Some people are natural salespeople. They seem to effortlessly build connections, overcome objections, and close deals, even without much solution-specific training. That’s usually because they have strong soft skills. 

Ultimately, sales conversations are all about communication and building relationships, which require powerful soft skills like expressing empathy, listening actively, and adapting to changing circumstances. 

In this article, we’ll take a closer look at the importance of soft skills for sales success.

What you will learn

• What soft skills are
• Why soft skills make a difference in sales
• Which soft skills are the most important
• How strong soft skills directly impact the success of a sales conversation

What are soft skills?

Soft skills are personal attributes and abilities that affect how well people interact with others. Unlike technical or “hard” skills, soft skills are more about behavior and personality traits that help people succeed in any job or social environment. 

The soft skills that are most relevant to sales include:

• Communication, e.g. being able to clearly explain the value of their solution 
• Emotional intelligence, e.g. the ability to read a prospect’s body language
• Active listening e.g. hearing the prospect’s real pain points
• Problem-solving e.g. suggesting creative ways to resolve the prospect’s challenges 
• Adaptability e.g. bounding back after a prospect unexpectedly rejects the pitch
• Negotiation e.g. handling objections calmly and effectively 
• Time management e.g. following up at the right moment. 

Why do soft skills matter in sales? 

People are more likely to buy from someone whom they trust, and soft skills empower sales reps to forge that trust relationship. Sales reps who listen well, communicate clearly and confidently, and demonstrate real empathy are better able to build that trust relationship, tailor their pitch to the customer’s needs, and guide conversations without sounding pushy. 

Sales reps with strong soft skills are also able to deal with different sales situations. For example, many sales conversations today take place over Zoom, which makes it harder to convey empathy than when you’re meeting in person. Customers from different generational cohorts – i.e. Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z – also have different expectations from sales conversations. Active listening, strong communication, and other soft skills equip sales reps to connect successfully with customers from every age group. 

The soft skill that matter the most and how they impact the success of a sale

Here’s a closer look at the main soft skills that sales reps need, and how they enable them to connect with customers and close more deals. 

Effective communication builds trust

Strong communication is a key soft skill for sales. Sales reps who know how to communicate value quickly and avoid confusion can explain your product or service in a way that relates to the customer’s pain points. They express confidence and reliability, reassuring customers that they are looking for the best option for their needs, which raises the chances of a successful deal.  

Emotional intelligence enables stronger connections

Emotional intelligence, or EI (also known as EQ or Emotional Quotient), means that sales reps can read a customer’s tone and body language. This enables them to respond more thoughtfully and make the customer feel heard and valued. 

Sales reps with good EI are also more aware of their own emotions and can stay calm and focused under pressure. Emotionally intelligent reps adapt their approach to overcome objections or maintain customer goodwill for another sales conversation in the future.

Active listening drives meaningful conversations

Active listening can be summarized as paying attention to and acknowledging all the information that is shared, both explicitly and implicitly. It involves expressing interest and comprehension both verbally and nonverbally. 

Sales reps who are good at active listening know how to ask thoughtful questions and take in the answers. When the prospect feels seen and heard, this sets a strong foundation of trust on which the rest of the relationship stands. 

Reps who listen closely make the customer feel that they are there to help, not just to sell. Ironically by making customers feel that they are not there to sell, reps have a higher chance of closing the deal. 

Adaptability leads to relevant suggestions

Every customer is different, so every sales conversation needs to be different too. That’s why sales reps need the soft skill of adaptability, to be able to adjust their sales pitch, speaking style, and wording on the fly according to the customer’s mood and concerns. 

Reps who have adaptability can quickly change what they are going to say after they get new information from the customer, whether it’s from an unexpected question or sensing the customer’s unspoken feelings. This way, their response will be relevant to the customer’s needs, helping the customer feel understood and making the conversation more productive. 

Problem solving helps deliver value

Problem solving means thinking critically and creatively about the customer’s needs, to guide customers toward smart, effective decisions that bring genuine value. This matters because a great rep doesn’t sell a product/service; they resolve a customer’s specific challenges. 

Sales reps who are good at problem-solving know how to connect the dots between what the customer wants and what the product or service can do. This helps them to suggest a solution that brings value to the customer, making the customer more likely to close the deal. 

Time management supports smart selling

Sales reps who are good at managing their time are more likely to follow up at the right moment, focus on high-priority leads, and keep potential deals moving through the pipeline. This soft skill ensures that they connect to customers when the customer is most likely to agree to a deal.

Customers also feel more trust towards sales reps who come across as organized and reliable and who respect their schedule. With good time management, reps can work smarter and ultimately sell more.

Negotiation skills enable calm objection handling

Using AI to strengthen soft skills

These soft skills are notoriously difficult to teach using traditional methods. You can’t simply tell someone how to listen, how to be adaptable, or how to read emotions. Soft skills are context-dependent and subjective, so they don’t fit neatly into a one-to-many educational framework, and it’s difficult to measure whether the learner is making progress. 

For sales reps to gain soft skills, they have to change their behavior, and that requires repeated practice with timely and relevant feedback over the long term. It can’t be taught through typical forms of knowledge transfer like written instructions or even a video. But it’s rare for a sales department to have enough trainers, managers, and/or sales coaches to give sales reps the necessary one-on-one practice time. 

This is where Second Nature’s AI-powered training solution steps in. The AI role play partners are always available for personalized, individual training, giving instant recommendations about the ways that sales reps can improve their soft skills. Users can immediately redo the conversation to put what they learned into action and cement new behavioral habits.

Sales reps can practice whenever and wherever they want, and for as long as they want. Objective scores for specific soft skills, including active listening, communication, and empathy, enable them to track their progress. As they see themselves improve, they’re encouraged to keep training.

Key Takeaways:

• Soft skills are crucial for building trust and overcoming objections
• Sales reps with strong soft skills close more deals
• AI-powered sales training can help sales reps to strengthen their soft skills.