B2B Sales Resume Example

After reading this article, you'll feel confident creating a B2B sales resume that effectively showcases your relevant skills and experience. The guide will show you practical examples of how to structure your resume to show off your best and most relevant skills and career achievements. It will also show you how to tailor your resume according to the job description and your unique skill set. Read on to learn the tips Jobseeker careers experts recommend as the best for your B2B sales resume.

What to include in a B2B sales resume

The key sections to include in a B2B sales resume are similar to those for any role or profession. If you're lacking relevant work experience, you might choose to add sections that showcase your skill set earlier than in a traditional resume layout. These sections might include projects, education, hobbies and interests, skills and other optional sections.

Your resume layout and structure may differ depending on your experience levels, but make sure your resume includes the following:

Resume Header

In your B2B sales resume header, list your name, email address, phone number and address or location. You can also add your LinkedIn, if you have one, to help employers better understand your work history and skills. While in some countries, you might include additional personal information or a photo, these aren't necessary. Make your resume header clear, concise and as brief and compact as possible. Consider different layouts that spread the information horizontally across the page rather than using a different line for each piece of information.

Make sure the email address you list in your header is professional-looking and doesn't contain any inappropriate content such as nicknames or unsuitable language. Opt for an email address based on your name or profession, or a combination of both. Finally, check your contact details before sending your resume, to ensure everything's up-to-date.

Resume Summary

The next section is the resume summary. The section might also be called 'resume objective' or 'personal profile'. This is a brief introduction to you, your key skills and your career achievements and ambitions. While a resume summary focuses on your career achievements and experience, a resume objective typically focuses on your ambitions for the future. Always make sure your summary reflects the job description and highlights some of the key skills required for B2B sales specialist roles.

Alternatively, write a paragraph that concentrates on your career objectives and how this role fits with your wider ambitions and progression.

A good resume summary reflects the job description and highlights some of the key skills required for B2B sales specialist roles, while leaving the reader with an impression of your unique qualities and strengths. The most effective resume summaries also provide evidence to back up the claims made in them. The graphic below showcases some good examples of what to include in your B2B sales resume summary.

Alternatively, a poor resume summary would include bland, generic information that does little to prove your suitability for the role, while failing to provide any useful insights on you as a person or as a candidate. The visual above includes some examples of what not to do with your B2B sales resume summary

Hard and Soft Skills

The skills section is one of the main ways to show employers you've got the skills required for B2B sales specialist roles. Whether your skills include lead generation techniques, problem-solving capabilities or any other useful skills for the role, you'll want to list them here. Once more, review the job description and pick out any key B2B sales specialist skills listed that match yours. Focus on these skills and any other key transferable skills that make you a strong candidate for the job.

How to include hard skills on your B2B sales resume

Hard skills are the key technical skills required for B2B sales specialist positions. They include specific industry knowledge and abilities that you could learn on the job, or through a specialist qualification. Furthermore, it's important to show these skills in a B2B sales resume as they provide a strong indication of your experience in the sector. Add up to five key hard skills that show you're an ideal candidate for the role. It can also be beneficial to add context to each skill, showing how you've used it to positive effect in your career to date.

For an effective resume hard skills section, focus on the technical skills that are most essential in the job description, and that match your specific expertise. Some examples of the best hard skills for a B2B sales resume are listed below.

Soft skills on your B2B sales resume

Soft skills are your transferable skills and personal qualities that make you a good match for a B2B sales specialist position and the organization. Soft skills tend to be more universal than hard skills, and can often apply to multiple jobs and industries. In fact, as technology develops, soft skills are growing in importance for recruiters and employers, so be sure to add several of these to your resume. In this section, add four of five transferable skills that match the job description.

A good soft skills section would include skills that match the job description, and also reflect your key strengths and qualities. See the graphic below for an indication of what to include in a strong soft skills section for a B2B sales resume.

Education and Qualifications

In this section list any educational qualifications or degrees that are relevant to B2B sales specialist roles.

Typically, working as a B2B sales specialist requires a university or college degree, which you'll need to list on your resume. If you're working in this sector, it's usually a good idea to highlight your Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in Marketing degree or other relevant qualifications. Focus on qualifications that showcase your crm software proficiency or lead generation techniques.

Include any qualifications relevant to the role. For each, add the name and level of the award, the institution name, its location and your dates of study. You could also add one or two bullet points to draw attention to your grades if they were particularly good, as well as any specialist subjects you studied. This will help the hiring manager understand your knowledge and special skills better.

Membership or leadership of any societies, clubs or causes while studying can also make a positive impression on hiring managers. Consider adding these to your education section for more insight into how you used your time as a student.

