencies stop at the enquiry. We also fix what happens after it: the reply, the follow-up, the quote and the CRM.
The person on the first call does the work
No account managers in between. You are never handed to someone you have not met.
A baseline before anything starts
Your numbers are written down on day one, so every later report compares against something honest.
The fee in writing, split three ways
Our time, your media spend and production on separate lines. You always see what goes to us.
No guarantees we cannot keep
The term is agreed in writing and never a default twelve months. We never promise a ranking or a lead count, because nobody controls those.
One office, and we say so
Nagarbhavi, Bengaluru. We work across India by call and WhatsApp and travel when a session needs to be in person.
#257, 3rd floor, Sri Nanjundeshwara Complex, Nagarbhavi 8th Block, Outer Ring Road. How we work.
Your brief
Tell us what you need, and we will read it before we call.
Eight short steps about your business, what you want and who decides. Most questions are a tap, and you can skip any you would rather answer on the call.
FAQ
Questions owners ask before they call.
Not here? More answers, or ask on WhatsApp.
Is it ethical to approach salespeople who work for competitors?
We hire once a year. Is this worth it?
Where do we find names beyond job portals?
What do we send each month?
How much does it cost?
How long is the contract?
How soon will we see results?
Who will actually do the work?
What do you need from us?
What if we are not happy with the work?
Where to go next
The work that carries this topic further.
The rest of hiring and onboarding sellers
Or read all of sales training and coaching.
Your next practical step
Tell us what you are trying to grow, and we will read it before we call.
Eight short steps, mostly taps. Skip anything you would rather answer on the call.