How to Write a Job Description: Sales Associate
Sales associates are the backbone of your company’s revenue stream. As the public face of the company, they work directly with customers to understand their needs, respond to their inquiries about your offerings, and provide recommendations.
Recruiting a capable sales associate can directly affect your bottom line, so it’s vital to write a clear, persuasive job description to attract the best talent to your doorstep.
What Your Job Description Should Include
At the very least, your job description should include:
- Your company name
- Office location
- Job title
- Working hours
- Qualifications or previous experience (if applicable)
- Roles and responsibilities
- Compensation
Although the job requirements may vary across industries and individual firms, sales associates are first and foremost expected to deliver a great customer experience.
In general, this includes knowledge of the company’s products, engaging with customers, fulfilling their orders, and sometimes dealing with customer complaints. Occasionally, sales associates are also required to reach out to new customers via cold calls, participating in trade fairs etc.
At the same time, sales associates need to adhere to company policy – something that requires problem-solving skills combined with a tactful approach.
It is good practice to also liaise with the team leaders or hiring managers to write the job description. Oftentimes they will have more information about the role, or they might have special input on the roles and responsibilities of the sales associate.
A Note About Qualifications and Experience
When recruiting sales associates, you would ideally want someone with related experience in the industry. However, most of the time this isn’t possible.
With high turnover rates among sales personnel, it’s hard to find someone that’s a 100% fit and can join on short notice. Luckily, what matters for successful sales associates are soft skills – interpersonal skills, communication skills, teamwork, and other skills that aren’t taught in school. Conversely, most of the basics of the business can be imparted via on-the-job training.
Outside of a few specialized roles, sales associates don’t require certifications or licenses. A great sales associate should also be a great communicator and give excellent customer service, as well as have a great attitude. Such skills can be found in experienced candidates and fresh graduates alike.
Therefore, it’s perfectly fine to hire someone with no related experience if you need to. This is where the interview process comes in to sort out the candidates with the best soft skills available.
Sample Sales Associate Job Description
This is a B2B sales associate ad for a fictional company, Acme Inc. You'll notice that the requirements are quite general, in line with the discussion about experience we've had above. This job description is designed to cast a wider net for candidates in a general sales role.
In case you have specific requirements, you'll need to add those in. Otherwise, feel free to copy and paste it for your own use!
Acme Inc is looking for a results-driven Sales Associate to join our team. They will be responsible for all sales-related duties and ensuring client satisfaction.
About the Job
- Primary location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
- Working hours: Monday–Friday, 9am–6pm (full-time)
Your Responsibilities
- Drive sales by great product knowledge and knowing why Acme Inc is special.
- Build customer relationships and attract new customers to use Acme Inc’s products.
- Provide an exceptional level of customer experience.
- Perform as a team player and participate in all sales activities, contributing to the overall revenue of Acme Inc.
- Achieve sales goals on a monthly, quarterly, and yearly basis.
- Support other teams where required.
Requirements
- 1 year experience in a customer-facing role.
- Previous B2B sales experience is preferred.
- Fluent in English and Malay.
- Friendly, energetic personality.
- Results-oriented and driven.
- Maintaining a positive attitude and focus on customer satisfaction.
About Acme Inc
Acme Inc is Malaysia’s leading B2B partner. With a presence in over 20 markets, we provide solutions to over 500 companies throughout Asia and beyond.
Our team is results-oriented and customer-focused – but above all, we believe in building meaningful solutions that impact the world for the better.
Learn how BrioHR can simplify HR for your business by getting a free demo here.
Sales associates are the backbone of your company’s revenue stream. As the public face of the company, they work directly with customers to understand their needs, respond to their inquiries about your offerings, and provide recommendations.
Recruiting a capable sales associate can directly affect your bottom line, so it’s vital to write a clear, persuasive job description to attract the best talent to your doorstep.
What Your Job Description Should Include
At the very least, your job description should include:
- Your company name
- Office location
- Job title
- Working hours
- Qualifications or previous experience (if applicable)
- Roles and responsibilities
- Compensation
Although the job requirements may vary across industries and individual firms, sales associates are first and foremost expected to deliver a great customer experience.
In general, this includes knowledge of the company’s products, engaging with customers, fulfilling their orders, and sometimes dealing with customer complaints. Occasionally, sales associates are also required to reach out to new customers via cold calls, participating in trade fairs etc.
At the same time, sales associates need to adhere to company policy – something that requires problem-solving skills combined with a tactful approach.
It is good practice to also liaise with the team leaders or hiring managers to write the job description. Oftentimes they will have more information about the role, or they might have special input on the roles and responsibilities of the sales associate.
A Note About Qualifications and Experience
When recruiting sales associates, you would ideally want someone with related experience in the industry. However, most of the time this isn’t possible.
With high turnover rates among sales personnel, it’s hard to find someone that’s a 100% fit and can join on short notice. Luckily, what matters for successful sales associates are soft skills – interpersonal skills, communication skills, teamwork, and other skills that aren’t taught in school. Conversely, most of the basics of the business can be imparted via on-the-job training.
Outside of a few specialized roles, sales associates don’t require certifications or licenses. A great sales associate should also be a great communicator and give excellent customer service, as well as have a great attitude. Such skills can be found in experienced candidates and fresh graduates alike.
Therefore, it’s perfectly fine to hire someone with no related experience if you need to. This is where the interview process comes in to sort out the candidates with the best soft skills available.
Sample Sales Associate Job Description
This is a B2B sales associate ad for a fictional company, Acme Inc. You’ll notice that the requirements are quite general, in line with the discussion about experience we’ve had above. This job description is designed to cast a wider net for candidates in a general sales role.
In case you have specific requirements, you’ll need to add those in. Otherwise, feel free to copy and paste it for your own use!
Acme Inc is looking for a results-driven Sales Associate to join our team. They will be responsible for all sales-related duties and ensuring client satisfaction.
About the Job
- Primary location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
- Working hours: Monday–Friday, 9am–6pm (full-time)
Your Responsibilities
- Drive sales by great product knowledge and knowing why Acme Inc is special.
- Build customer relationships and attract new customers to use Acme Inc’s products.
- Provide an exceptional level of customer experience.
- Perform as a team player and participate in all sales activities, contributing to the overall revenue of Acme Inc.
- Achieve sales goals on a monthly, quarterly, and yearly basis.
- Support other teams where required.
Requirements
- 1 year experience in a customer-facing role.
- Previous B2B sales experience is preferred.
- Fluent in English and Malay.
- Friendly, energetic personality.
- Results-oriented and driven.
- Maintaining a positive attitude and focus on customer satisfaction.
Learn how BrioHR can simplify HR for your business by getting a free demo here.
