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Resume Tips for Sales Pro's

You're a natural at selling products or services for your employer, so why is it so hard to sell yourself on your resume? Don't worry, because you can turn your drab resume into a powerful sales tool.

Start with a High-Impact Sales Pitch in a Summary Statement
Sales resumes need to be results-oriented, emphasizing how you contributed to your employer's bottom line. Start by creating a Profile or Career Summary section that highlights your sales capabilities and value to potential employers. Include the main reasons why an employer should call you for an interview and clearly show your areas of expertise and industry knowledge. For example, if you are pursuing a pharmaceutical sales representative position, those keywords and your supporting knowledge should be in the profile. This section is perfect for exhibiting the drive, energy and enthusiasm that is so important in the sales profession.

Turn Your Job Descriptions into Action-Packed Achievements
It is very important that your Professional Experience section shows a track record of sales achievements. Under each employer/position, develop a brief paragraph that highlights your responsibilities (such as territory, budget, supervisory responsibilities, etc.). Then provide a bulleted list of your top achievements; make sure they are quantifiable and meaningful to someone outside of your company. To create powerful accomplishments, go beyond stating your work's results -- describe how you achieved such excellent results.

Take a look at these examples of powerful achievement statements:
1.) Built sales organization from ground zero, conceptualizing and realizing strategic plan that generated $1 million in software and consulting revenue within one year. Sustained strong revenue gains despite a fiercely competitive and declining market.

2.) Cultivated relationships with customer base in the semiconductor industry, reestablishing company, products and services, as well as uncovering new customer needs.

3.) Achieved a 100 percent reference customer base of nine semiconductor fabrication clients who had previously been dissatisfied with company's customer service. Identified problems and worked closely with operations managers to regain their confidence and develop win-win solutions.

These questions will get you thinking about your achievements:

	How did the company benefit from your sales expertise?
	How did you perform in comparison with your peers?
	What were your specific sales figures ($ amount if the information is not confidential or a percentage increase)?
	How well have you met your quota or other sales expectations?
	Did you win any sales awards?
	Were you rewarded with a new territory because of your performance?
	Did you land any difficult accounts? Did you salvage any accounts that had previously been languishing?
	Were you involved in product development or a new product launch?
	Did you overcome serious obstacles, such as selling in poor market conditions, overcoming objections or breaking into a new market?
	Did you establish a sales training program or teach other sales pros to improve their performance?
	Did your dedication to customer service, impeccable follow through and support lead to repeat business or a high number of referrals?
	Have you led contract negotiations that resulted in a positive business deal?
	Do you negotiate with vendors or suppliers to secure favorable pricing?
	Have you written for any industry publications or spoken at any events or conferences?
	Did you serve on any committees or boards or participate in special projects?

The Confidentiality Factor
Keep in mind that many companies consider their sales strategies and actual performance confidential information. The threat of competitors finding out about company success strategies is very real, so be sure not to include any information that would compromise your current or past employers' confidential information. You can certainly include information that is available to the general public (for example, stats found in an annual report or on the company Web site).

Keywords/Buzzwords
sales representative, sales professional, district sales manager, regional sales manager, VP of sales, account executive, account manager, sales executive, sales engineer, director of sales, sales support manager, territory sales representative, territory manager, channel sales manager, manufacturer representative, technical sales, medical sales representative, pharmaceutical sales, e-business sales manager, investment representative, IT sales
solution selling, relationship building, relationship selling, relationship sales, customer service, customer relations, client relations, territory expansion, consultative sales, product marketing, negotiating and closing, channel sales, B2B/B2C, lead generation, OEMs, VARs, communication skills, new business development, sales presentations, PowerPoint, meeting and exceeding sales quotas, outside sales, inside sales, sales expansion

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