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Sales Associate Resume [Example + Job Description]
Not sure how to tweak your resume for a job in retail sales? Here’s a simple formula pulling in offers with your sales associate resume.
Every great sales manager knows their job isn’t about selling—
It’s about inspiring.
Do you know who your sales manager resume must inspire first?
The hiring manager.
You must convince them you’re the one who’ll get the job done better than the other 250+ applicants.
And this is exactly what you’re about to learn.
This guide will show you:
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Sample resume made with our builder—See more resume examples here.
Looking for related jobs in sales? See one of our dedicated guides:
For more examples check our amazing collection here:
Here's how to write a sales manager resume:
1
Here’s the thing: we make judgments based on first impressions. And—
Research suggests it only takes 1/10 of a second to form one. This is why choosing the best template for your sales manager resume is so vital. A recruiter’s brief glance may decide about your future.
So—
Make sure your sales manager resume:
How?
First off, go for the reverse-chronological resume format. It puts your experience and key achievements in the limelight. Also, it’s the best-established resume format and all recruiters feel comfortable reading it.
And—
If you want to be absolutely certain your formatting stays intact on the hiring manager’s end, export your sales manager resume to PDF.
Our resume builder takes care of all the formatting so you can focus on the content. Just pick one of the 20+ resume templates. Customize the colors, fonts, and much more.
All our templates have been approved by recruiters and career experts, and are 100% ATS-compliant.
Here’s a look at what your sales manager resume could look like:
Pro Tip: Match your resume to the company culture. Our resume builder offers a range of styles: from creative to elegant to minimal.
Looking for advice on resume length? Not sure if a one-page resume is better than a two-page resume? Get the ideal resume length with our guide: How Long Should a Resume Be? Ideal Resume Length
2
If your resume looks good enough—you’ll win 6 seconds of the recruiter’s attention. This is how much (or little) time they’ll spend scanning your sales manager resume.
The trick is to make your resume:
Riveting.
How? By topping it with the choicest opening section. One that will make the other candidates look like they’re applying for a job at a lemonade stand. Before we move on—
Let’s take a look at the differences between a resume summary and objective.
A sales manager resume summary is a brief rundown of your relevant experience and key achievements. It’s perfect for experienced candidates for sales manager positions.
Take a look at these two automobile sales manager resume summaries:
right |
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Enthusiastic Automotive Sales Manager with 5 years of experience motivating and leading sales teams to victory eager to join Car Max. Consistently increased automotive sales over 15% annually. Completed Purdue University training in Lean Manufacturing. |
wrong |
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Experienced Sales Manager seeks a job to use my talents and skills in. I always meet sales goals, and I enjoy leading sales teams. |
Here’s a quick breakdown of why the good example leaves the bad one far behind:
And—
Now—
A sales manager resume objective focuses on your skills and shows why you’re a perfect fit for the position. It works best for candidates who want to switch careers, step up the career ladder, or get a place at an entry-level sales management training program for freshers.
Whatever your motivation, one thing remains the same: Your sales manager resume objective mustn’t suck.
Here are examples of right and wrong sales manager resume objectives:
right |
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Dedicated business management graduate with a specialization in sales and marketing management. Earned the top sales award during an internship through strong leadership and attention to the need for change. Seeking a challenging entry-level sales manager training program position. |
wrong |
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I am a business management graduate who specialized in sales looking for a sales management position. |
The good example focuses on the specific skills the recruiter is after. The ones that show your potential for success in the role of a sales manager.
When making a resume in our builder, drag & drop bullet points, skills, and auto-fill the boring stuff. Spell check? Check. Start building a professional resume template here for free.
When you’re done, Zety’s resume builder will score your resume and tell you exactly how to make it better.
Looking for more examples of salesman resume objectives and resume summaries? Here’s a selection of our guides:
3
Listen: the hiring manager is not looking for a salesman you surely are.
They’re looking for a leader you have to become.
So—let your sales manager resume job description show you’re ready to lead and inspire your team.
Looks like a lot to pay attention to? Fret not.
Our resume builder will guide you every step of the way when writing your sales manager resume.
Follow our career experts’ pro tips to get every single detail right.
Ready-to-use examples written by HR pros to help you land that job interview. Try our resume builder now.
Now—
Let’s take a look at a sales manager job description from a job ad. All the key skills are underlined:
Remember—your sales manager resume must be more than a laundry list of all the stuff you’ve ever done. Show the hiring manager you’re great at doing what they need you to do. Here’s what a tailored sales manager resume job description could look like:
right |
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Area Sales Manager Kaplan Education 2014 – 2016 San Francisco, CA
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wrong |
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Area Sales Manager Kaplan Education 2014 – 2016 San Francisco, CA
|
The difference? In the good example, the keywords from the job ad fit into the natural flow of each bullet point. The bad example is nothing more than a copy-pasted job description from the job offer.
