What does a merchant do?
A merchant is responsible for selling goods and services for an organization to generate revenues by reaching out to existing and potential customers and discuss the products' features. Merchants must have extensive knowledge of the goods offered by the company to be able to respond to customers' inquiries and concerns accurately. They also maintain the adequacy of inventory for store orders, create purchase requests, and analyze sales performance. A merchant coordinates with the sales and marketing team to develop efficient promotional strategies and increase brand awareness on public platforms.
Merchant responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real merchant resumes:
- Partner with production on achieving IMU targets and in store deliveries.
- Manage merchandise deliverable deadlines: photography, copy, and inventory.
- Manage the OTB to ensure seasonal sales, inventory levels, and margin objectives are met.
- Lead online visual merchandising decisions base on in-depth understanding of weekly KPI s and high investment products.
- Set and achieve monthly goals in new accounts and investment referrals; encourage cross-sells of services as per management
- Manage social media (Facebook) by posting new content, questions, pictures, new arrivals, graphics, etc.
- Assist with originating bank accounts, wire and ACH transfers, loan payments, online registration and troubleshooting and closing accounts.
- Set goals to add 50,000 SKUs in 2014.
- Improve in-stock positions on over 23,000 SKUs.
- Top performer in sales by cross-selling credit cards to bankers.
- Establish a style guide for online e-commerce & print photography production.
- Complete HTML, imaging and ASP/SQL development of e-commerce web site.
- Verify and confirm ACH transactions, both present and in the future.
- Deepen member relationships by determining member needs and promoting and cross-selling products and services.
- Market product and increase followers via social media outlets (Wanelo, Pinterest, Facebook).
Merchant skills and personality traits
We calculated that 8% of Merchants are proficient in Product Development, Gross Margin, and Market Trends. They’re also known for soft skills such as Persistence, Selling skills, and Math skills.
We break down the percentage of Merchants that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Product Development, 8%
Integrated future process mapping for optimization of product development and design in preparation for implementation of Flex PLM software.
- Gross Margin, 7%
Review metrics and evaluate productivity to make assortment decisions on pricing, product placement in stores and gross margin maximizing strategy.
- Market Trends, 7%
Devised a compelling assortment to enhance the customer experience through analysis of sales history and key market trends.
- Customer Service, 6%
Assisted the Visual Merchandising Manager in training and developing merchandising associates on visual merchandising, product knowledge and customer service.
- Strong Analytical, 6%
Position requires strong analytical and communication skills, attention to quality standards and maintaining positive relations with merchants.
- Math, 6%
Improved the Math and Reading skills of children ages 4-10..
Common skills that a merchant uses to do their job include "product development," "gross margin," and "market trends." You can find details on the most important merchant responsibilities below.
Persistence. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a merchant to have is persistence. Their role and responsibilities require that "a large number of attempted sales may not be successful, so sales workers should not be discouraged easily." Merchants often use persistence in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "excelled in meeting financial and customer service objectives through independent action, prioritization, persistence and leadership skills. "
Selling skills. Another essential skill to perform merchant duties is selling skills. Merchants responsibilities require that "retail sales workers must be persuasive when interacting with customers." Merchants also use selling skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "assist customers with account inquiries* balance vault/cash drawers and atm* process daily business transactions* meet daily sales/service goals"
Math skills. merchants are also known for math skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to merchant responsibilities, because "retail sales workers must have the ability to calculate price totals, discounts, and change owed to customers." A merchant resume example shows how math skills is used in the workplace: "skilled in multiple in house reporting systems and create seasonal tracking logs, daily use of retail math. "
Interpersonal skills. merchant responsibilities often require "interpersonal skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "a friendly and outgoing personality is important for these workers because the job requires almost constant interaction with people." This resume example shows what merchants do with interpersonal skills on a typical day: "job required extensive use of customer service skills, interpersonal communication, etc. "
Customer-service skills. Another common skill required for merchant responsibilities is "customer-service skills." This skill comes up in the duties of merchants all the time, as "retail sales workers must be responsive to the wants and needs of customers." An excerpt from a real merchant resume shows how this skill is central to what a merchant does: "analyze complex customer requirements processing wire transfers and foreign currency, effectively communicating progress to required customers or entities. "
The three companies that hire the most merchants are:
- Bank of America125 merchants jobs
- American Express54 merchants jobs
- DoorDash22 merchants jobs
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Compare different merchants
Merchant vs. Junior associate
A junior associate is responsible for assisting with the law firm's operations by evaluating cases, performing client counseling, and attending court trials. Junior associates draft agreements and review claims with strict adherence to regulatory policies and procedures. They also request additional documents as necessary and update the lawyers of any updates regarding the case. A junior associate must be well-versed with the law and determine resolution by following the due process and representing the clients during hearing sessions.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, merchant responsibilities require skills like "product development," "gross margin," "market trends," and "customer service." Meanwhile a typical junior associate has skills in areas such as "litigation," "financial statements," "press releases," and "due diligence." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Junior associates earn the highest salaries when working in the finance industry, with an average yearly salary of $96,957. On the other hand, merchants are paid more in the finance industry with an average salary of $75,078.The education levels that junior associates earn slightly differ from merchants. In particular, junior associates are 5.5% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a merchant. Additionally, they're 9.9% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Merchant vs. Relationship banker
A relationship banker is responsible for providing financial advice by applying financial disciplines in the banking industry. Relationship bankers process financial transactions on their clients' bank accounts, generate account statements, and reiterate bank policies to support clients' financial goals and objectives. They also research the current financial industry, identify new bank services opportunities to gain more clients, and increase profits for the business. A relationship banker must have excellent communication and customer service skills, responding to the clients' inquiries and concerns regarding their bank accounts, and resolving complaints timely and efficiently.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that merchant responsibilities requires skills like "product development," "gross margin," "market trends," and "strong analytical." But a relationship banker might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "excellent interpersonal," "financial services," "strong work ethic," and "work ethic."
Relationship bankers may earn a lower salary than merchants, but relationship bankers earn the most pay in the finance industry with an average salary of $36,296. On the other hand, merchants receive higher pay in the finance industry, where they earn an average salary of $75,078.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Relationship bankers tend to reach similar levels of education than merchants. In fact, they're 2.2% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 9.9% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Merchant vs. Finance & sales representative
A finance and sales representative is responsible for selling financial services and instruments to clients according to their needs and requirements. Finance and sales representatives identify the clients' long-term financial goals and objectives to provide accurate investment options and plans by considering their risk tolerance and credit performance. They also follow the movement of the stock market and inform the clients of any changes that may affect their portfolio and financial stability. A finance and sales representative must have excellent analytical and communication skills, especially in handling client accounts and developing financial strategies for their best interests.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a merchant is likely to be skilled in "product development," "gross margin," "market trends," and "strong analytical," while a typical finance & sales representative is skilled in "work ethic," "loan applications," "fsr," and "business relationships."
Finance & sales representatives typically earn similar educational levels compared to merchants. Specifically, they're 0.5% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Merchant vs. Business banker
A business banker is an individual who collaborates with other bank coworkers to help business customers meet their specific banking needs. Business bankers must sell a variety of banking products and services such as business deposit accounts, treasury management, and business credit cards. They are required to maintain consistent communication with their clients through outbound calls and personal onsite visits. Business bankers must also devise and modify loan schemes depending on the market requirements as well as study the schemes offered by competitors.
Types of merchant
Updated January 8, 2025
