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As a prospective sales representative, your resume faces extra high expectations. You’re going to be expected to show off your sales skills by creating a resume that sells you as a candidate. That’s why you need to really put in the extra effort. After all, who’s going to hire a sales rep who can’t sell their own skills and experience?

But before you panic, read this guide. We’ve taken years of sales and professional resume writing experience and put it all together for you. This guide will walk you through the entire process of creating a sales representative resume from deciding on formatting to final review.

This guide will show you:

• How to take ideas and inspiration from expert-crafted sales resume examples
• How to understand your audiences and sell your resume to them
• The ideal formatting and length
• Which sections are most effective for sales
• How to include training and certifications
• Which hard and soft skills employers are looking for
• How to highlight your achievements for maximum impact
• Whether you should include an objective or summary (with examples of how to write each)
• How to write a sales resume with little or no experience
• How a great sales representative resume stands out
• Techniques for reviewing and polishing your resume
• Why a builder is the ideal tool for creating your resume
• And more!

There’s a lot to cover, so let’s start with some inspiration to help you overcome the intimidation of getting started.

Sales Representative Resume Templates

There’s no getting around it, starting to create a new resume is intimidating. Whether you’re an experienced sales representative or just getting into the career, you know your resume has to prove you’ve got sales skills to spare. But what does a successful sales resume look like?

We’ve chosen these examples to get you started. Try putting yourself in a recruiter's shoes and evaluate each one to see what it does well and what you would change. In short, ask yourself whether this resume really sold the candidate to you.

Take notes as you go so when you’re ready to start, you’ve already got a whole list of ideas to begin with.

[Examples]

How to write a sales representative resume that will get your phone ringing

Once you’ve reviewed some sales representative resume examples, it’s time to begin creating your own. But before you start writing down your experience, skills, and achievements, you need to understand your audience. Starting without that would be like starting to sell a product before you had any idea who your potential buyers were. “Buyer intent” is just as important in resumes, so let’s dive into who you need to appeal to.

Begin by studying who you’re “selling” your resume to

The basic question far too few people ask when creating a resume is: who is this for? If the answer is “all the companies where I want to work”, then you may want to reconsider. Just like a great sales pitch, a great resume has to be tailored both to the specific person (and algorithm) and to the specific company. Let’s review how to do that.

How to sell to ATS

You’re probably wondering what on earth ATS is. It stands for Applicant Tracking System. These are systems employers use to automatically read through and evaluate huge numbers of resumes to save their recruiters time. But for applicants like you, it means the first hurdle your resume is likely going to have to pass is getting past an algorithm.

So how do ATS resume scanners work? While there are dozens on the market and each works a bit differently, they generally use natural language processing (a type of artificial intelligence) to analyze your resume’s text. They look for specific skills and experience to determine whether your resume is good enough to pass along to a recruiter.

For example, if the job required 5 years of sales experience, an ATS will try and weed out all of the resumes that don’t meet that criteria. That said, there are still a few crucial tricks to make sure your resume gets through.

So how can you ensure you get past ATS? 

1. Submit an ATS-friendly resume. Most ATS scanners are optimized for .doc, .docx, and .pdf files. So if you create a beautiful looking resume that’s an image or some other strange file format, it’s probably never going to get seen by anyone. That said, not all files are created equal. It’s best to use an ATS-optimized resume builder which structures the data on your resume so it’s easily readable.
2. Make sure you match the job ad requirements as closely as possible. If you phrase your skills or experience in an unconventional way, it’s possible that an ATS might not realize what you’re trying to communicate. Like any good salesperson, you should use language your target customers are most likely to understand and appreciate.
3. Only apply to positions, where you meet or exceed the minimum requirements. With ATS so prevalent in hiring, taking the time to craft a resume for a position that asks for more than your experience might be a wasted effort. That said, smaller firms are much less likely to use ATS, so it may be worth applying there if you think you’d still make a great candidate.

How to sell to recruiters

Once you’ve made it past an ATS, you still need to impress a recruiter. Fortunately, you’re probably used to selling to humans, so this is time to show off those skills.

The main way you can sell to a recruiter is to make their job easy. Sorting through piles of resumes trying to find the right candidate is hard. Knowing that hiring a great sales representative and hiring a poor one can have a huge impact adds more stress. So imagine how wonderful it is when a recruiter stumbles on a resume that’s easy to read and has experience and skills that obviously match the job requirements.

Your job is to provide that experience. Make it as easy as possible for a recruiter to say “yes” to your resume. One good bit of news is that the work you put into optimizing your resume for ATS also helps it appeal to recruiters. But the other suggestions we’ll be making throughout this guide will also help.

Overall, always be sure to keep the recruiter at the front of your mind. They’re ultimately the person who will likely make the decision to hire you. The more your sales representative resume is tailored to them, the more effective it will be.

Why tailoring to a specific company matters

Tied in to appealing to recruiters is making sure your resume is tailored for the specific company and position. After reading about how to sell to ATS and recruiters, it should be clear why sending an identical resume to every job offer doesn’t work. You want to look like you belong at a specific company.

That could mean using company coloring on your resume, or looking at social media posts by the company to see what kind of activities they do on team buildings. Then, you can try including hobbies and interests that demonstrate culture fit. Again, by doing this you make it even easier for a recruiter to say “yes” to your resume. As a nice side benefit, you’re also clearly showing that you’re an outstanding salesperson.

The best formatting for a sales representative resume

You’re not going to start a sales pitch in the middle. So if your resume is like a sales pitch, you need to control the order that information is taken in. That starts with understanding how you should present information about yourself.

Which sections belong at the top?

Too many sales representative resumes take the most valuable resume real estate (the header) and fill it with information like their street address. But your address is not what’s most likely to persuade a recruiter that you’re the ideal candidate for a sales job.

Instead, this space should focus on highly-impactful information. Your best bet will be a resume objective or summary (more on how to write those below).

After that, your work experience should also follow the same principle. That means using reverse chronological order, putting your most recent experience at the top, because it’s the most relevant.