Ouch.
Even if it manages to fool the ATS, the hiring manager is going to feed their shredder with it. Generic resumes are every shredder’s favorite.
Now—
If you want to move into your first sales manager role, you need to follow the same rules. To cut a long story short:
Here’s what your sales manager job description could read like:
right |
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Sales Representative IKEA 2015 – 2017 Cleveland, OH
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This job description proves that this sales rep is ready to inspire their team to succeed.
Remember—you might want to make some parts of your job description stand out more. Use bold to highlight what you’re most proud of. You can also underline, add links, and much more. With our resume builder formatting is easy and intuitive.
Edit the text to direct the recruiter’s eyes wherever you desire. Try our resume builder now.
If you’re still hungry for more information on how to make a job-winning experience section on your sales manager resume, read our guide: Work Experience on a Resume: Job Description Samples and Tips
4
It’s really simple: you’ll get the job if your skills are up to par.
So—
You must make sure everything that makes you stand out from the crowd gets proper exposure on your sales manager resume.
In short, the relevant ones. Take a good look at the job offer you’re replying to, and pick out the skills the company is looking for
Got them? Chances are most of them are already in your job description. Yay!
But—
You can still sprinkle your sales manager resume objective or summary with some more skills. And put the ones you take most pride in a separate key skills section. Remember, though.
Relevance is key.
It’s not about any skills, it’s about the ones that make you a great manager. If you’re looking for inspiration, here’s a list of some typical key skills for a sales manager resume.
Pro Tip: Don’t go overboard with how many skills you list. Choose up to 7-9 of your top sales manager skills. This way you’ll avoid the so-called Presenter’s Paradox.
To save space and make your skills section stand out, try moving it to the sidebar on your resume.
The good news?
In our resume builder you can move and rearrange the sections easily.
Take a look:
Add, remove, and move around your sales manager resume sections using our builder. Create your resume now.
Looking for more inspiration on the best skills for managers? Here’s a guide you may find interesting: Top 10 Management Skills: List & Great Advice (Not Just for Managers)
5
Here’s the thing. You’re applying for a managerial position, you can’t be green behind the ears. You can omit the entire education section entirely, right?
Wrong.
Don’t skip any section. Ever. As a seasoned pro, you’re free to limit your sales manager resume education section to the necessary minimum, though.
List your:
Add only your highest degree of education on your resume. There’s no need to dive any deeper.
right |
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2011 BS in Business Administration Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA |
Need more information on how to list education on your resume? Head straight to our guide: Education Resume Section: Examples for Different Scenarios
6
At this point, we can easily say your sales manager resume has everything a good resume needs.
It’s done.
Or is it?
Remember—on average, you must beat 250+ candidates. So, let them be the average. For you, it’s time to:
Add value. How?
By including extra sections, such as:
Prove your worth to the hiring manager, show you’re a perfect cultural fit ready to drive change!
Not sure what extra sections to add to your sales manager resume? Take a look at our guide: What to Include on a Job-Winning Resume
7
Yes, it’s true: Only half of hiring managers care about cover letters, according to our HR statistics report. But—less than half of candidates send them.
So ask yourself this question—
Would you rather get the job and overdeliver along the way, or get rejected because you underdelivered Well, let’s take it a step further. Would you rather inspire a team of overachievers, or struggle with a bunch of sluggards?
See how it works?
A well-written cover letter not only can double your chances but also shows you care. This is what’s being tested with the “cover letters optional” blurb in the job ad. And—
A great cover letter that matches the style of your sales manager resume will give you an edge over the other candidates.
Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:
See more cover letter templates and start writing.
Don’t know how to go about writing a cover letter? Here’s a guide that will help you out: Cover Letter Writing in 8 Simple Steps [Proven Template]
Here’s a brief summary of the most important points about making a sales manager resume:
Are you writing a sales manager resume for the first time? Or perhaps you’re a seasoned pro eager to help the rookies out? We’d love to hear from you, leave your comment below!
Not sure how to tweak your resume for a job in retail sales? Here’s a simple formula pulling in offers with your sales associate resume.
Manager resume sample that will get jobs. Read our management resume guide and learn how to take a manager's resume to the next level. Nail that ➸ manager resume objective, highlight the right ➸ managerial skills, and ➸ start getting more interviews thanks to expert tips and hacks.
Staring at your resume for hours and still nothing in the pipeline? That must be exhausting! Let’s get your flow back and write a stand-out sales representative resume together.