salesassessmenttesting.com · SPQ*Gold · Pre-Hire Screening
Two sites. Same product. Different buyers.
Both sites sell access to the same SPQ*Gold assessment — but the framing, the problem, and the buyer are completely different. The operating system behind both is Connie Kadansky. The Synergy section maps how a hiring manager who discovers the assessment can become a coaching and training client.
Hiring manager journey — from bad hire fear to engaged client
■ Blue = SPQ*Gold diagnostic path | ■ Green = conversion to ongoing relationship (coaching / team workshops) | The onboarding step is where a hiring manager becomes an exceptionalsales.com client.
SPQ*Gold · The Only Pre-Hire Sales Assessment
Insist on using the ONLY sales aptitude assessment in the world that tests for Sales Call Reluctance — the factor that dooms any salesperson's chance of success.
One Problem Nearly All My Clients Have Had
They hired a salesperson who interviewed well, looked great on paper, but turned out to be a disappointment.
The Real Cost
Sales Imposter
Manager's time: $250/hr minimum. 30–45 days to onboard & train. Studies show call reluctance spreads through teams.
On Paper
Trailed in Prospecting
Looked great on paper. Interviewed well. Always looked busy — but not prospecting. Below quota consistently.
The Fix
Could Have Been Prevented
SPQ*Gold/FSA measures call reluctance before the hire. 72-minute test. Hidden factors you can't spot in an interview.
Three steps to getting started
If They Can't Prospect, They Can't Sell.
The single most important component of successful selling is consistent prospecting. A salesperson who won't or can't prospect isn't trying to give you a hard time — they have emotional factors preventing them from embracing it.
What the test reveals
The 'markers' that indicate a candidate will do any other activity rather than prospect.
Who reviews results
Connie personally reviews results and consults with the hiring manager before any offer is made.
"Wow! After looking at this SPQ assessment, I'll pass. The candidate is likable, but she wouldn't make it in our office. Just when I think I can peg people and don't need to assess them, I get something like this."
— Jim Stone, President/CEO · The Medicus Firm
"I find the SPQ invaluable. I would not hire against it. We combine it with the PEAC assessment, a thorough interview process, reference checks, a big glass of Scotch and a Ouija Board."
— Danny Cahill · Pinnacle Society Member
Over 25 Years Experience · 100% Confidential · Personal Consultation
"We will help you hire and retain salespeople who will consistently develop new business."
— Connie Kadansky
■ WORKING
The headline is a pattern interrupt
"The ONLY Way to Absolutely Avoid Hiring The Wrong Salespeople" speaks directly to a pain that is already active in the reader. No one lands on this site curious — they arrive embarrassed or furious about a bad hire. The headline meets them exactly there.
■ WORKING
Cost-of-bad-hire framing is the right anchor
"$250/hr manager time + 30-45 days onboarding + call reluctance spreads through teams" pre-justifies the assessment fee before the buyer even knows what it costs. This is the right order: establish the loss first, then introduce the solution.
■ WORKING
Connie reviews every result personally
This is the premium differentiator and it's correctly front-loaded. It's not a SaaS tool — it's a professional service. "We personally review" is what justifies the price and the call requirement. It should appear in every CTA block, not just the solution section.
◆ GAP
No price anchor or pricing framework
The cost of a bad hire is quantified ($250/hr, 30–45 days). The cost of the assessment is never anchored — even a "typically costs less than one hour of your manager's time" statement would frame the value before the inquiry. Buyers need a comparison point.
◆ GAP
No industry-specific social proof on home
The site serves financial services, insurance, executive recruiting, real estate, and more — each has a different idea of what a "bad hire" costs. A small callout like "Used in 12+ industries" with the logo strip would validate across segments without requiring separate pages.
DIAGNOSTIC WIRE — HIRING SIDE
This site's SPQ*Gold is the same product as exceptionalsales.com's SPQ*Gold — but sold to a completely different buyer for a different use. The operating system must track which property generated the order, which candidate was assessed, and what hiring decision was made. None of that is currently captured systematically.
Sales Assessment Testing
The only assessment specifically designed to measure Sales Call Reluctance and predict prospecting success.
Built on 40+ years of behavioral science research by world-renowned researchers George Dudley and Shannon Goodson — authors of "The Psychology of Sales Call Reluctance." Not guesswork. Not a personality profile. A behavioral diagnostic.
What Makes SPQ*Gold Different — 6 Key Differentiators
01 · Measures What Matters
Unlike personality tests, SPQ*Gold specifically measures Sales Call Reluctance — the emotional hesitation to prospect and self-promote that kills sales productivity.
02 · Research-Based Science
40+ years of behavioral science research. Not guesswork — proven methodology backed by world-renowned researchers at Behavioral Sciences Research Press, Dallas TX.