How long should a sales representative resume be?

Once again, your audience should be your guiding light here. In general, recruiters want your resume to be as short and concise as possible. Imagine reading dozens of resumes a day and it’ll become obvious why. That’s why you need to use your sales skills to pack in information, while making sure it’s still easy to read.

In other words, one page is ideal. Two pages might be okay if you’re an experienced sales representative with tons of relevant information to include. The easiest way to shorten your resume is to look at each section or piece of information and ask yourself if it adds value to your resume. If it doesn’t, get rid of it.

What sections belong in a sales representative resume?

Now that you’ve gotten a sense of how to format your resume, which sections should you include? Here’s a list of sections you should consider adding:

• Resume objective
• Resume summary
• Work experience
• Certifications
• Achievements
• Education
• Hard skills
• Soft Skills
• Languages
• Volunteering
• Hobbies/interests

How to include training and certifications on a sales representative resume

While certifications are less important in the sales world than in many other industries, they still play an important role. They show self-motivation and a desire to improve your sales skills. For sales representatives with less work experience, they can also even the playing field by making up for that. In either case, a sales certification is never going to hurt.

When adding a certification, follow this simple format and list the certification followed by the organization which granted it and the year you obtained it.

Certified Inside Sales Professional, AA-ISP, 2012

Which certifications should you include on your sales representative resume?

The top 5 sales certifications according to job site research are:

• Certified Inside Sales Professional (CISP)
• Certified Professional Sales Person (CPSP)
• Certified Sales Leadership Professional (CSLP)
• Hubspot Inbound Sales
• RISE Up Sales

How to choose which hard and soft skills to include

In so many ways, sales success comes down to skills. But simply listing “sales” as a skill is not exactly going to persuade a recruiter you’re the best candidate. After all, you wouldn’t simply tell a prospect that your product is superior and then not offer any details or proof.

To effectively convey your skills you need specific examples. For example, compare these two skills:

“Lead generation”

“Generated 15 qualified SaaS B2B sales leads per day using Lumio.”

It’s not always that simple though. Remember that ATS often wants you to be specific about your skills, so it might want “lead generation” to be on your resume. You can include the details in a subsection or elsewhere on your resume. However you go about it, being specific conveys confidence and results.

The best hard skills for a sales representative resume

• Knowledge of the specific product or service you’ll be selling
• Lead qualification
• Lead prospecting
• Customer needs analysis
• CAC and MRR optimization
• CRM software (be specific, for example Salesforce or Hubspot)
• Project management

The best soft skills for a sales representative resume

• Networking and relationship building
• Time management
• Active listening
• Public speaking
• Client nurturing
• Adaptability
• Critical thinking
• Relationship building
• Problem solving

How to highlight your sales achievements

When it comes to sales representatives, recruiters want to see achievements. They want to know how many leads you generated, how many sales you made, what your MoM growth was, etc. A sales resume without any specific achievements like this is going to look weak, unless it’s clear you’re just getting into sales for the first time (more on that later).

Let’s look at some examples to see how:

“Successfully increased sales”

Sure, increasing sales is great, but when it’s phrased this vaguely, it loses its impact. The reader doesn’t know if sales went up by $1 or $100,000. Now let’s see how that could be phrased better:

“Increased MoM sales 18% by revenue between January and March 2019.”

This tells the recruiter exactly what they need to know. It also indicates that you’re the kind of sales representative, who knows how to employ information to make a sale. When you’re listing your achievements under your work history, this is how they should be phrased, whenever possible.

How to highlight non-work achievements

If you have some sales-relevant achievements that occurred outside of a job, a separate “achievements” section is a great place to include them. This is particularly useful when you have little or no previous formal sales experience (more on that below).

Should you add an objective or summary to your sales representative resume?

As previously mentioned, one of the most effective ways to begin a sales representative resume is with an objective or summary section. The difference between these two is in length and purpose. A resume objective is usually only about a sentence long and simply states what you aim to achieve with this application/resume.

A resume summary is more of a short paragraph and comes in handy when you need to give additional context about something on your resume. For example, if there’s a gap in your work history or if you’re looking to change careers. In these cases, a resume summary works like a cover letter and gives you space to make your pitch to a recruiter. Here are some examples to show how each should be written:

Sales representative resume objective examples and tips

“Experienced salesperson looking to obtain a sales representative position.”

A great resume objective will be brief but packed with useful information. This example is brief, but doesn’t tell a recruiter anything useful. “Experienced’ is too vague and the fact that you’re looking to be hired as a sales representative is already clear. This objective just wastes time.

“CISP Certified with 4 years experience in B2B software sales, looking to obtain a sales representative position at ABC Software.”

This example is longer, but it makes up for it in information density. In one sentence a recruiter has a clear idea of why you might be a great candidate for this position. It also tells them that you customized this resume for the specific company.

Sales representative resume summary examples and tips

“I’ve been working in sales for years and have gained the ample experience necessary to thrive in this position. In particular, my strong sales record, negotiating abilities, and diligence will be a great addition to your sales team. I am open to answering any questions you might have and look forward to hearing from you.”

This summary makes a few key mistakes. First, you don’t want to refer to yourself in the first person on your resume summary. Next, it makes the same mistake as the objective above in being too vague. “For years,” “strong sales record,” etc. only hint at accomplishments that should be spelled out. It also gives information that’s obvious, like the last sentence, and overall doesn’t convey confidence.

“Friendly yet persuasive sales representative with 3 years experience selling B2C software licenses for CBA Software. Consistently exceeds sales targets by an average of 12% over the past 12 months. Looking to grow into a more senior sales role while gaining valuable B2B sales experience at ABC Software.”

The latter example tells a story with specific information and a clear motive for applying. This example really adds to the resume by providing context that wouldn’t fit well anywhere else (like the B2C to B2B move). Now, when that recruiter reads your resume, they’ll have this general information about you in mind.

How should you write a sales representative resume with little or no experience?

