Working in Retail: The Ultimate Guide to Sales Associate Jobs

Sales associates help customers in stores find the products they need and process customer payments. The job is multifaceted and involves face-to-face contact with other people, making it a great choice if you love to interact with others.

Another advantage of sales associate roles is that they don’t require any formal education credentials. While basic math, reading, and writing skills are helpful, most of the training is done on the job and can be completed in just a few weeks or months.

Still, that doesn’t mean you can walk into any store and score a sales job. It’s essential to present a professional appearance and provide a resume, in addition to a cover letter, highlighting any qualities and skills that will make you a fantastic sales associate.

This guide gives you all the information you need to land the job, explaining what a sales associate does, what skills you need for the job, and how to find the right position. Finally, we’ll share some sales associate resume examples that you can use as a template to create your own sales associate resume.

Sales associates are the primary point of contact for customers in the retail environment. The job entails a lot of customer service; for example, greeting people when they enter and processing payments. Throughout these interactions, sales associates must project a polite, professional, and positive image. They are the face of the store.

Sales associates are also responsible for proactively increasing sales; for instance, by consistently upselling customers and encouraging them to spend more. If a customer buys a cellphone, for example, a skilled sales associate may convince them to take advantage of a deal that gives them a second phone for a family member at a reduced rate.

In many cases, sales associates are responsible for inventory. They must keep a record of how much merchandise is in the front of the store and the stockroom, so store managers know when it’s time to replenish stock. Depending on the employer, the sales associate may need to use a digital data management system to input inventory figures.

Sales associates may also have to handle basic financial tasks, like tallying sales numbers at the end of the shift and reporting them to the sales manager. This may also involve counting money from the cash register and digital credit card receipts, as well as organizing and securely storing all profits according to the store’s in-house system.

Finally, sales associates may support marketing initiatives designed to boost sales. For example, stores routinely change their displays and signage to reflect seasonal specials or holiday deals. Sales associates may be asked to help change such displays. They may also be responsible for maintaining displays —ensuring they are kept clean and organized.

As you can see, sales associates wear many hats. The job requires you to perform a diversity of tasks. A single day on the job could involve helping customers, taking inventory, and changing a sales display. The work’s varied nature keeps it from getting boring and is one of the many reasons you might consider a sales associate job.

There are no formal education requirements to work as a sales associate. Some employers may require a high school diploma or GED, but this isn’t necessarily a must-have. You should demonstrate basic writing, reading, and math skills, which is essential for tasks like taking inventory.

So, just what do employers look for in their sales associates? Here are some more hard and soft skills you should possess if you want to excel in this role:

• Professional demeanor, as the sales associate is a representative of the business for which they work
• Fantastic communication skills, allowing for precise and polite conversations with customers and fellow team members
• Creative thinking; for example, identifying ways to improve the customer experience and potentially helping boost sales
• Excellent sales skills and product knowledge, like being persuasive, but not pushy if trying to upsell products or services to customers
• Good people skills and the ability to anticipate customer needs
• Ability to merchandise and manage sales
• Punctuality and excellent time management
• Ability to multitask
• Ability to work independently with minimal direct supervision
• Basic math, reading, and writing skills
• Experience with digital tools, like point of sale (POS) systems
• Problem-solving and troubleshooting skills

Finally, personality is a significant consideration for employers hiring sales associates. A salesperson needs to be friendly, outgoing, and communicative. Something as simple as a welcoming smile makes a big difference in whether a customer feels welcomed in a store — and whether they will stay around to buy something.

If you reviewed the sales associate tasks and recommended skills above and think this job is for you, you’re probably wondering how to land this type of gig. Before you start the application process, there are a few points to consider. Ask yourself these questions to help narrow down your search for sales associate positions:

• Do you have a preferred industry you’d like to work in? If you’re passionate about fashion, for example, you might enjoy working in a clothing store.
• How much do you want to work? Are you seeking part- or full-time employment, or are you merely looking for a temporary gig? Many retailers hire extra sales associates over the holidays when demand is high, which is also an option.
• Is location a significant factor? For example, if you don’t have a car and rely on public transportation to get around, this will limit your opportunities.

With these questions answered, you can start scoping out opportunities. One option is to go directly to retailers. If you have a target industry in mind that you’d like to get into, whether it’s food, fashion, or technology, this is probably your best bet. You can apply directly to businesses in fields that are of interest to you.