03 · Pre-Hire Prediction
Identify whether candidates have the psychological and physical energy to prospect consistently before you invest in training and onboarding.
04 · Actionable Insights
Clear, specific data about underlying emotional issues that prevent consistent prospecting — issues candidates won't reveal in interviews.
05 · Save Time & Money
Find out how much a candidate will produce, how soon, and what it will cost to get them producing — before you hire.
06 · Proven Track Record
Used by major companies across industries worldwide: financial services, banking, insurance, software sales, real estate, executive recruiting, and more.
Personality Tests vs. Behavioral Competencies — Why personality alone doesn't predict sales success
Personality Tests
SPQ*GOLD / FSA ASSESSMENT
The Interview Paradox — Critical Hiring Risk
Candidates with high Call Reluctance often interview extremely well. They're personable, articulate,
and confident in controlled environments. But put them on the phone with a cold prospect?
They freeze, avoid, procrastinate, or simply won't do it.
Your candidate may come across as confident in their interview, but if they are hiding Sales Call Reluctance,
you may not choose the best candidate.
The Difference Between Winners and Mediocrity
Top Producers
Mediocre Producers
Trusted Across Industries
The Virtual Selling Challenge
54%
Of US salespeople studied (n=6,764) show digital-channel call reluctance. Sales reps with call reluctance avoid video conferencing, social selling, and digital outreach — not just cold calls. The problem has expanded with the tools, not contracted.
■ WORKING
The "interview paradox" is devastating copy
Telling a hiring manager that their best interviewers may be the worst hires is a thought that genuinely stops people. It's the most persuasive argument on the site and it appears deep on the Facts page. Move it to the homepage — above the fold.
■ WORKING
Behavioral vs. personality framing is correct
"Measures what you DO, not who you are" directly undercuts the DiSC / Myers-Briggs tests every hiring manager has already tried. This is the right competitive positioning — it doesn't attack competitors by name, it establishes a category difference.
◆ GAP
The 54% virtual selling stat is stranded
A study of 6,764 salespeople is a significant credibility signal. But it appears at the bottom of the Facts page with no headline, no context, and no CTA. It belongs in a dedicated callout block on the assessment overview — it proves the problem is growing, not shrinking.
◆ GAP
12 industries listed, none differentiated
Financial services and executive recruiting have very different hiring stakes. A single industry-specific case study alongside the logo list — even one sentence — would make the "trusted across industries" claim land with the right buyer.
DIAGNOSTIC WIRE — DUAL USE
SPQ*Gold is used for pre-hire selection and for training and development of existing salespeople. The site under-sells the training use case. A hiring manager who uses the assessment pre-hire is the ideal candidate to use it for ongoing team development — and that's the path into a coaching/workshop engagement.
SPQ*Gold / FSA Assessment Report
Candidate
[Candidate Name]
Applied for: Sales Representative
Assessment
SPQ*Gold / FSA
Duration: 72 minutes · Completed online
Overall Profile
Moderate Risk
3 of 16 types elevated · See detail below
Call Reluctance Profile — 16 Types Measured
+ 8 additional types measured · Full detail in complete report
Connie's Assessment Summary — Provided to Hiring Manager
This candidate presents elevated Emotional Inhibition and moderate Hyper-Professionalism and Referral Aversion. While they will likely perform well in structured presentations and account management, cold prospecting and self-initiated outreach will require significant coaching investment. Recommend pre-hire consultation before extending offer.
Hiring Recommendation
Conditional
Proceed with call reluctance coaching plan in place from day one. Do not hire for outbound-heavy role without mitigation strategy.
Suggested Interview Questions
Connie provides 3–5 targeted questions based on elevated types, designed to surface the candidate's self-awareness and coachability.
One-on-One Consultation Included
Every assessment includes a personal interpretation call with Connie Kadansky. She reviews results, explains the profile, and helps you make the right decision.
Schedule Results Review →What every SPQ*Gold report contains
16-Type Profile
Score for each of 16 call reluctance types, with low/moderate/high classification
Written Summary
Plain-language interpretation of what the scores mean for this candidate in a prospecting role
Interview Questions
Targeted questions Connie provides for each elevated type — specific to this candidate's results
Hiring Recommendation
Hire / Conditional / Pass guidance based on the full profile and the role requirements
Coaching Notes
If hired: areas to focus on in onboarding to minimize call reluctance impact
Personal Consultation
One-on-one call with Connie to review results and answer hiring manager questions
■ WORKING
Personal interpretation is the product differentiator
The report isn't just a PDF. Connie reviews every result personally and consults with the hiring manager before any offer is made. That consultation is the real product. The assessment is the proof. This distinction is currently buried in the Order page fine print — it should be the headline of the entire offer.