The good news here is that it’s much easier to teach someone with some natural sales ability than deal with an experienced, but underperforming salesperson. So, focus on showing you have sales-relevant skills. This can be done in an achievements section, if the examples behind those skills aren’t from a job, or in your job history.

Certifications are another fantastic way to stand out when you have less experience. Even noting that you’re actively pursuing a sales relevant certification will go a long way towards showing a recruiter that you’re a candidate worth taking seriously.

What makes a sales representative resume stand out?

To understand how to make your sales resume stand out, let’s go through all the things you want a recruiter to notice:

1. The design: after a long day going through resumes that are either dull black and white affairs or visually intense design disasters, you want your resume to be clean and easy to read. Trust us, recruiters’ eyes will appreciate it.
2. A clear and attention grabbing header: with the first glance at the top information, a resume objective or summary should quickly give the recruiter a sense of your resume. Now, without having to read through the whole thing, they know whether your application is worth considering.
3. Skills and experience that match the job ad: once a recruiter starts reading the rest of your resume, they will be relieved if it’s easy to see that you match the requirements.
4. Well-written content overall: as the recruiter keeps reading, there are no sentences with mistakes or or ones that require them to re-read to understand what you were trying to say.

We’ve discussed how to accomplish the first three things, now let’s see what you can do to ensure the 4th.

How should you review your sales resume before sending it out?

Sending a resume with spelling errors or sloppy writing is just as unacceptable as sending a sales proposal with those mistakes. You’ll be expected to demonstrate that you’re diligent about your writing on your resume. That’s why you should always carefully review your resume before sending it.

This can be done by a friend you trust (ideally someone with some sales experience). But, if a person like that isn’t available, you can also do it yourself. One trick is to review all of your information backwards. When reading your own writing, you tend to go quickly and miss mistakes. But reading your resume backwards forces you to slow down, making it more likely you’ll catch mistakes.

How Resumebuild.com’s builder makes creating the perfect sales representative resume easy

There are a lot of things your sales representative resume needs to get right. This guide is designed to make it as easy as possible to do that, but the last missing piece is the right resume builder. Resumebuild.com’s easy-to-use builder takes the guesswork out of the process. It has a wide selection of expertly-curated resume templates and guides like this to walk you through how to fill them out.

Then, your resume is saved, making it easy to come back and improve it or to customize it for new opportunities. There’s a reason resume builders are quickly becoming the new standard. A tired old .docx file just isn’t going to cut it anymore and that custom resume your friend built you in photoshop will never make it past ATS.

With Resumebuild, you can be sure your resume will be beautiful, ATS-optimized, and ready to show that you’ve got what it takes to excel in your next sales representative role.

Customers develop an impression of a store within the first few seconds of walking into it. Their impressions will be based on both conscious and subconscious judgments about a range of factors including the store’s layout, aesthetics, music, staff, and products.  

Many of these factors will be under the direct control or influence of the store manager. After all, the store manager is in charge of both the store’s operations and sales staff. They must simultaneously ensure that the shop is running smoothly in accordance with the company’s policy and that staff are meeting sales objectives and conducting themselves in a professional manner. They’re responsible for everything from training, coordinating, scheduling, and discipling staff to managing and optimizing the store’s inventory, sales, and customer service. 

Recruiters are therefore very picky about who they’ll hire for this all-important position. The right candidate has the potential to significantly boost customers and sales, while the wrong one could lead to the downfall of the entire store. 

In order to convince a recruiter you’re the right store manager for the job, you need to hand in a flawless resume. Don’t worry if you don’t know where to begin – this resume writing guide will cover the most critical aspects of making a winning store manager resume. By reading it, you’ll learn how to:

• Effectively prep for a job interview and common questions to expect
• Select the most ideal hard and soft skills to feature
• Write a killer resume objective or summary
• Make an amazing resume even without previous store manager experience
• Speedily create a resume that gets you hired

1. Multiple Template Example

2. How Do You Write a Store Manager Resume That Will be Noticed?

How should you format your resume?

The format you use for your resume is equally as important as the information you share within it. When you think about it, your resume’s formatting is akin to the process of packaging your store’s products for customers at the checkout counter. 

You wouldn’t just let a customer leave with a crumpled up shirt in their hands, would you? Doing so would give your company a bad reputation for customer service. You would instead ensure that you neatly folded it up and put it in a convenient carrier bag. 

Likewise, you need to format your resume in a way that neatly packages the most important information so that it’s convenient for recruiters to read. The resume format that excels in this is reverse-chronological format. By presenting your most recent professional experience first and then the ones that preceded it after, it effectively emphasizes your growth as a retail professional.

Another feature you’ll need to think twice about is your resume’s layout. Be sure to follow the guidelines we’ve shared below:

• • Number of Pages: Just one page.
  • Fonts to Use: Legible fonts that recruiters are already familiar with, such as Merriweather and Verdana.
  • Fonts to Avoid: Any font you wouldn’t use to write an email to a customer. For example, Good Times Bad Times and Bradley Hand.
  • Margins: 1 inch on all sides.

• Line Spacing: 1 or 1.15.

• Header size: 14-16 point size.
• Text size: 11-12 point size.

How do you prepare for a job interview as a retail store manager?

If you don’t know how to effectively prepare for a job interview as a retail store manager, take a read of our practical tips below. Once you put them in action, you’ll be better prepared to impress the socks off any recruiter.  

• Practice your answers to typical questions: It’s impossible to know precisely what questions you’ll be asked during a job interview, but there’s a wealth of information on the most common questions candidates get asked. We’ve even shared 21 of them in the next section. By practicing your answers to these questions, you’ll be able to gain confidence in yourself and your ability to succeed. In turn, you’ll also get a better handle of your nerves.

• Have some key examples up your sleeve: One of the biggest challenges you’ll face in an interview is coming up with suitable and powerful examples to illustrate your answers. For example, if a recruiter says, “Describe a time where you went up and beyond for a customer,” you should be able to offer an impressive example that highlights your expertise in customer service. To ensure you’re ready for such requests, prepare a handful of examples that you can draw on during the interview that showcase your skills and experiences as a professional.

