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PILLARS OF A WINNING SALES RESUME

A resume is not only your calling card, but it is actually a marketing broadcast piece, meant to persuade the reader and to be read by a variety of people. Following are the pillars of developing a winning sales resume.

1. The first pillar of a successful resume is a targeted objective. Much as the thesis of a good term paper guides the rest of the essay, the targeted objective directs the reader in two ways: a. the obvious--a signpost for directing your resume to the appropriate hiring manager b. it indicates your focus as a professional.

2. The second pillar of successful resume is differentiation. Too many resumes focus clearly on rehashed job descriptions of previous positions. I'd venture to say that ALL of us are better than the sum total of the tasks, duties and chores we performed at prior jobs. Why are YOU uniquely qualified for this job?

How does one utilize differentiation on his/her resume? One way is the use of a field called: Qualifications; Capabilities; Skills. This field can list the qualities you believe make you uniquely qualified for the jobs you seek. For example, I don't know many successful sales people who aren't excellent time managers; establish and maintain rapport with clients and other company personnel; know the complete sales cycle: Research, initial calls, setting meetings; presentation; answering questions on their offering; rebutting concerns/objections; closing. Take stock of yourself and determine which areas of the sales cycle you're the best at and be sure to list them in your qualifications section.

3. Brevity is the third pillar of a successful resume. No one likes to read anymore and NO ONE likes to read resumes. So, it's vital you say the most you can about yourself, your qualifications, achievements and results in the least amount of space. Also, if possible, limit ALL negative info, reduce all neutral info and focus only on positive information on yourself for the best results. A useful guide is my Rule of Three's: Never provide more than three examples of anything, even achievements in a given space, as the less important ones will blend with the most important ones, giving less credence to the main points. Also, you want to give the reader only enough info to get him/her to pick up the phone to set an interview.

4. Professional experience, while vital, must be heavily weighted in performance, rather than in dry description of duties. Sales people more than any other employees are judged by results. Highlight your achievements using 'outcome statements', bulleted and boldfaced. Outcome statements are tightly constructed statements such as: Increased sales volumes in SW region by over 15% within one year OR, Named to President's Club three years in a row. These achievements (concrete detail) are the heart of a sales achiever's resume, not so much where he/she worked or for how long.

Another important piece of professional experience is telling specifically who your market is, at what level in your account base you call on and, if you have major account responsibility--who are your major accounts. Hiring managers hire based on prior relationships or 'book of business'. Once again, use caution, not telling EVERYTHING you did for your previous company. Give the reader just enough to tantalize them into calling you in for an interview.

5. Pillar five deals with what NOT to place in or on your resume: Personal information, hobbies, discriminatory info (Divorced, ethnic background, Roman Catholic, three elementary school children at home). This type of information used to be popular in the 60's, but isn't germane in today's competitive market. In fact, I can't think of ANY positive outcome from including this type of info, it can only be used to screen you out, not into a desired job.

6. The Education field is one of the most abused and misunderstood pieces of a resume. NEVER misrepresent degrees! More people fudge on their education than in any other place on their resume. Second, there's no need to put down high school graduation info. It's assumed if you're applying for a professional position, that you've graduated from high school. Also, you're either college degreed or not. Don't fall into the trap of listing every course you've had in community college with the hope a company will 'apply' those courses in lieu of a Bachelor's or Doctorate degree. HR people and hiring managers have seen through that little smoke screen for years. Less is more, when reporting Education. Also, list any post-college sales training you've had, with whom and when.

In summary, a resume is a broadcast piece, much like a marketing brochure for a product or service. Keep it brief, loaded with qualifications, specific achievement detail and limit personal or neutral information. Also, if you're not confident you can write a dynamite resume yourself, consult a professional. After all, whether you're the sales/marketing manager of your company or not, would you personally design the graphics for your company's brochure? Likely not. Concentrate on a focused objective, limit use of examples to no more than three in any one field and you'll notice a striking increase in interview calls!