12 Interview Questions for High-Ticket Closers (and What Good Answers Sound Like)

Closers are good at talking, so a normal interview can tell you less than you'd expect. General questions like "what's your biggest weakness?" usually get rehearsed answers. The questions below are more specific, and the objection ones are meant to be roleplayed, so you can see how the rep runs a call.

Numbers and track record

1. "Walk me through your last offer: ticket size, lead source, calls per week, show rate and close rate." A rep who has done the job can usually answer this quickly. If the answer is vague, or they only talk about their best month, ask follow-up questions until you get actual numbers.

2. "What was your worst month on that offer, and why?" Everyone has bad months. You're listening for an honest answer about what went wrong and what they did about it.

3. "Why did you leave, or why are you looking?" Leaving because commissions weren't paid or the leads dried up is a fair reason. If every past offer was someone else's fault, make a note of it.

Discovery

4. "A prospect says they want to make more money. What do you ask next?" Good closers keep asking: how much, by when, why now, and what happens if nothing changes. If they start pitching right away, they're skipping discovery.

5. "How do you know when discovery is done?" A good answer is something like: they understand the prospect's situation, their goal, what's in the way and how urgent it is, and they've said it back to the prospect to make sure they got it right.

6. "How do you handle a prospect who is clearly not qualified?" You want a rep who will end the call politely and keep the calendar open for people who can buy.

Objections (roleplay these live)

7. "I need to talk to my spouse or business partner." Listen for questions that find out what's holding the prospect back, and for a plan to get the other person on a call. Pushing harder here usually backfires.

8. "It's too expensive." Good reps find out whether the problem is the price, the value or cash flow before they answer. Offering a discount right away is a bad sign.

9. "I need to think about it." A good closer asks what exactly they want to think about. If the rep just says "no problem, take your time" and ends the call, that prospect often doesn't come back.

Process and coachability

10. "Tell me about a time a manager changed how you sell. What did you change?" Ask for a specific example. On a new offer, a rep who takes feedback well usually does better than a more talented rep who doesn't.

11. "What do you need from me to be successful in the first 30 days?" Good answers mention call recordings, offer details, information about the leads and clear targets. If they only ask about pay, ask how they'd get up to speed.

Fit

12. "Why this offer?" The best answers are about the product, the market or the kind of buyer they like selling to. "I need something right now" is an honest answer too. Just ask what they're looking for long term, so you know whether they'll stay.

How to run the interview

• Spend at least half the interview on roleplay. It's the closest you'll get to watching them on a sales call.
• Play a realistic prospect, using objections your leads actually say.
• Take notes as you go and score every candidate on the same things.
• Leave time at the end for their questions. Good closers usually ask about lead flow, show rates and when commissions get paid.

If you'd rather not run all of this yourself, that's part of what I do at Ardenique. I talk to reps one-on-one and send you my notes with each finalist.