Sales CV Example

You could be a fresh university graduate, an experienced professional making a career change, or a salesperson seeking better opportunities. No matter why you’re applying for a new role, you’ll need a professional sales CV to land an interview.

We’ve outlined three essential tips to help you write a CV for a sales professional that stands out:

1. Tailor your sales CV to the job post

Go through the details of each sales job ad carefully so you can see what prospective employers are looking for and whether your skills are a match.

Are they looking for a results-driven individual with several years of experience? Does the company need someone with specific skills in selling high-value items? Tailoring your CV to the employer’s needs is the quickest way to grab their attention.

For example, the job ad might specify that they’re looking for a sales agent with a persuasive selling approach. Integrating your persuasive personality using descriptive examples in your CV’s skills section or work bullet points will catch a recruiter’s attention.

Also, mention any responsibilities you held in your former workplace or at university that are relevant to the advertised sales job.

For instance, listing your position as the chairperson of your school’s business club demonstrates your management and teamwork skills.

Or maybe you built the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system for your former employer or improved the operational systems. Explain how you achieved your goals while keeping the job description in mind.

2. Highlight your sales CV skills

No two sales agents go about closing a deal in exactly the same way — and the best agents don’t close a deal the same way twice.

Your skills in this industry set you apart from the competition, and the recruiter will be looking for the right combination of skills for your CV that set you apart as a great sales candidate.

Your skills can be divided into hard and soft skills. Hard skills, or technical skills, are specific, measurable abilities that relate to your role in the sales industry.

Whether related to your marketing qualities or specific understanding of the employer’s niche, the hard skills you present on your sales CV will make you look knowledgeable and capable of doing excellent work as a salesperson.

So increase your chances of getting to the interview stage by highlighting some of these technical skills examples on your sales CV:

Soft skills are the people skills that help you relate to others and put your technical skills into practice. Although soft skills are hard to quantify, they’re essential to your role as a sales agent because they affect how you relay information concerning your products and services to your customers.

Here are more soft skills for your sales CV:

While hard skills can be conveyed concisely in a list, demonstrating your soft skills in the work experience section of your CV for a sales professional helps your employer see how these skills contributed to your achievements.

Here are two examples from the CV of an experienced sales rep:

3. Include sales-related keywords in your CV

Employers often don’t have time to go through each applicant’s CV by hand, so many are using an applicant tracking system (ATS) to filter out applicants that don’t fit their needs. Even if your sales CV is beautifully put together, it won’t get read by your future employer if you don’t pass through the ATS system first.

The ATS looks for specific keywords related to the role you’re applying for. Keywords are words and phrases that relate to your experience, skills, and education.

But, in the same way that listing all your product’s selling points to a prospect can feel like a hard sell, stuffing keywords into your CV can be off-putting to the recruiter once your CV passes the ATS test.

For the best effect, ensure the keywords you use feel natural and flow well throughout your sales CV.

Here are the best keywords to include in your sales agent CV:

As well as including sales-related keywords in your CV, ensure you mention specific keywords related to the company you want to work with.

For instance, if the job post is seeking someone who is a communicator and results-oriented, place these keywords in your CV. If the job is specifically related to cold calls or referrals, make sure you include those terms in your CV.