Certifications

Your certifications section is the place to mention any relevant professional B2B sales specialist certifications, licenses or qualifications. These might be licenses that show you're qualified to operate certain equipment, or certifications that give you the edge over candidates with otherwise similar career history. Therefore, add any professional licenses or certifications, along with valid dates that show they're still valid.

Below you can find several examples of certifications for a B2B sales specialist resume:

Work Experience

Next, list your relevant employment history and any key achievements that show you're suitable for a B2B sales specialist position. For each entry, list the job title, the name of the employer, its location and the dates you worked there. Add each job in reverse-chronological order, starting with your current or most recent role.

Add some bullet points under each job entry, explaining your achievements in the role, so the reader can see how you contributed towards success for the company. Provide evidence of your impact and make sure each point addresses a requirement listed in the job description.

A good work experience section pulls the reader in with clear examples of where you've put the skills necessary for the job into good use in your career to date. This typically includes evidence of how your skills and activities contributed to positive outcomes for the organization. See the examples below for some ideas of what a great resume work experience looks like.

In the graphic above, you'll see some examples of less effective resume work experience sections. A bad resume work experience section might fail to address skills and achievements that relate directly to the job description. Falling back on clichés, vague descriptions and basic responsibilities, rather than showing the impact you made, is likely to disengage the reader.

Optional Information

To provide further information on your suitability for the role, you could add some optional sections to a B2B sales specialist resume. Choose any optional sections that showcase essential or desirable skills or experience for B2B sales specialist jobs.

Hobbies and Interests

Adding your hobbies and interests is a legitimate way of showing off your skills and personal qualities. Consider listing hobbies and interests to help your resume stand out, or to provide the employer with some insight into your personality and wider interests. They're perfect for candidates who might lack genuine work experience as a B2B sales specialist. Don't include hobbies and interests in your resume unless they showcase a specific interest or aspect of your personality. You'll want them to add something to your application that you can't add elsewhere.

Volunteering

Adding voluntary roles can be a useful way of showing relevant experience and skills for B2B sales specialist roles beyond your main employment history. List your volunteer job title, the organization you volunteered for, its location and the dates of your involvement, alongside a brief explanation of your responsibilities in the role.

References

Although it's rare to include references on a B2B sales resume, some employers may ask for it. Don't add references unless they're specifically mentioned by the employer in the job advert. Add two or three professional references, and be sure to approach each referee before you include them.

Best words to use in a B2B sales resume

Using strong action verbs in your work experience bullet points can make a stronger impression on employers and show the value you added to your previous roles. Choose from the list of words below to increase the impact of your work experience section.

If you want to create a resume that stands out from the crowd, use Jobseeker's expert-designed resume templates. You can also find cover letter templates that work to get you noticed by employers.

Example of a B2B sales resume

Using each of the sections above, we've created this example B2B sales resume, to help guide you when creating your own:

Tips on creating an ATS-optimized resume

Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) are one of the key ways recruiters and employers manage the hiring process. The systems can screen candidates by scanning and ranking resumes based on each candidate's likely suitability for the vacancy. When writing your B2B sales resume, a few simple tips can help you pass the ATS stage with a higher-ranking resume, giving you a better chance of success with your applications.

Create an ATS-optimized resume by following these quick tips:

• Use a traditional resume format, such as reverse-chronological or functional. These will give your resume a structure that's easier for ATS systems to scan.
• Use of job description keywords throughout your resume will help it rank higher in the ATS scanning stage, as it will more closely match the requirements laid out in the job description.
• Add each section with clear headings that match the established resume conventions, so ATS software can easily identify each part of your resume.
• Adopt a resume design that uses clear, professional design principles and leaves white space for your content to breathe. Use the most readable fonts and incorporate subtle design elements to enhance the readability of your document.
• Use concise language to keep the length of your resume to between one and two pages. This will make it easier to scan for ATS applications.

Key points for your B2B sales resume

An effective resume is a concise, professional summary of your relevant skills and career achievements, showcased through a chronology of your career history. Use a suitable resume format and tailor your resume for every application you submit.

Using the professional resume templates and resources of Jobseeker can help you create a great-looking resume that stands out from other applicants. Sign up today and follow the simple steps to get started. To make the best possible impression with your applications, write a cover letter with the help of Jobseeker. You can also find plenty of expert-designed cover letter examples for inspiration.

Sources:

(1) Writing a Resume, California Department of Human Resources: https://www.calhr.ca.gov/employees/Pages/resume-tips.aspx

(2) Resumes, Cover Letters and Job Applications, New York State Department of Labor: https://dol.ny.gov/resumes-cover-letters-and-job-applications