25 sales associates skills for your resume

Monster scanned through its job listings and found these keywords and phrases to be the most popular for retail sales associate jobs.

By Liz Torres, Monster staff

Sales associate jobs may not require a formal education, but retailers are on the search for job seekers with strong skill sets in communication, math, and technology. As important as it is to sell your skills for selling products, it's crucial to first sell your skills on your resume and in the interview. So what are retailers looking for? What will help give you an edge?

If you have previous retail experience, you want to mention any accomplishments that contributed to your company's success, whether it's an award, implementing sales strategies, or documenting sales revenue. However, there are also keywords retailers are scanning for that are must-haves if you want to get a call back.

Monster scanned through its job listings and found these keywords and phrases to be the most popular on retailers' sales associate job postings. Here are 25 keywords and phrases you should plug into your sales associate resume before you upload it to Monster.

Resume keywords:

  1. Customer service
  2. Tech savvy
  3. Bilingual
  4. Communication skills
  5. Math
  6. Generating sales
  7. Excellent product knowledge
  8. Merchandising
  9. Housekeeping
  10. Inventory
  11. Process transaction through POS terminal
  12. Promoting
  13. Detail-oriented
  14. Exceed store, individual sales and performance goals
  15. Comply with store security, safety, and loss prevention guidelines
  16. Time management
  17. Team player
  18. Excellent verbal and written communication skills
  19. Interpersonal skills
  20. Maximize business opportunities
  21. Problem solving
  22. Passion
  23. Enthusiasm
  24. Energy
  25. Cashier experience

Retail resume tips

Keywords are one of the most important elements of a strong resume for retail jobs. But they won't do you much good if they're not properly applied to the rest of your resume. Could you use some help putting it all together? Get a free resume evaluation today from the experts at Monster's Resume Writing Service. You'll get detailed feedback in two business days, including a review of your resume's appearance and content, and a prediction of a recruiter's first impression. Remember: Appearance is important in retail, just as it is in your job search.