◆ GAP
No sample report visible on the site
A hiring manager who has never used a behavioral assessment doesn't know what they're buying until they receive the first one. A redacted sample report — even a partial one — on the Order or Assessment page would dramatically reduce hesitation. The report is the deliverable; show what it looks like.
DIAGNOSTIC WIRE — REPORT DELIVERY
Report delivered same day. Consultation scheduled separately. In the current flow, both steps are coordinated manually by Connie. The operating system should auto-schedule the consultation call as soon as the report PDF is generated — not leave it to email.
◆ GAP
Coaching notes aren't prominently sold
The report includes coaching notes for post-hire use — but the site doesn't frame this as a value-add. A hiring manager who learns "if you hire this person, here's the coaching plan" is being introduced to Connie's coaching services before they've even made the hire. That's a warm handoff that's currently invisible.
Order Your SPQ*Gold Assessment
The only Sales Assessment in the world that measures the 16 types of Sales Call Reluctance.
Pricing Policy
Because SPQ*Gold and SPQ/FSA is used by companies worldwide, in various currencies and languages, our agreement with the publisher prevents online pricing. Contact Connie directly to discuss your assessment needs and receive pricing.
How It Works — 3 Steps
Step 01 · Online
Candidate Takes Assessment
Internet access required. Comprehensive 72-minute test taken by the candidate.
⏱ 72 minutes
Step 02 · Same Day
Receive Detailed PDF Report
Hiring manager receives full results and analysis of candidate's competencies and skill sets.
📧 Same day delivery
Step 03 · Personalized
One-on-One Interpretation
Connie provides strategic questions and insights to assist in making the final hiring decision.
📞 Personal consultation
Purpose — Where SPQ*Gold Is Used
"This Sales Test includes a comprehensive report along with a personal interpretation of the results. Yes, we have a one-on-one conversation about your candidate's results. You will save thousands of dollars and unnecessary headaches by only hiring salespeople who will consistently prospect."
— salesassessmenttesting.com · Order page
◆ GAP
No price = friction without reassurance
Publisher rules prevent listing prices. That's a hard constraint. But the page currently does nothing to soften the friction. A value anchor ("typically costs less than the first day of a bad hire") or a call-to-get-pricing CTA with a same-day response promise would reduce the number of leads who bounce rather than inquire.
◆ GAP
Generic contact form on the order page
Someone landing on /order/ is ready to buy. The form should be specific: "How many candidates do you need assessed?", "What role are you hiring for?", "When do you need results?" — these questions help Connie prepare and signal to the buyer that they're not starting from zero.
◈ SYSTEM WIRE
Order → CRM → Candidate link → Report delivery
Current flow: form → Connie's inbox → manual candidate setup → manual report delivery. Recommended: form → CRM record (hiring manager) → candidate assessment link sent automatically → report delivered → consultation auto-scheduled via Cal.com. Reduces turnaround and removes Connie from the logistics of every order.
DIAGNOSTIC WIRE — CROSS-SITE ENTRY
A hiring manager who orders an SPQ*Gold here is a warm prospect for team workshops and coaching programs on exceptionalsales.com. The CRM record created at order should tag this contact as "hiring-side" and trigger a separate nurture sequence introducing Connie's team development services — not the salesperson's coaching path.
■ WORKING
Registered trademark positioning is correct
"SPQ Gold, SPQ/FSA and Sales Call Reluctance are registered trademarks of Behavioral Sciences Research Press, Dallas, TX" — this appears at the bottom of the Order page. It lends institutional legitimacy. The BSRP attribution should appear earlier, closer to the "40 years of research" claim, not in small print at the bottom.
An interview measures how a candidate performs in a controlled, relationship-based environment — which is exactly where candidates with call reluctance excel. SPQ*Gold measures 16 distinct behavioral types of emotional hesitation to prospect and self-promote that candidates themselves may not be aware of, and that don't surface under interview conditions. Confident interviewers are often the worst cold-call prospects.
The candidate takes the assessment online — internet access required — in approximately 72 minutes. It's comprehensive and thorough. The hiring manager receives a full PDF report the same day. A one-on-one consultation with Connie is then scheduled to review results before the hiring decision is made.
SPQ*Gold is specifically designed to be difficult to fake. Personality tests can be gamed by socially aware candidates who know the "right" answers. SPQ*Gold is a behavioral competency assessment — it measures what candidates actually do, not how they prefer to present themselves. Built-in consistency checks identify candidates who are not answering honestly.
Pricing is not listed online due to publisher agreement — it varies by volume, currency, and language. Contact Connie directly at 602-380-5431 or use the order form. For context: the cost of the assessment is typically a small fraction of the first month's salary of a bad hire — before factoring in manager time, training investment, and the productivity drag on existing team members.
Yes. Results are sent confidentially to the hiring manager only. The candidate does not receive a copy of their results. The report is designed to help the hiring manager make a better decision — not to be shared with or disclosed to the candidate.
