Business Development Representative Mock Interview

Practice 30 BDR interview questions covering cold outreach, pipeline building, and objection handling.

Question 12 of 30

How would you handle a difficult prospect?

How to Answer
Example Answer
Community Answers

There are going to be times when you encounter someone on the phone who isn't pleasant. The interviewer wants to know what your strategy is to deal with this type of person. Show that you will remain professional and calm but that you won't allow someone to walk all over you and waste your time either.

Marcie Wilmot

"Having worked as a telemarketer in the past, I have a lot of experience in dealing with people who are angry, mean, or both. My personal mantra is to 'kill them with kindness,' and I'm able to do this because I don't take their behavior personally. I know that they might be upset that I called them, but they don't know me as a person and so I don't feel that anything they say in reference to me is valid. I maintain a calm and professional demeanor at all times, and if the conversation isn't going anyplace useful, I firmly cut the interaction off as soon as possible."

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Jaymie

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Anonymous Answer

To handle a difficult prospect instead of rambling about the value of your product it's best to cut to the chase and ask them directly qualifying questions to determine if there is a fit. Find their most problematic pain point and get to a solution in order to win their business.

Marcie's Feedback

Perfect! This is a strong answer because it shows how confident and knowledgeable you are about handling this type of situation. Can you provide an example of a time when you did this successfully?

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30Business Development Representative Interview Questions & Answers

Behavioral

1.How do you handle rejection?

Discovery

2.Why do you want to sell our product/service?

Behavioral

3.Do you consider yourself a team player?

Behavioral

4.Have you ever worked in a customer service role before? If so, what did you like and dislike about it?

Behavioral

5.Tell me about a time when you dealt with a challenge. What motivated you to keep going?

Behavioral

6.Talk about a time when you had to get really good at a skill. How did you do this?

Competency

7.How would you go about researching a prospect?

Competency

8.What are some common objections you think you'll hear from prospects? How will you handle them?

Behavioral

9.Do you like to talk on the phone?

Scenario

10.What would you do if a prospect asked you about one of our competitors?

Discovery

11.What can you tell me about our company?

Competency

12.How would you handle a difficult prospect?

Behavioral

13.Why do you like sales? Why do you want to be a salesperson?

Competency

14.What do you do if a prospect goes dark?

Competency

15.How do you handle objections?

Discovery

16.Where do you see yourself in five years?

Behavioral

17.Are you comfortable making cold calls?

Behavioral

18.What type of management style do you prefer?

Competency

19.What CRM software are you comfortable using?

Competency

20.What skills does a great salesperson possess?

Competency

21.How do you organize and prioritize your daily workload?

Competency

22.Tell me about a sale you helped close or lose.

Operational

23.How will you structure your day?

Discovery

24.Did you work throughout college?

Behavioral

25.Tell me about a time when you went above and beyond for a customer.

Competency

26.Sell me this pen.

Scenario

27.Let's imagine that one day you end up in a conflict with one of your colleagues. How will you handle this?

Operational

28.How do you measure success?

Competency

29.How do you get past gatekeepers to reach new prospects?

Scenario

Business Development Representative Mock Interview

How would you handle a difficult prospect?

30Business Development Representative Interview Questions & Answers

1.How do you handle rejection?

2.Why do you want to sell our product/service?

3.Do you consider yourself a team player?

4.Have you ever worked in a customer service role before? If so, what did you like and dislike about it?

5.Tell me about a time when you dealt with a challenge. What motivated you to keep going?

6.Talk about a time when you had to get really good at a skill. How did you do this?

7.How would you go about researching a prospect?

8.What are some common objections you think you'll hear from prospects? How will you handle them?

9.Do you like to talk on the phone?

10.What would you do if a prospect asked you about one of our competitors?

11.What can you tell me about our company?

12.How would you handle a difficult prospect?

13.Why do you like sales? Why do you want to be a salesperson?

14.What do you do if a prospect goes dark?

15.How do you handle objections?

16.Where do you see yourself in five years?

17.Are you comfortable making cold calls?

18.What type of management style do you prefer?

19.What CRM software are you comfortable using?

20.What skills does a great salesperson possess?

21.How do you organize and prioritize your daily workload?

22.Tell me about a sale you helped close or lose.

23.How will you structure your day?

24.Did you work throughout college?

25.Tell me about a time when you went above and beyond for a customer.

26.Sell me this pen.

27.Let's imagine that one day you end up in a conflict with one of your colleagues. How will you handle this?

28.How do you measure success?

29.How do you get past gatekeepers to reach new prospects?

30.Let's say that you miss your monthly quota. What will you do?