• Know your weaknesses: In addition to being able to confidently list off your strengths, you need to be aware of your weaknesses. After all, every store manager has weak points, so a recruiter will appreciate it if you not only acknowledge what they are, but also show how you’re working on improving them.  

Which questions are likely to be asked during the interview process?

As we touched on in the section above, a crucial part of preparing for a job interview involves practicing answers to common interview questions. Needless to say, you need to know what these questions are in the first place in order to practice! To help you out, we’ve listed some of the most common ones below:

Practical questions:

• Can you tell me a bit about yourself?
• When are you available to start?
• Why should we hire you?
• What are your salary expectations?

Questions about you as a professional:

• How would your former coworkers describe you?
• Where do you see yourself in 1/5/10 years from now?
• What are your strengths and weaknesses?
• Tell me about a time you failed at a task and what you learned from it

Questions about working at the store:

• What does customer service mean to you?
• What methods do you use to motivate staff?
• Describe a time when you successfully delegated tasks to your staff.
• How do you train new employees?
• What improvements would you make based on your own experiences as a customer?
• What are the key goals you have for working in this store?
• How would you resolve any conflict between staff members?
• What would you do if a staff member is failing to reach sales targets?

Questions about the business:

• What is our company’s brand philosophy?
• Who are the company’s primary competitors? 
• What makes our brand stand out against our competitors? 
• How much knowledge do you have about our brand’s products?
• What improvements can our company make to boost sales?

Pro tip: These are just a selection of questions you may be asked in your interview. There are countless resources online that you can read to discover more of them.

Where do you list additional leadership or management training or certifications as a store manager? How can you do so correctly?

Are you trying to figure out the best way to list any additional leadership or management training you have as a store manager in your resume? We’re glad you’re thinking about this because many candidates don’t. This is great news for you as listing this information will leave a positive impression on a recruiter.

So where should you list them? Create a separate “Training and Certifications” section. You can correctly list each training or certification by providing the following information about each one, as appropriate:

• The name of the certification or training
• The institute or company who provided it
• The state it is valid in or that you undertook it   
• The year you received the certification or training

For example:

• Store Management Training, The Friedman Group, NY, 2020
• Sales Leadership Training, IAB, NY, 2019

Pro tip: Don’t forget about listing any internal training you’ve undertaken as a store manager. If you haven’t undertaken any yet, see if there are any training opportunities that your current company is willing to provide.

Which skills should you mention on a resume?

Successful store managers boast a variety of skills that they draw on to excel in their jobs. They have so many they could fill a book! So how are you meant to emphasize your skills to a recruiter when you only have a single page to fit in your entire resume?  

You need to know precisely which skills are worthwhile mentioning. The long and the short of it is that you need to feature the skills a recruiter desires from their dream candidate. You can discover what these are by scanning a job ad for skills-focused keywords. 

A keyword is just a fancy way of saying the words that represent what a recruiter is looking for in an ideal candidate. That means the skills-based keywords you identify in a job ad reflect the skills a recruiter either requires or wishes an ideal candidate to possess.

Skills-based keywords can be divided into two types: 

1. Hard skills: Technically focused skills 
2. Soft skills: Interpersonal and communication focused skills

It is pivotal to feature both as doing so will communicate that you are a candidate who possesses a well-rounded skill set that is aligned with the recruiter’s expectations.

Upon identifying skill-based keywords in a given job ad, you’ll need to determine which ones match up to your skills set. For any that do, be sure to list around 6 to 8 of them in a dedicated “Skills” section. You should also feature them throughout your entire “Employment History” section. And don’t forget to highlight a few in your resume objective or summary!

To offer you an insight into which skills are prized among many recruiters, we’ve created a list of hard and soft skills we extracted directly from real-life store manager job ads. Take a look for yourself: 

Hard skills

• Facilitating, promoting, and supervising all aspects of customer service
• Driving overall store performance
• Creating a plan of succession for current staff members
• Conveying corporate communication down the management team and line-level staff
• Overseeing general merchandising and store operations
• Achieving sales and labor goals
• Recruiting, training, and supervising sales and support staff
• Driving omni-channel sales by utilizing all available tools and technology
• Proper cash handling
• Merchandising ordering and handling 
• Maintaining store appearance

Soft skills

• Organized
• Resourceful 
• Driven to satisfy customers
• Ability to foster a customer-focused environment
• Ability to be persuasive
• Ability to enable management and develop staff
• Team player
• Strong communication
• Interpersonal skills
• People skills

How to highlight your most important achievements

Your resume’s “Employment History” section shouldn’t just state what you did in each role...unless you want to make a recruiter fall asleep! Instead, it should showcase your most relevant and eye-grabbing achievements.

In order to highlight achievements that will captivate a recruiter, you’ll need to base your selection on your knowledge of what a recruiter actually cares about. Rest assured that this is far easier than it sounds! 

All you need to do is formulate your achievements around the keywords you find in a job ad. In addition to skills-based keywords (a topic which we explored in further detail above), keywords may represent an ideal candidate’s educational background, professional background, and any other attributes a recruiter is after.

To be clear, that means that each of your achievements should exemplify your competency in the keyword you’re targeting. Be sure to keep in mind that it’s not adequate to solely state what you achieved, as this example of an achievement for the keyword “motivate staff” shows:

• Implemented a training program that motivates staff to perform their best at all times.

You also need to expand on the result your actions brought about by quantifying your achievements with numbers and percentages. That is, you need to show:

The action + The positive result

The candidate above only addressed the first half of this formula (The action). So in order to address the second half (The positive result), they should quantify their achievement using a tangible example of the positive impact that their training program had: 

• Implemented a training program that led to a 40% increase in staff motivation based on employee feedback as well as a 200% increase in sales.