SPQ*Gold has three primary use cases beyond pre-hire: (1) Diagnosing existing salespeople whose prospecting has stalled — identify which type of call reluctance is the barrier. (2) Onboarding — assessing new hires from day one to design a targeted coaching plan. (3) Team-level screening — running the entire sales team through the assessment to identify systemic patterns and prioritize coaching investment. All three can involve Connie directly as a coaching and training partner.
Those are personality assessments — they measure who you are. SPQ*Gold measures what you will do in a prospecting situation. An extroverted personality does not guarantee prospecting behavior — and many introverts are consistent, confident prospectors. SPQ*Gold is the only assessment in the world built specifically for sales call reluctance, grounded in 40+ years of behavioral science research by Dudley and Goodson.
◆ GAP
No FAQ page exists on the current site
The questions above are all drawn from the site copy, the Order page, and the testimonials — but they're answered in different places and never consolidated. A dedicated FAQ page (or FAQ section on the Order page) would reduce pre-inquiry friction significantly. The pricing question alone keeps many qualified buyers from contacting.
■ WORKING
The confidentiality point is important to hiring managers
"Sent confidentially to the hiring manager only" removes a concern that some managers have about candidate relations and HR compliance. It should appear on the Order page prominently, not just in the fine print. Managers need to know this before they commit to ordering.
◆ GAP
No competitive comparison on the site
Hiring managers who have already used DiSC or StrengthsFinder will arrive with a pre-existing framework. The site doesn't directly address this comparison anywhere. A single paragraph explaining the category difference (personality vs. behavioral competency) would convert those visitors before they dismiss SPQ*Gold as "another assessment."
Assessment Inquiry Form
Required fields. Your information is protected and will never be shared.
Direct Contact
602-380-5431
Available for consultation. Call Connie directly to discuss your specific hiring situation and assessment needs.
Already a Client — Need Team Training?
Workshops & Coaching
Hiring managers who use SPQ*Gold for pre-hire often find the same patterns in their existing sales team. Connie offers workshops and ongoing coaching for teams and individuals. This is the path to exceptionalsales.com.
"We have worked with Connie for eight years and consider her and the SPQ assessment as a critical part of our hiring and training process. If we were limited to one person and one tool in our hiring process it would be Connie and the SPQ assessment."
— Hal Daugherty, CSM · President, Parkwood International
DIAGNOSTIC WIRE — CROSS-SITE HANDOFF
The contact form here is a different buyer than the contact form at exceptionalsales.com. Hiring managers need a CRM tag that identifies them as "assessment client" — not "salesperson seeking coaching." When they're ready for team training, the handoff to exceptionalsales.com should be warm and tracked, not a cold referral.
◆ GAP
Contact form collects no hiring context
The current form asks for name, email, phone, company, and a free-text message. A hiring manager submitting this is starting the process twice — once on the form, once again with Connie on the call. Adding "Role you're hiring for" and "Number of candidates" to the form pre-qualifies the inquiry and saves the discovery call for strategy, not logistics.
◈ SYSTEM WIRE
Form → CRM → "hiring-side" tag → separate nurture
Every form submission here should create a CRM record tagged "hiring-side." This triggers a different nurture sequence than a salesperson inquiring about personal coaching. The hiring-side sequence introduces team workshops, multi-seat assessment pricing, and eventually Connie's speaking programs for sales kickoffs. Currently none of this is automated.
■ WORKING
The Parkwood International testimonial is the strongest on the site
"Eight years. Critical part of hiring and training. One person and one tool." This is a client retention and loyalty proof, not just a satisfaction endorsement. It's currently buried in the Testimonials carousel. It belongs on the Contact and Order pages as the trust anchor directly above the inquiry form.
SPQ*Gold as the shared product — how both sites connect to one operating system
| Dimension | salesassessmenttesting.com | exceptionalsales.com | Shared OS Layer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary Buyer | Hiring manager / business owner | Individual salesperson / team manager | Both → Connie Kadansky |
| Presenting Problem | "We keep making bad hires" | "I can't get myself to prospect consistently" | Both are call reluctance problems |
| SPQ*Gold Use Case | Pre-hire screening | Development / coaching gate | Same product, different framing |
| Entry CTA | Call / Email Connie directly | Free Prospecting EKG | Both should feed same CRM |
| Post-Assessment Path | Hire/pass decision → optional onboarding coaching | Results review → 9-step coaching program | Cal.com consultation for both |
| Long-Term Client Path | Repeat assessments per hire + team workshops | Ongoing 1:1 coaching + speaking bookings | CRM lifetime value tracking (not present) |
| Cross-Site Upgrade | Hiring mgr → team workshop → exceptionalsales.com | Coached salesperson → manager → assessment client | Tracked handoff needed |
Are you here for yourself, or for your team?