Another option is to use online databases like Joblist. Searching online allows you to quickly narrow down a location. Many internet-driven job search engines also let you specify whether you want to work part- or full-time, allowing you to streamline your search further.

Finally, if you’ve decided that you want to try a temporary job first to see if a sales associate role is for you, you can try applying through an agency. Temp agencies coordinate short-term staffing needs, for example, around the holidays. Here’s how it works: you simply submit your resume to the agency and they match you with a fitting prospective employer!

Whichever one of these options you choose, you will need to have a resume prepared before applying. A well-organized, clearly formatted, information-packed resume gives potential employers the facts they need to determine whether you will be a good fit for the job. The next section explains how to create one.

If you’ve never created a resume before, it can be a daunting task. Our definitive resume guide can help make the process clearer. Here is a step-by-step guide for building your sales associate resume, followed by some examples.

Read the job description and make a note of what skills and credentials are required. This allows you to ensure that you have the necessary qualifications. You can then tailor your resume accordingly to ensure it highlights any skills the employer is looking for, to improve your odds of landing the job.

Once you’ve read the job description, write down a list of all relevant skills and credentials you have. Focus on demonstrable skills. For instance, if you have excellent math skills, back this up by highlighting your A+ math grades in school. If you have great communication skills, underscore your customer service skills from your years of experience as a telephone-based customer service representative.

There are three main formats to use when styling a professional resume:

• Chronological. A chronological resume details your work history in reverse order; the most recent experience appears at the top, followed by less current roles. After this, add a skills, credentials, and education section. You might also include relevant information like awards or honors.
• Functional. A functional resume offers an overview of your qualifications first, followed by separate sections for relevant skills, work history, education, other credentials, and, finally, awards or other relevant details.
• Combination. A combination resume brings together the chronological and functional formats. It usually starts with a brief professional profile, followed by a chronological overview of your work experience. Separate sections for skills, education, awards, and any other relevant credentials follow.

The right format depends on your profile. If you’ve never worked as a sales associate, you might opt for a functional layout that highlights your abilities instead of your lack of on-the-job experience. However, if you have some sales associate roles under your belt, a chronological format that puts your expertise foremost is smart.

Once you’ve read the job description, made a list of relevant skills and experience. Then, after deciding on your format, you can start creating your actual resume. Include a header with your name and relevant contact details, such as the best phone number and email to reach you. Then, you can fill in the remaining information according to your chosen format.

Don’t use fancy colors or fonts. A basic font, like Times New Roman or Arial, in 12-point size is ideal. For section subheadings, use the same font, but make it two to four points larger. Leave a 1-inch resume margin on all edges and use single-line spacing throughout. If you’re submitting the resume digitally, save it in a PDF format.

Here are two primary examples of different sales associate resumes you can reference or use as a template to help guide your resume creation process.

This resume example is made for an individual with extensive experience as a sales associate. It underscores relevant expertise, credentials, and awards. It also includes added skills that might be relevant. Since many people in the U.S. speak Spanish, for instance, hiring a sales associate who is bilingual in English and Spanish can be useful.

Why does this resume work? It’s well-organized and sufficiently detailed without providing extraneous or unnecessary information. Keep in mind that hiring managers may sift through hundreds of resumes, so it’s best to keep yours short and easy to read, with bullet points. It also provides concrete facts and figures (e.g., a “Junior Sales Associate of the Year” award and meeting a 100% sales quota).

Here is an example of a functional resume created for a person with less experience. Note how it moves the work experience further down and starts with relevant skills and credentials to catch a potential employer’s attention.

Why does this resume work? Again, it’s well-organized and detailed without being too lengthy. Although the applicant doesn’t have sales-specific experience, they highlight other traits still relevant to sales — being voted favorite waitress reflects a likable personality, while handling in-house and carry-out orders shows an ability to multitask.

Also, note that this individual doesn’t include any “other credentials.” If you don’t have something to fill a section with, leave it out. This reads better than putting in a section header and leaving the section blank, which draws the reader’s attention to the fact that something is missing.

At Joblist, we aim to take the stress out of job hunting. Now that you have a retails sales associate resume, try creating a cover letter to go along with it. Check out our search page to view job openings compiled from across the United States! Additionally, our collection of articles and guides gives you the knowledge you need to take the next step in your career development.