How to write a resume objective or summary

One of the keys to effective selling is to prime a customer for the sale. You’ll quickly lose a potential customer if you’re too forceful with your selling technique. Instead, you first need to lay down the foundations for the sale by taking a strategic approach that addresses their needs as well as their concerns. 

This is exactly the same approach you should take with your resume. If you bombard the recruiter with too much information too soon, there’s a good chance they’ll tune out.

That’s why it’s crucial to include a resume objective or resume summary in your resume. They both provide a recruiter with a convenient summary of who you are and what you bring to the table. You can even use it to strategically address some weaknesses in your application. 

So which should you use? Entry level candidates should use a resume objective while experienced candidates should use a resume summary. Remember, neither should be too long – 2 to 4 sentences is perfect. After all, the whole point is to provide a glimpse of the rest of your resume so you can prime them to perceive you as an attractive candidate from the get-go.      

To ensure the one you write charms a recruiter, keep reading to learn more:

Resume objective

If you’re worried that you won’t be taken seriously as a candidate given your lack of previous experience as a store manager, make sure to spend time crafting a captivating resume objective. A recruiter may indeed cast aside many entry-level candidates’ resumes because they didn’t take the time to sell why they’re worth taking a chance on. 

Your resume objective is your chance to directly communicate to a recruiter that you’re ready to step up to this new challenge. To do so, you’ll need to avoid common mistakes candidates make, like this store manager resume objective example shows:

• Retail sales associate aspires to be hired for the store manager position at Dazzling Jewels. While I don’t have any experience in this position, I have been working as a retail sales associate for a long time so I understand everything that goes into effectively managing a store. I want the chance to implement what I have learned so that I can improve Dazzling Jewels’ sales and staff performance.  

The problem with this resume objective is that it doesn’t frame the candidate as someone who is ready to take on the responsibilities involved with being a store manager. The candidate justifies that they “understand everything that goes into effectively managing a store” based solely on the fact that they’re an experienced retail sales associate. 

They also don’t provide any further explanation of what they’ve learned from their experience that they could apply as a store manager. Nor do they specify which relevant skills they’ve gained that would help them in this new position. 

Perhaps the difference doing these things make will be clearer once you see the following example of a strong store manager resume objective:

• Top-performing retail sales associate with 2 years of experience aspires to bring their enthusiasm for customer service and strong teamwork skills to the store manager position at Dazzling Jewels. My current manager has commended my ability to achieve sales goals, as exemplified by my $10,000+ sales last month. They have also commended the leadership skills I demonstrated when I helped to train staff. 

Even if a recruiter was initially looking for a more experienced candidate, they'd certainly pay attention to this inexperienced candidate after reading their resume objective. That’s because the candidate has used their resume objective to make their strong potential to thrive in the role crystal clear. 

What is particularly brilliant about it is that the candidate strategically worded it so that the recruiter wouldn’t instantly classify them as an inexperienced candidate. While the previous candidate took a deficit approach when representing their professional background by stating, “I don’t have any experience in this position,” this candidate instead chose to draw the recruiters attention to all of the positive attributes they offer even as a candidate who doesn’t have experience as a store manager. 

For example, they share that they are highly skilled in precisely the skills the recruiter is after. They mention their soft skills (enthusiasm, customer service, teamwork skills) as well their hard skills (ability to achieve sales goals and training staff). In fact, they even used a tangible example to further solidify their suitability for the role by sharing the fact that their manager commended them for their massive sales.

Resume summary

Consider your resume summary as an opportunity to tell a recruiter precisely why you’re a candidate who ticks all the boxes they’re looking for. It’s useful to keep in mind that there will be many candidates who also tick these boxes, so you need to ensure your resume summary showcases why your application is the strongest they’ll come across.

As such, you should avoid generalizations like the plague. You’ll know if your resume summary is too vague if it sounds like just about any store manager could have written it. Here’s an example of a store manager resume summary that sounds generic and bland:
  

• Store manager with 4+ years of experience who has a proven track record of being skilled at both managing staff and sales. I have made massive sales and my staff love my management style. I therefore know I would be a huge asset to your company.

This candidate failed to offer the recruiter any substantial insights into who they are as a sales manager. While they make a number of claims that they’re the right person for the job, it’s important to notice that they didn’t provide any specific information or evidence about why. For example, they stated they have a “proven track record of being skilled at both managing staff and sales,” but didn’t bother to show the recruiter any proof of it.

They also stated that they “made massive sales and my staff love my management style” but once again didn’t back these assertions up in any way. Consequently, it would be hard to find a recruiter who agreed with the candidate that they’d be “a huge asset” to the company.

In order to create a resume summary that turns heads, you’ll need to put your own stamp on it, just like this candidate did:

• Highly organized store manager with 4+ years of experience who has a proven track record of motivating and managing staff as well as increasing sales month-on-month. I received a Store Manager of the Month award in my current company not only because of my drive to satisfy customers and implement successful training programs, but also my record sales that were 3x the store average.

As you can see, this store manager resume summary example features specific information about the candidate’s unique competencies as well as their suitability for the role. For example, the candidate makes note of the specific skills that they excel in that are relevant to the role by highlighting both their soft skills (motivating and managing staff) and hard skills (increasing sales month-on-month).

Moreover, the candidate offered evidence to exemplify the assertions they made about their professional skills and experiences. For instance, the candidate puts a spotlight on their eye-catching award to exemplify that their drive to satisfy customers, implement successful training programs, and record sales is truly exceptional. A recruiter would also be impressed by the fact that they even quantified their sales by sharing that they were “3x the store average.” 

Pro tip: It may not seem like a big deal if you use the same resume objective or summary for each job you apply for. However, recruiters are trained to detect generic ones candidates use for all of their applications from a mile away!

How to write a store manager resume when you have little or no experience?

