What does a retail sales consultant do?
The primary job of retail sales consultants is to approach customers, identify their needs, and recommend services or products to fulfill those needs. They should be knowledgeable about the functionality and technical specifications of their products as they are the ones who demonstrate these products to customers. They are also responsible for providing customer service, filling out paperwork, and managing inventory. To be qualified for this position, you should have a high school diploma or a college degree, relevant work experience and training, and experience in sales or customer service.
Retail sales consultant responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real retail sales consultant resumes:
- Achieve quarterly and yearly bonus goals by controlling business expenses and effectively managing payroll costs.
- Excel selling requirements with geek squad protection, attachment rate, and sales quota.
- Exploit selling techniques such as up-selling/ bundling to improve sale quotas.
- Promote Samsung products as a subject matter expert to target specific sales goals.
- Work as a sales associate for the wireless kiosk inside Sam's club.
- Have a primary knowledge of smartphones, wearables/activity trackers, portable speakers, headphones, and networking/routers.
- Provide technical support for cellular phones and tablets, as well as teach customers how to use their new devices.
- Process information/merchandise through POS register system.
- Fast pace environment that requires multitasking.
- Demonstrate the ability to process information/merchandise through POS register system.
- Collaborate with local Samsung representative to run diagnostics on malfunctioning Samsung devices.
- Perform payroll functions such as maintaining timekeeping information and processing and submitting payroll.
- Deliver consistently strong results in identifying and capitalizing on cross-selling opportunities to advance corporate-define marketing campaigns and effectively increase revenue streams.
- Promote upcoming sales events as well as upselling Macy's credit cards.
- Capitalize in upselling opportunities base on the evaluation of customers' needs with the demonstration of products and services offer.
Retail sales consultant skills and personality traits
We calculated that 26% of Retail Sales Consultants are proficient in Retail Sales, Customer Satisfaction, and POS. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Math skills, and Selling skills.
We break down the percentage of Retail Sales Consultants that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Retail Sales, 26%
Retail sales consultant at top corporate store location providing wireless communication solutions for small to medium business and consumer customers.
- Customer Satisfaction, 11%
Ensured customer satisfaction by coordinating arrivals of clientele ordered merchandise and alterations of garments in a timely and professional manner.
- POS, 8%
Demonstrated the ability to process information/merchandise through POS register system.
- Sales Objectives, 8%
Develop and attain customer experience and sales objectives for store while ensuring an extraordinary customer experience.
- Customer Relationships, 6%
Provide quality customer service; build and maintain endearing customer relationships that ultimately result in increased sales and repeated business.
- Product Knowledge, 6%
Recognized by management for developing superior sales strategies, delivering effective product demonstrations and possessing a high level of product knowledge.
"retail sales," "customer satisfaction," and "pos" are among the most common skills that retail sales consultants use at work. You can find even more retail sales consultant responsibilities below, including:
Interpersonal skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a retail sales consultant to have is interpersonal skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "a friendly and outgoing personality is important for these workers because the job requires almost constant interaction with people." Retail sales consultants often use interpersonal skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "used interpersonal skills to develop rapport with customers for profitable opportunities and superior customer service. "
Math skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling retail sales consultant duties is math skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "retail sales workers must have the ability to calculate price totals, discounts, and change owed to customers." According to a retail sales consultant resume, here's how retail sales consultants can utilize math skills in their job responsibilities: "cash handling daily rudimentary math skills to calculate change, complete paperwork, and offer pricing for customers. "
Selling skills. retail sales consultants are also known for selling skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to retail sales consultant responsibilities, because "retail sales workers must be persuasive when interacting with customers." A retail sales consultant resume example shows how selling skills is used in the workplace: "managed new customers and developed new business using consultative marketing/sales techniques. "
Customer-service skills. For certain retail sales consultant responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "customer-service skills." The day-to-day duties of a retail sales consultant rely on this skill, as "retail sales workers must be responsive to the wants and needs of customers." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what retail sales consultants do: "developed and executed sales techniques to provide efficient, personalized solutions for customers. "
The three companies that hire the most retail sales consultants are:
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Compare different retail sales consultants
Retail sales consultant vs. Sales agent
A sales representative is responsible for offering goods and services to potential and existing clients. Sales representatives must display a strong knowledge of the company's products to assist customers with their inquiries and concerns. A sales representative should have exceptional communication skills and extensive knowledge of the sales industry to deliver sales pitches and negotiate pricing offers with the clients. Sales representatives must also keep themselves updated with the current market trends to provide service recommendations, improving their sales to increase revenues.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, retail sales consultant responsibilities require skills like "retail sales," "first hand," "pos," and "sales objectives." Meanwhile a typical sales agent has skills in areas such as "life insurance," "insurance products," "work ethic," and "cold calls." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
The education levels that sales agents earn slightly differ from retail sales consultants. In particular, sales agents are 0.9% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a retail sales consultant. Additionally, they're 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Retail sales consultant vs. Retail sales associate/cashier
A cashier is responsible for ensuring all the products and goods sold are well recorded and paid for as well as answering customer inquiries and recommending products. They also help the other sales team when needed and process payment for all goods bought. Their duties and responsibilities include processing payments, ensuring all goods bought are accurately scanned and recorded, and bagging purchases.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real retail sales consultant resumes. While retail sales consultant responsibilities can utilize skills like "first hand," "customer satisfaction," "sales objectives," and "customer relationships," retail sales associate/cashiers use skills like "basic math," "math," "loss prevention," and "customer transactions."
Retail sales associate/cashiers may earn a lower salary than retail sales consultants, but retail sales associate/cashiers earn the most pay in the retail industry with an average salary of $27,103. On the other hand, retail sales consultants receive higher pay in the telecommunication industry, where they earn an average salary of $43,475.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Retail sales associate/cashiers tend to reach similar levels of education than retail sales consultants. In fact, they're 1.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Retail sales consultant vs. Product consultant
A product consultant is an individual who collaborates with client managers and project managers to analyze client requirements and provide optimal products. Product consultants are required to leverage industry and product knowledge to answer customer inquiries and provide customer consultations. To maintain excellent customer service, product consultants should maintain courtesy and professionalism as well as attentive to product details. They must also train new consultants on product knowledge and communicate sales strategies to the field agents of the company across the region.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from retail sales consultant resumes include skills like "retail sales," "first hand," "customer satisfaction," and "sales objectives," whereas a product consultant is more likely to list skills in "assists clients," "drive sales," "learning environment," and "ensure sales. "
Product consultants make a very good living in the technology industry with an average annual salary of $106,130. On the other hand, retail sales consultants are paid the highest salary in the telecommunication industry, with average annual pay of $43,475.When it comes to education, product consultants tend to earn higher degree levels compared to retail sales consultants. In fact, they're 6.5% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.8% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Retail sales consultant vs. Customer service consultant
A customer service consultant is responsible for addressing the customers' inquiries and concerns regarding the company's services and resolving complaints to provide the best customer service and satisfaction. Customer service consultants also sell new goods and products to the customers, demonstrating features and benefits before proceeding with the orders, payment, and delivery details. They develop excellent sales pitches to attract customer to purchase items which would generate more revenue resources and profits for the business.
Types of retail sales consultant
Updated January 8, 2025
