Retail Resume Rules for Candidates
1. Job Description Advice
Individuals working in retail are deservedly described as the ‘’face of the business or brand’’ and found in a variety of places including outlet stores, department stores, warehouse stores, general merchandise stores, discount stores, specialty stores, supermarkets, farmers markets, malls and dollar stores. Your job duties should show recruiters that you can provide superb customer service, handle multiple client requests simultaneously, provide information on products being sold, and deal with complaints in a diplomatic manner. Emphasize your value as the link between the establishment’s products or services and the customer’s buying decision. Hiring managers would also be keen to know whether you have experience stationed at the till and payment section, or on the shop floor. In a more senior position, the majority of your activities could be as a ‘’back office’’ employee, doing financial reconciliations, doing stocktaking, ordering new products, and tracking product returns.
2. Quantify your Resume
Add numerical values to your job duty explanation by providing details on the goals, targets, and KPI’s you need to hit and whether you have met or exceeded them. You could mention your average sales made during a month, how many incoming customers you assist in an average day, or how quickly you can perform a full stock stake for the section assigned to you.
3. Systems Experience
The retail industry is heavily dependent on the automation of reports, inventory management, cash ups, sales transactions, and email correspondence. Include a table with the top applications and software systems that you can work with. Examples are Gmail, Outlook, Skype, SalesForce, Hubspot, Copper, Freshsales, Pipedrive, SAP, Accpac, Zoho, TradeGecko, iVend, and Sage.
4. Ringfencing Social Media Profiles
Are you actively applying for jobs? Beware that recruiters and hiring managers will be stalking you on social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram) if they are impressed with your resume! To prevent them from viewing sensitive content, set your social media presence to private, except LinkedIn, where you should have a professional profile created already.
5. Salary Bands in Retail
Salaries are between $12/hour to $20/hour, and average to $14 per hour. Per year, that is $23k to $36k. Be realistic regarding your salary expectations and be prepared to forgo an immediate salary increase at a new company for long-term career growth at your current place of work.
6. Retail Skills that should appear on your Resume
Product Knowledge & Demonstration, Customer Service, Consumer Advice, Stock Taking, Pricing & Tagging, Sales Transactions, Product Defects, Product Returns, Arranging Deliveries.