If you have little or no experience as a store manager but already have a solid work history in retail, don’t let this stop you from applying from an attractive job! Every store manager was once in the same position, so recruiters expect to receive applications from candidates just like you. To give your resume the best chance of being considered, keep the following tips in mind:   

• Emphasize your commitment to the profession: Recruiters highly regard candidates who make their commitment to working in retail clear. After all, many candidates don’t take their job in retail seriously and aren’t in it for the long haul. Show your commitment by highlighting the many years you’ve already worked in retail, the efforts you’ve made to develop and utilize your relevant skills, and the valuable contributions you’ve made in your current and previous retail jobs.

• Focus on any management or leadership skills and experiences: Just because you’re not a store manager yet doesn’t mean you’re lacking relevant skills and experiences to your name. If you’ve been working as a retail associate for a while, there’s a good chance that you’ve helped to train staff, mentored new employees, or assisted your manager with management duties. Maybe you’ve even stepped in for them when they’ve been sick. Be sure to shine a light on these experiences as well as the skills you drew on during them.

• Convey that you have the right attitude: As you’ll well be aware, attitude is everything in retail. Recruiters won’t take the risk of hiring someone who ticks every box except possessing the right attitude. What “right” means in this context will vary from job to job, so be sure to consult each job ad for clues. But generally speaking, recruiters will seek candidates who show that they are proactive, respectful, honest, determined, collaborative, and positive. 

How to make your resume stand out

If you want to make it immediately clear to a recruiter that your resume is worth taking seriously, you need to ensure your resume stands out. Here are some simple but powerful things you can do to catch a recruiter’s eye: 

• Always state the obvious when relevant to: There are certain qualities all store managers should have that may seem redundant to state on your resume. For example, being skilled in customer service or knowing how to manage a team. However, if a job ad’s keywords indicate that an ideal candidate must have these qualities, you must clearly incorporate them into your resume. Keep in mind that if you fail to do so, a recruiter won’t assume you have them – they’ll instead assume you don’t.

• Leverage power verbs: Every word on your resume has the potential to influence how a recruiter perceives you. In addition to selecting relevant keywords, you should also make a conscious effort to leverage power verbs at the start of each achievement in your “Employment History” section. Power verbs are verbs that sound far more impactful than regular verbs. For example, instead of using an overused verb like “Handled” you could use “Processed”. For more ideas, check out this resource of 100+ power verbs.

• Give every job application your all: If you’ve been on the job hunting grind for a while now, it’s natural to feel increasingly disheartened the more rejections you receive. However, one of the easiest ways to jeopardize your chances of getting hired is to stop putting effort into each application. To be clear, this includes using a generic resume. So if you want to get hired, make sure to put the time and effort into customizing your resume for each and every application. 

3. How to Quickly Make a Fantastic Resume Using Resumebuild.com’s Resume Builder Tool

If you’ve ever wished that your resume wasn’t so important to showing a recruiter that you’re a star store manager, you’re not alone. Most candidates find putting together their resume an arduous process that takes considerable time and effort. And sometimes even when you put in the time and effort, your resume still doesn’t quite hit the mark.

While we wish we could tell you differently, a resume is 100% essential to include in any store manager job application. There’s not a single recruiter out there who’s willing to consider your application without seeing your resume. Moreover, if it’s not up to scratch, they will have hundreds (or even thousands) of other resumes to take their pick of instead. 

It’s not all bad news, however. You’ll be pleased to hear that you don’t need to figure out how to create the perfect resume all by yourself. Our intuitive resume builder at Resumebuild.com is built for job seekers just like you who are looking for some expert support and guidance. In fact, countless job seekers have successfully landed jobs because of it.  

So what exactly is a resume builder? It’s a program that aims to help job seekers to quickly compile their resume from scratch. Unlike most resume builders you’ll find, our resume builder is designed with the needs of both job seekers and HR professionals in mind. 

To support you to get hired, we’ve made our resume builder completely user-friendly. You’ll be guided step-by-step to complete each important resume section so that you end up with a top store manager resume. Our resume builder won’t just support you to fill out the contents of your resume, either. It will provide you with plenty of HR-friendly resume templates that recruiters approve of. There are dozens of them, so you’ll be spoiled for choice!

If your goal is to finally get your ideal store manager job in 2020, use our tried-and-tested resume builder to make it happen.

There’s no getting around the fact that researchers aren’t always great at being concise. It’s easy to get used to academic writing style. In particular, writing like you have a captive audience you know are interested in all of the details of your work. However, when applying for a research position you can’t make that assumption.

Sure, there’s a good chance an expert will give your resume a look-through at some point, but your main audience is not likely to be an expert in your field. You need to carefully consider who that audience will be and ensure your resume is written for them.

Before you start worrying, this guide is designed to help you do just that. We’ll be pulling experience from researchers and professional resume writers to ensure you can balance both for the perfect researcher resume.

What this guide will show you:

• How to analyze researcher resume examples for inspiration
• What you need to know about ATS
• How to appeal to recruiters
• The best formatting rules to follow
• How to list your education more effectively
• What will make your achievements stand out
• The best qualifications to include
• How and why to begin with an objective or summary
• The best hard and soft skills to add
• How to target your resume for a specific position
• How to use a resume builder to get better results

Research resume template examples

Imagine writing a research proposal without ever having seen one. It’s anxiety provoking just thinking about it. But why then do so many researchers simply throw all of their information on a resume and start submitting it without studying what their resume could and should look like first?

To get better results, you need to take creating your resume seriously. That requires beginning by taking inspiration (and notes) on top quality researcher resume examples. Have a look at the samples we’ve provided below and note what you like and don’t like about them. Those notes can then serve as a starting point for your own resume. Also be sure to evaluate them from the perspective of someone looking to hire them and not as a fellow researcher.

[Examples]

How to write a researcher resume that will get your phone ringing

 For many researchers, submitting proposals and resumes for positions can get fairly routine. You may occasionally update your resume and tailor things for a specific position, but you’re likely doing it often enough that you’ve stopped thinking hard about the details.

Time to change that.

By writing a resume that clearly considers the person reading it and gets all the critical details right you’ll be increasing your chance of landing the research position you really want. Trust us, it’s worth the extra time and effort. But where should you start?

