Best Answer to “Sell me this pen” Question in an Interview

“Sell me this pen” This kind of request is enough to send your stomach up on your shoes.  It’s hard to think fast at first, and when combined with the fact that your nerves are loud, it is common to draw a void and stare at that pencil completely crumbling.

  Fortunately, like any other type of job interview question, a little preparation and practice can help you get your answer out of the park.  So what do you need to know to effectively answer a “sell me something” interview question?  We cover all the details here.

What does sell me this pen mean?

  To learn about your sales skills, interviewers for sales jobs and marketing sites may ask you to demonstrate your approach to selling a product as part of the interview process.  The hiring manager wants to know how to sell and the strategies you use to close the deal.

  If you take the time to prepare to sell something (you can use the same or similar strategy for whatever you ask for) in advance, you will be ready to successfully answer the question during job interviews.

  Knowing how to respond to “sell me this pen” is important to know as it can be a deciding factor in whether or not you are receiving the job you are interviewing for.  “Sell me this pen” is used as a tactic in job interviews in sales, marketing, and advertising.  The purpose is to see how well you can create an engaging presentation describing why the interviewer should purchase a pen, all without preparation.

  Seems to be a real challenge for any sales professional, the kind of question that can separate a true salesperson from those who will never achieve their goals.  Not surprisingly, this is a technology that has been copied by hiring employees across the country.  Why were you trying to think of a difficult interview question when Martin Scorsese handed you one?

  This question is still good, not because it is difficult but because it is easy, and if your potential employee doesn’t know the answer, he or she probably doesn’t know the basics of selling.

  How do you answer “Sell me this pen”?

·         Highlight the need

  In a famous scene in The Wolf of Wall Street, Leonardo DiCaprio’s character tells the salesperson, “Sell me this pen.”  The seller immediately takes the pen from DiCaprio and then asks him to write his name – which is impossible to do without any kind of writing instrument.

 The purpose is to prove that he needs the pen.  Although you may not repeat this subtle approach, this is definitely a tactic you can borrow when answering this question yourself.  The best place to start is to ask questions.  The temptation is to enter a long-term sales proposition.  But remember, a good salesperson takes the time to get to know the needs, goals, and challenges of their potential customers so that they can tailor their offer to their audience.  Your goal is to dig deeper and understand why they need everything you sell

·         Be passionate in your approach

  The answer to this question is key to the entire advertising industry.  The interviewer may own multiple pens.  This is not exactly a necessity.  If you want them to buy your pen, find a way to relate to it emotionally.  Find a way to make them feel that buying it will give them pleasure.  The key to making selling passionate is using stories.

  Stories are reservoirs of emotion.  A good story can make people cry, laugh, or feel proud.  By using a story to create emotional value for the pen, you may get a chance to sell it for a higher price than it’s worth.  This is the definition of marketing.

·         Emphasize features and benefits of buying the pen

  In addition to relating your sales presentation to specific needs, it is also helpful to draw attention to the features or advantages of whatever you are asked to sell.  This is all about setting up a unique value proposition for this element.

 For example, does your pen write with very fine ink? How will that benefit them? Maybe it can help them write faster or more effortlessly. Does your pen have red ink? Red ink will help distinguish their marks on the page.

·         Don’t be afraid to ask some questions.

  The more you know the needs of the interviewer, the better your offer.  Turn on the interviewer’s responses to emphasize some features of your pen that might aid them in their activities.  For example, if the interviewer mentioned taking notes in meetings as a priority, you might say that your pen has a good point and unstained ink, which will enable him to take clear notes.  If your interlocutor is frustrated by pens not writing on certain surfaces or the ink runs out quickly, you can emphasize how free the ink flows from your pen and the large capacity of available ink.

·         Check reservations related to the product or service. 

Extracting and overcoming objections to the product is a critical component of the sales process.  After making some statements about the product’s usefulness, check back with the interviewer to determine if they have any concerns that would get in the way of the purchase.

·         Customize your pitch

  Keep in mind that you are not selling the pen to an unknown person.  Your buyer (the interviewer) is right there in the room with you.  Don’t use any condensed formatting – customize your presentation for the specific audience.  Ask her questions.  Create a relationship.  Understand what she wants or needs, then use it to sell her the pen.

  Use what the interviewer tells you to convince her that she needs this pen that she is selling.  Remember, getting her to buy the pen remains your top priority.  Empathize with whatever she says and use that to sell your pen to her.  By doing this, you show that you understand that the customer is the most important aspect of any sale.  The best salesperson focuses on the needs of the customer and ignores their ego.  What a customer wants is always on top of their mind, and they use this information to make the sale.

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·         Don’t forget to close

  Closing is the most important part of the sale, but it is also one that is easy to forget when you know the interviewer is not going to cut you a check for that of your pen.  The last part of your response is the part where you can really end with a strong note and make a lasting impression, so don’t fall into the trap of leaning on something weak like, “Okay, that’s how I’m going to sell that …”

  Instead, summarize the key points you mentioned and then show the interviewer that you know how to close by actually asking the question (as you would in a real sales case).  This might look like this:

  “With its comfortable grip and fine ink, this pen can help you speed up writing, save valuable time on your workday, and get more work done. Should we go ahead with your application?”

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