Take some time and start listing everything you can think of that another employer might find interesting and useful about you. Do not stop at a page or two, you are creating a list from which you can pick the best information for each and every sales role.
Skills - What are they? How good are you? Have you demonstrated an ability to develop new skills? How flexible or transferable are they?
Knowledge & Experience - What specialist knowledge and experience do you have? Do know about, products, markets, equipment, industries and processes? Identify them and use them.
Achievements - Achievements are the lifeblood of sales. What have you achieved in your working / educational life? Don’t just think about what you have achieved but what it can mean to an employer. Did you run the tuck shop at school? This demonstrates early responsibility, entrepreneurial flair, team leadership & management, and trust. This about all your achievements, they mean more than you think at first glance. Do not forget to be specific, if you have smashed targets, be specific.
Personal Qualities - What makes you, you? Are you analytical, forceful, dedicated, focussed, excitable, personable? List them all, you never know what might be important. Keep it real though, start listing thing you would like to be and you may get an interview, but will fail to live up to expectations when any of these are tested. I have interviewed many a shy and retiring potential sales person!
Work History - What have you done? Think about each role you have had and list the components of that role. Employer name, job title, length of time served, responsibilities, activities etc.
Once you have listed everything you can think of you need to review each point, one at a time, and ask one question. Can I demonstrate or prove this statement? Delete all of those for which the answer is negative, you cannot afford to waste space on something you cannot effectively convince an employer you either posses, are capable of or have achieved.
The job description and advertisement / person specification will give you lots of hints relating to the picture of the ideal candidate. If possible match their requirements with the information and language you use in your sales CV, covering letter or application form. This will ensure no matter who reads your application they will be able to identify your relevance to the role.
You should also look to get as much information as you can about the your potential employer. Look on national press or business sites like www.Ft.com, or www.timesonline.co.uk . They will give you an insight into recent newsworthy events about the organisation. Take a look on their web site, search for them the main search engines, look for their competition, look on trade specific sites. All the information you gain will help create a really strong application or CV, and it will also help you prepare for the interview.
We realise all this might sound like a lot of work, but if you are prepared to put in the effort in, you are more likely to succeed. Once you have this information you are ready to start selection the information you need to include in you CV if it is to be given serious consideration.
Highlight the skills, knowledge, experience, and personal qualities they are looking for. Now all you need to do is match their needs against you. Use you full employment summary and start to match their list of needs against what you have to offer. Space on your CV will be limited so choose the ones that match the needs of your potential future employer.
Take a look at you achievements. Can you sell? Can you Prove it? Which of these achievements best represents what you have to offer in relation to their needs? You may have lots of achievements that sound very impressive, but if they are not relevant, they waste valuable CV space. Don’t worry if the information you have selected looks like it will be too much, you are likely to need more information for a covering letter.
You are now ready to start thinking about how you will construct your CV. You have the basic building blocks, the information about you that is relevant to the role and the employer, now all you need are the plans so you can start construction. This means considering the Look and Feel of your Sales CV and the relevant Sections .
Other areas in this section
The I Can Sell Zones