What you need to know about ATS

ATS stands for Applicant Tracking Systems. These are tools created by dozens of different companies which allow recruiters to sort through huge numbers of resumes at scale using artificial intelligence. While these systems are less likely to be used for researcher resumes, if you’re applying at a large company for, say a pharmaceutical research position, there’s a decent chance your resume will encounter one.

Unless you’re very familiar with how the organization you’re looking to work for hires researchers, you need to be ready for ATS. After all, most companies already use it and that number is only increasing. But what does being ATS ready entail? We’ve boiled it down to these three key points:

1. Only submit your resume as a .doc, .docx, or .pdf file. Anything else won’t be able to be easily read by an ATS and will almost certainly get rejected.
2. Use a resume builder to ensure your file is ATS-friendly. Sadly, not all of these files are created equal, the way the data is structured within the file has an enormous impact on whether an ATS can easily read it. But don’t worry, no need to get too technical, just be sure you use a resume builder which has been designed to produce ATS-optimized files.
3. Get smart with how you use keywords. Remember, ATS are smart but not that smart. They’re given a set of keywords, skills, experience, etc. to look for on your resume. If you’ve phrased your skills differently, the ATS might not realize what you mean. That’s why it’s critical to use the description of the researcher position as a guide for which keywords to include and how to phrase them. This maximizes the chance an ATS gives your resume the go-ahead to move on to a human reviewer.

How to give recruiters what they’re looking for

If you’ve ever been in an academic lecture where the lecturer clearly doesn’t care that the information and way they’re presenting aren’t connecting with the audience, you know what it feels like to be a recruiter. Most resumes don’t take a moment to think about the person reading them and what they need from the resume.

This means that by considering the person reading your resume, you can have a substantial leg up. Once again, this begins with the description of the research position. Instead of using a generic resume for each application, customize your resume to fit one position, making it easy for the person reading it to say “yes” to hiring you (more on how to do that later).

Also consider whether the person reading your resume is a specialist in your field or not. This should affect the language you use. It should be easy for them to read and understand everything on your resume. The easier it is, the more grateful they will be for the time and effort you’ve saved them.

How to format your resume

The next most important way to appeal to the reader of your resume is with proper formatting. The core rule is to put the most important information towards the top. This seems obvious but you’d be surprised how often it gets ignored. This is why your resume should begin with an objective or summary with the most important information about you as a researcher (more details on how to write those below).

Then, your content should be in reverse chronological order. But beyond those simple rules, you also need to consider the ideal length for a researcher resume. This will vary a lot based on your experience and the norms in your specific research area. However, there is one rule of thumb you should follow: make your resume as short as it can be. The person reading it doesn’t want their time wasted, so taking a critical look and cutting unnecessary sections and information will be a welcome change for them.

The best sections to consider including on a researcher resume

• Resume objective or summary
• Research experience
• Achievements
• Projects
• Education
• Hard skills
• Soft Skills

What makes a great researcher resume?

A great researcher resume is tailored. After all, a resume applying for a basic research position and one applying for a position researching something specific like the cure to a disease should be completely different. Getting this right begins with understanding the needs of the people who will be hiring you and showing that you can meet those needs.

What to include in your education section

Most resumes waste too much time on their education when it’s not relevant, but obviously a research resume is different. You’ll be expected to provide details. However, the way you present those details is still important.

MA in Political Science

The University of Virginia

2016-2018

-My thesis focused on how the 2009 financial crisis effected rural voters in Iowa, it found a .82 R value correlation between deceased economic activity and decreased voter participation.

-I worked on a variety of projects with professors

-I took courses focusing on rural politics

First, the choice is mentioning the R value is a bit odd. If your thesis is relevant enough to go into that detail it probably deserves its own mini section. Describing it in a single sentence while also going into details like that strikes and odd balance. The next two points listed are simply too vague and so they ultimately waste space and raise more questions than they answer. The incorrect use of “effect” vs “affect” also does not look good. This is one reason why it makes sense to have a friend (hopefully one in your field) review your resume before you send it off.

Let’s look at an improved version.

MA in Political Science

The University of Virginia

2016-2018

-Thesis title “The Economics of Rural Voter Participation, an Examination of the Effect of the 2009 Crisis on Rural Iowa.”

-Worked with Professor Alan Rao on his field research studying the relationship of Midwestern farmers to state and federal authorities.

-Focused on quantitative methods and statistical analysis

Here the thesis title is given, which if you’re only going to include a single point of information is generally the most important thing to mention. Otherwise the details focus on what this person did during their MA which might be directly relevant to research, who they worked with, what they worked on, and the skills they developed.

In general, the most recent and relevant a degree is to your work the more detail you can and should include. If you obtained your BS 15 years ago, you can mention it but it’s not worth going into too many details unless, for example, you worked with a famous researcher in your field.

How to highlight your most important achievements

Most academic resumes can be a bit vague about what they’ve achieved in their work. That’s why highlighting your achievements is one of the best ways to make your researcher resume stand out. Now these don’t just have to be achievements directly connected to the results of your previous research. After all, a researcher needs to be organized, diligent, a good communicator, etc. These are all skills you can emphasize by mentioning achievements.

Let’s look at an example to see what this might look like.

-Improved quantitative research methods while working as a marketing manager at Imbue Technologies.

While this achievement example is close to working, it ultimately doesn’t because it lacks any specifics. What does improving quantitative research methods mean? Were there any results from this? Let’s see another example where details make the difference.

-Developed a system for tracking and optimizing temperature, flow rate, and ratios for coffee as a manager at Hyperion Coffee, leading to a 14% increase in customer satisfaction with the coffee quality.

Chances are this person isn’t applying to be a coffee researcher, but this example shows a few key things. Number one, it demonstrates that they’re proactive and will look for ways to improve processes. Next, it shows a love of delving into the complex relationship between small details to get better overall results, another nice quality for most researchers. In other words, this workplace example is actually great to mention on a researcher resume.

