
How to Email a Cover Letter: Samples, Format & Subject Line
Want to send a cover letter along with your resume? You've got two options: email your cover letter as an attachment, or write an email cover letter. We'll show you how to do both.
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.
This resume guide has a high conversion rate. It will turn job seekers like yourself into hired sales reps.
How?
You’ll show them you have the job experience, closing skills, and sales background they’re looking for with a great sales representative resume.
No worries—
Read on and you’ll see a professional sales representative resume example you can adjust and make yours. Plus, you’ll learn an easy formula for writing a resume for sales rep jobs that will land you 10x more interviews than any other sales representative resume you’ve written in the past.
This guide will show you:
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Sample sales representative resume—See more resume samples here.
Holly L. Gardner
Sales Representative
208-573-1451
holly.gardner@me.com
linkedin.com/in/hollygardner
Summary
Efficient and effective sales representative with over 4 years of experience in medical and pharmaceutical sales and managing business, professional, and corporate client accounts. Member of the National Association of Pharmaceutical Sales Reps and awarded the CNPR Certification after completion of the Pharmaceutical Sales Training Program. Exceeded sales goals by more than 15% each quarter. Seeking to leverage solid negotiation skills and extensive product knowledge to be the senior pharmaceutical sales rep for Photon Pharma.
Experience
Pharmaceutical Sales Representative
Jurius Pharma, Boise, ID
August 2016–October 2019
Key Qualifications & Responsibilities
Key Achievement
Junior Medical Sales Representative
Stanford Medical Equipment, Boise, ID
June 2015–August 2016
Key Qualifications & Responsibilities
Education
Bachelor of Science in Retail and Sales Management
DeVry University, Arlington, VA
Completion: 2015
Relevant Coursework: Business Administration, Consumer Behavior, Sales and Marketing Fundamentals, Pharmaceutical Merchandising Management, Advertising and Public Relations.
Skills
Certificates
Memberships
1
The BANT framework helps determine how likely a lead is to become a customer.
Our formatting guidelines below will help determine how likely you are to become an employee.
Before you go ahead with writing a sales representative resume, format it correctly to make it neat and orderly and a breeze for sales managers to read.
Here’s how to format a sales representative resume:
Now, here’s what a sales representative resume should include:
One trick we’re going to show you here—
We won’t start at the top.
Instead, we’ll begin with your work history section and finish it off with your heading paragraph. This way, you’ll have a better idea of the most effective things to include by the time you come back around.
Read more about formatting a resume: How to Choose the Best Resume Layout
2
Sales jobs are being added each and every day, meaning you’ve got more and more competition. Just have a look at the employment outlook for different positions for the decade between 2018 and 2028:
As you can see, you’re facing off against plenty of other applicants.
To make sure you stand above the crowd, your past employment resume section should be organized and written correctly.
Here the gist for doing it right:
Now—
Let’s look at two experienced sales professional resume examples to see those rules in action:
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Pharmaceutical Sales Representative Jurius Pharma, Boise, ID Key Qualifications & Responsibilities
Key Achievement
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Wrong |
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Pharmaceutical Sales Representative Jurius Pharma, Boise, ID Key Qualifications & Responsibilities
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See the differences?
While the second sales representative resume example falls short, the first one meets all its targets—it’s detailed, personalized, and uses numbers to seal that deal.
They’ll immediately see you’re a candidate with a high lifetime value!
Now—
What about when writing an entry-level sales representative resume?
Don’t worry.
Even if you’ve only a little job experience with another job title, all you have to do is list the most sales-relevant job duties and achievements you had.
Here are another two sales representative resume samples for your reference:
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Customer Relationship OfficerZabar Pharmamed Solutions, Augusta, GA September 2018–October 2019 Key Qualifications & Responsibilities
Key Achievement
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Wrong |
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Customer Relationship Officer Key Qualifications & Responsibilities
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See the difference?
The first candidate used their past experience and proved it’s relevant to the new position they’re applying for.
Continue reading up on how to describe work experience: Tips for Creating an Awesome Experience Section on a Resume
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.
3
Depending on the particular sales job or company you’re applying to, they might require a bachelor degree, high school diploma, or nothing at all.
No matter what academic level they’re looking for—
Format the education section the same way.
Do you have years of sales representative experience?
List just the basics:
Here’s how that looks:
Right |
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Bachelor of International Sales and Marketing Management VIA University Campus, Horsens, Denmark Completion: 2016 |
But—
What if you are writing an entry-level sales representative resume with no experience?
Be more detailed, adding extras such as relevant classes, awards, GPA, Latin honors, and specializations, like this:
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Bachelor of Science in Marketing, Major in Professional Sales Florida State University College of Business, Tallahassee, FL Completion: 2017 Relevant Coursework: Professional Selling, Sales Management, Advanced Sales & Selling Techniques, Cloud-Based CRM Systems, Sales Organization Fundamentals, Inside Sales & Outside Sales, Using AI and ML to Facilitate Lead Generation. Minor: Leadership & Communication |
Leave your high school diploma off resume if you’ve completed a university degree.
