Action Words for Sales Resume
If you are looking for a sales job, then you will need some action words for sales resumes. Here are some to help you out and some tips on making your resume strong and persuasive.
When writing anything, you have to decide whether to use an active voice or a passive voice. The active voice, using action words, is the choice to make when putting together a resume. First, lets see the difference between active and passive voice. Look at these two sentences written in both voices:
- Larry is driving the car. (active) The car is being driven by Larry. (passive)
- She baked a cake. (active) A cake was baked by her. (passive)
See how the active sentences are shorter and more interesting. Passive sentences are longer, and harder to understand. Active sentences are more direct, precise, and concise. Passive sentences can be vague and the reader has to work harder to read them. Also, the active voice in writing adds strength and impact to your writing and that is how you want a resume to be.
Each line in a resume needs to start with a strong action word. Here are some action words for sales resumes that have been hand-picked just for you:
achieved, acted, analyzed, assisted, budgeted, collaborated, conducted, coordinated, created, defined, designed, determined, developed, distributed, ensured, established, exhibited, generated, implemented, increased, launched, led, maintained, managed, met, originated, planned, prepared, processed, promoted, reorganized, represented, reviewed, trained, and worked.
Making Your Resume Great
Now that you have some action words for sales resumes, here are some tips on putting it together so it shows your strengths, skills, and training in the best light.
You should not use contractions in your resume or the words “I” or “me”. If you use abbreviations or acronyms, you might consider explaining them unless they are well known. Of course, don’t forget your action words.
A resume should be one page in length unless you have over 10 years of work experience. Using the active voice will make the sentences shorter, so if the resume is too long, check for that. Also, you could probably cut a few words here or there in your descriptions.
Honesty really is the best policy. You need to explain any time between jobs and do not lie about experience or education. You may make it through an interview, but the company will probably check you out before hiring you.
This next step will take a bit of time but will be worth it. If you are sending your resume out to different companies for various positions, you need to make your resume fit the job description. This will only mean rewriting some of the job responsibility descriptions to emphasize certain skills or experience.
A cover letter is a good idea as it looks professional. Also make sure the paper and envelope are good quality and the color should be either white or ivory. Your font type needs to be easy to read and the size needs to between 10 and 14, depending on the font you pick.
If your email is silly or possibly offensive, go online and get one for business purposes. Sometimes little things are all that separate two candidates for a job.
Make sure you proof read because spell check can’t catch everything, especially words like to, too, and two. Sometimes a typo makes a new word, so you need to read over your resume carefully.
One other thing to think about. If your resume is going to a big company or high tech company, they may scan it to get it into their system. If this is the case, do not use italics or underlining. This is another reason to use an easy-to-read font. When you send it off, do not fold or staple it.