What are ideal researcher job qualifications and how to list them correctly

In most cases, the main criteria you’ll need to focus on in your resume will be:

• Relevant degrees
• Knowledge of and experience with relevant research methodologies
• Experience in the research process
• Statistical methods
• Relevant technical software or tools
• Written and oral communication

Of course these will vary whether you’re a nuclear physicist or a political scientist. Whatever the most important qualifications are for your specific area of research, you need to ensure they are clearly visible on your resume. The person reading it shouldn’t be searching around to determine whether or not you meet the minimum criteria for the position.

How to list your skills more effectively

While listing the right skills is critical for getting past ATS, including concrete examples which demonstrate those skills is going to leave a far bigger impression on the humans reading your resume. While this isn’t as typical for most academics (frustrations with teaching evaluations aside), the role of a researcher is more results based and so this approach works well.

Data entry

Listing a skill like this isn’t inherently bad, but can be substantially improved with an example.

Data Entry

-Inputted over 10,000 data points as a research assistant with Professor Compton

Here a simple example means that the reader will get a far better sense of what that skill means and how confident they can be in it. This also demonstrates that you're going out of your way to make their job easier by eliminating the need for them to stop and consider what that skill means in your case.

The best hard skills to include

While the specific skills required will vary tremendously for different research roles, these are some of the core skills you’ll want to include if possible:

• Statistical methods
• Data entry
• Experience with relevant equipment used
• Database management
• IRB experience
• Writing grant applications

The best soft skills to include

• Curiosity
• Patience
• Working well under pressure
• Adaptability
• Passion for the field
• Commitment to and knowledge of ethical standards in the field

Why your resume should start with an objective or summary

Think of an objective or summary as a shortened version of an abstract. They should get across the most important information right from the start and help frame the more detailed information presented in the rest of the resume.

The difference between them is primarily about length. A resume objective should only be about one sentence and is ideal when you just want to list a few key bits of information about you and your goals. A resume summary is longer and better when there’s something you want to explain like your motivation for applying to this research position.

How to write a resume objective

Your objective needs to be clear, concise, and information dense. Let’s examine two examples to see what that should (and shouldn’t) look like.

I’m a recent graduate from UCLA’s Microbiology Masters program looking for a summer research position.

This example makes the obvious mistake of being written in the first person instead of the third, but more importantly it simply gives basic information which is easily available elsewhere on the resume. It’s relevant information, but this is extremely valuable space on your resume and should be used to greater effect.

Recent MS graduate looking to apply human microbiome research experience towards a position at AR Food Tech.

There you have a simple and straightforward resume objective. It gives the essential information about who you are and what you aim to achieve. The university you graduated from, for example, isn’t worth mentioning here, though the fact that this person is a recent graduate is.

How to write a resume summary

The thing to remember about a resume summary is that, like a research paper, just because it can be long doesn’t mean it should be. You still need to be careful and deliberate with the information you choose to include.

Experienced food chemistry researcher who has worked at industry-leading brands developing artificial colors, preservatives, flavor compounds, etc. Familiar with lab equipment and experimental techniques. Always looking for new ways to push teams to the cutting edge of food science.

What doesn’t work about this example is the information it chose to include and thereby emphasize along with its lack of detail. After reading this summary, instead of thinking “they sound impressive” a recruiter would likely be thinking “how many years of experience? Which industry-leading brands? Why did you mention familiarity with basics like lab equipment and experimental techniques?”

Your resume summary should create a strong impression and not simply raise more questions. So let’s see an improved version of this example to better understand what that should look like.

Food chemistry researcher with 8 years of lab experience with Nestle, Pepsico, and General Mills largely focused around preservatives and artificial flavor development. Looking to take industry-leading knowledge of experimental techniques and lab management to help Advanced Snax challenge industry leaders.

This example contains much of the same information, but frames it around a mission. That framing means that the recruiter won’t see hiring this person as simply getting another researcher, but as gaining a valuable team member to help the company achieve its goals. By framing their work in this large context, this resume summary will certainly stand out.

How to target your resume for each application

As we’ve alluded to throughout this guide, one of the most effective ways to improve a researcher resume is to target it to a specific position. Creating a single resume for yourself and sending it out to many researcher roles saves time and it shows. It does not make you look diligent, detail oriented, or that you care enough to put in the time and effort to do something right.

The best way to go about targeting your resume is to begin with the keyword technique mentioned in the beginning of this guide. Then, employ your research skills. Look at the organization which will be hiring you, what are their needs, their goals, what problems might they be having with their research? Once those have been identified, identify and emphasize how you can help them address those needs. After all, hiring another researcher is great, but hiring a person who can solve a specific problem or improve a bad process is far more enticing for most organizations.

Lastly, mentioning the organization or the role in your resume objective or summary works well to quickly indicate to the person reading it that you’ve taken the time to customize your resume, thereby making a stronger first impression.

How to make your resume stand out

Besides all of the tips mentioned so far in this guide, the final piece to the puzzle of a standout resume is the visual design. A clean modern design on your resume does a couple of things. First, it shows that you took the time to do a good job. Next, it’s easier on the eyes of the poor person who needs to review dozens of resumes for a researcher position. 

Finally, it communicates that you’re not content doing things the same way they’ve always been done. If you’re a young and ambitious researcher, it’s an aesthetic which reinforces your core qualities in subtle but powerful ways. But if you’re not a designer, how can you get that design?

The importance of using a resume builder

Obviously, you’ve got a lot on your plate when it comes to creating the best possible researcher resume. That’s why it makes sense to use the right tools to take some of that pressure off. A resume builder allows you to be confident that your resume will be ready for ATS, makes it easy to get a clean and modern look, and helps in organizing all the custom versions of your resume for various researcher roles.

Resumebuild.com’s powerful but intuitive builder has been designed from the ground up to help you with all of these needs and more. It takes care of the technical and design challenges so you can focus your attention where it will have the most impact: on the content.