Kriti Bhatt - I Feel Each One of Us Has a Sales Person’s Quality (Marketing & Sales Manager at Volibits)

A thinker. An avid listener. A writer & a vlogger. A professional who loves what she does. Believer in a healthy work-life balance. Marketing & Sales Manager with 5+ years of experience. Loves to sing, dance, cook, travel, and engage with family & friends.

1. Tell us about your background and journey. 

Hailing from a Tier-II city with a middle-class background, I was grown to believe that if I don’t study, I won’t land a good job. That said, I never liked to study. It drove me crazy. The reason being I wasn’t confident enough. I couldn’t raise my voice or opinion in the classroom. I wasn’t heard much.

There were teachers who were partial because of the way I looked. I was a bullied kid. Why you may ask? I’m a vitiligo patient. I still get ugly looks from well-educated people around me like I’m cursed or something. 😊 

My interest lies in writing poetry, motivational blogs, music, dance, cooking & traveling. Fast forward, I did my PG in Marketing Management and landed a job that wasn’t to the best of my interest.

I then joined a company where I felt I’m on the right track but something was amiss. I even tried my hands at becoming an entrepreneur and then the pandemic happened. 

With the time I had in between, I thought of spreading my views to the world. The world needed motivation and my content was already there with me in the form of blogs.

I created my YouTube channel with the name Kritikal Theory and started uploading my vlogs on it. It was well-received. I was happy to do that and had full support from my friends & family.

While this was happening, I landed a job amidst the pandemic. Now, apart from drafting the content for my YouTube Channel, I work as a Marketing & Sales Manager and help clients achieve their objectives in an efficient way. I’m a believer in a healthy work-life balance and I think I’m doing justice to both. 

2. What is the typical role of a Marketing Executive person in any organization? 

A marketing person needs to be a visionary. We hit the iron when it’s blazing hot. Our main objective is to place the brand in the audience’s mind so wisely that every time they hear or see something in the set space, they think about our brand. 

There’s no typical role of a Marketing Executive. We work with various teams internally and externally which means every time we work with a team; we have to change our perspective to think like them and understand why they are doing what they are doing.

Our roles change but the essence of Marketing remains the same. In short, we set the base virtually & physically for an organization to grow. 

3. What skills does one need to make a career in BD/Sales? 

I feel each one of us has a sales person’s quality. We have at one point or the other sold something. It can be an idea, a thought, a joke, mushy veggies to a baby, or literally a product or a service.

The qualities that differentiate from a generic salesperson (that we all are) to someone who works for Sales is confidence, clarity, perseverance, persuasion, and hunger to sell. 

The skills required to master in Sales are – 

a. Listening Skills 

b. Communication Skills 

c. Knowledge of the product/service 

d. Post Sales or Customer Relationship Management Skills 

e. Objection Handling Skills 

f. Negotiation Skills 

4. Could you share some generic tips for lead conversion? 

Tips include and are not limited to the below – 

a. Build a rapport. 

b. Understand their pain areas. 

c. Give them a clear understanding of the product or service. 

d. Provide them with suitable option/options to choose from. 

e. Help them understand why the chosen option is best for them. 

f. Offer them the best in terms of pricing. 

g. Assure them about the quality service they’ll receive post-sales. 

h. Support your good work by sharing the feedback of other clients. 

5. How can one know if they have a knack for BD and will enjoy the role? 

Many people will say that only an extrovert can be a Business Developer or a salesperson. Well, there’s a person who can prove this statement wrong in every sense. I’m an introvert and believe me when I say that. I’m socially not very open to everyone.

At one point in time, I too believed that Sales can only be handled by someone who is talkative or basically is an extrovert. I was wrong and I’m happy that no one but I proved myself wrong. I’ve closed more deals than I ever imagined. I think it’s my speaking skills that got me through.

If you know how to speak, listen, process, and respond with a pinch of dedication, knowledge, number crunching, and self-growth, you have a knack for Sales/BD. 

6. Which is your favorite book and why? 

I’m no book worm but out of all the books that I’ve read, The Secret is my favorite. It tells us and makes us believe that whatever you wish for will eventually be a part of our life. It’s tried and tested.

You just need a little bit of patience and a lot of faith. Keep sending your prayers and wishes because the universe listens and it answers to everyone. 

A thinker. An avid listener. A writer & a vlogger. A professional who loves what she does. Believer in a healthy work-life balance. Marketing & Sales Manager with 5+ years of experience. Loves to sing, dance, cook, travel, and engage with family & friends.

Kriti Bhatt

Marketing & Sales Manager at Volibits 

Interviewed By - Sandeep Virothu