If your education is more impressive than your work history, say on a junior pharmaceutical sales resume, put it above your job education section for maximum visibility.
Read further on adding your academic experience: How to Add Education on a Resume
4
A sales representative resume must show the manager or account executive that you are the best applicant to close deals on their behalf.
How do you show them?
By identifying the sales rep skills and abilities they’re looking for and adding it to your resume.
Here’s what to do:
Now—
Let’s look at some general skills:
Next—
Take a look at these example salesperson resume skills sections:
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That’s how you create a sales representative resume skills section. If you follow these guidelines, you’ll definitely be their most qualified lead!
Read more about including your talents on a resume: 99 Skills to Put on Resumes
5
When they survey all the resumes they receive, do you know which one will have the highest Net Promoter Score?
The one with additional, relevant sales rep resume sections.
Extra sales representative resume sections round you out as a candidate and allow you to show them how uniquely qualified you are.
Here are a few great options to consider for any inside or outside sales resume:
IT certificates you’ve earned look amazing on any resume. Here are great certification options to bolster any programming resume:
Are you struggling with writing entry-level sales representative resumes? If you have any unpaid work, you not only add valuable experience to your resume, but you also look like a hero.
Are you fluent in French, proficient in Portuguese, or articulate in Armenian? Showing off your proficiency in a second language could open up new markets for them and interview room doors for you.
If you have interests and passions related to sales, marketing, or client relationships, add those onto your industrial or medical sales rep resume for added oomph. Skip the “long walks on the beach” and save that for your diary.
Do you have a membership in a sales organization or other trade body? Adding a small section to the bottom of your sales representative resume shows your dedication. Here are just a few examples:
There are many other sections you may consider for resumes for sales rep positions: What to Include on a Resume: 20+ Top Examples
6
When cold calling, a catchy opening line makes the difference between a possible lead and a missed opportunity.
It’s the same on a sales rep resume.
The sales rep resume opens with a heading statement, known as either a summary or objective.
If you catch their interest here, they’ll read on and call you for a sales job interview.
Have years of expertise generating leads and closing deals?
The resume career summary is for you.
A resume summary is a short paragraph highlighting your experience, skills, and accomplishments from past sales jobs. It promotes you further by including a numbered achievement or two which you’re most proud of to verify your sales talent.
Here are two example summaries:
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Results-oriented sales representative for over 5 years with 2 years of experience as a sales manager for industrial supplies and products. Skilled at maintaining profitable client relationships and developing ambitious sales targets. Achieved over $500K in sales in each fiscal quarter from 2018 until the present. |
Wrong |
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I have several years of sales management experience, with a few more years of sales representative experience before that. I’m looking for a job where I can use the vast knowledge I have in sales to land a better job. |
If your sales representative resume summary resembled the second example, you’ll have a high churn rate.
The right example resume for sales reps, on the other hand, does everything we need—it’s short, relevant, and uses numbered achievements.
You can just about relegate this resume into the “Closed-Won” column!
But—
Don’t have experience on a sales team?
The resume career objective is for you.
A resume objective is ideal for a resume with little or no experience in sales rep jobs.
Rather than show your illustrious past, give them the future. Explain your career goals and how you plan on sticking around as a sales representative. Also use a numbered win here to address any of the employer’s pain points.
Here are two sales rep resume objective examples:
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Relatable customer relationship officer at large Augusta corporation with 1+ year of experience maintaining excellent relations with 15 company clients. Skilled at communication, collaboration, and using CRM software (Hubspot & Salesforce, primarily). Seeking to leverage ability to anticipate needs and increase NPS to become the junior sales representative at Zabboo Pharmaceuticals. |
Wrong |
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I don’t have experience as a sales representative or even in sales, but I would like to switch to it from my current career path as a customer relationship specialist. I am available to work anywhere in and around the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area starting immediately. |
Always show rather than tell on a resume for sales positions, meaning give them numbers to prove your worth to them.
Read up more on writing a heading statement: How to Write a Resume Profile
7
There’s one timeless sales acronym to remember when sending a resume—
ABC = Always Bestow Cover (letters).
Most hiring managers prefer a sales rep cover letter with your resume, so application letters are quite important if you want to be considered.
We’ve got the general guidelines here on writing a cover letter for sales representative jobs.
How to write a sales representative cover letter:
Easy.
But, to get a better understanding and increase your chances of getting the interview call, check our articles on how to create a cover letter and what to discuss in a cover letter.
Read on: Sales Rep Cover Letter: Example and Guide
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.
Across all industries, good sales reps are in high demand, and with your perfected, tailored resume for sales rep jobs, you’re going to be in high demand, as well.
Let’s sum it all up—
Now, we’d love to hear from you:
Let’s talk about it in the comments below, and thanks for reading
Want to send a cover letter along with your resume? You've got two options: email your cover letter as an attachment, or write an email cover letter. We'll show you how to do both.
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In this guide you’ll learn *when* and *how* to use a general, universal resume. Plus, you’ll see an easy-to-use template you can copy and tweak in no time.