What does a sales assoc do?
Sales associates are skilled professionals who are responsible for selling goods on behalf of retailers. These associates must continuously update their knowledge about the products and services offered by retailers so that they can assist their customers with their product questions. They are required to manage their financial transactions by operating cash registers and balancing cash drawers. They must maintain the orderly appearance of the sales floor while directing their customers to merchandise within the store. Sales associates must also introduce promotions to their customers and cross-sell products to increase the number of customer purchases.
Sales assoc responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real sales assoc resumes:
- Supervise women's department, manage jewelry department, assist customers on finalizing purchases
- Service retail customers by processing purchase orders/request and deliveries; displaying specific POS materials for advertisement and product announcement.
- Improve customer solicitation pitch to increase Kohl's credit card application solicitations.
Sales assoc skills and personality traits
We calculated that 32% of Sales Assocs are proficient in Customer Service, Sales Objectives, and Retail Sales. They’re also known for soft skills such as Customer-service skills, Interpersonal skills, and Math skills.
We break down the percentage of Sales Assocs that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Customer Service, 32%
Provided customer service in the electronic department.
- Sales Objectives, 24%
Contribute strongly to a sales team though product knowledge of vast inventory to continually meet sales objectives.
- Retail Sales, 23%
Job Description: Retail sales along with running the day to day functions of Electronics retail store.
- Store Appearance, 8%
Delivered excellent customer service including selling, suggesting additional related merchandise, maintaining merchandise stocks, and store appearance.
- Sales Floor, 2%
Gained technical knowledge of various electronics/specialized in GPS sales/Load customer vehicles/Stock and organize sales floor/
- Product Knowledge, 2%
Down stocked merchandise Aided customers with product knowledge Cashed out customer sales at register
"customer service," "sales objectives," and "retail sales" are among the most common skills that sales assocs use at work. You can find even more sales assoc responsibilities below, including:
Customer-service skills. One of the key soft skills for a sales assoc to have is customer-service skills. You can see how this relates to what sales assocs do because "retail sales workers must be responsive to the wants and needs of customers." Additionally, a sales assoc resume shows how sales assocs use customer-service skills: "managed administrative work through filing, inventory, customer follow-up and familiarizing myself with fine jewelry and company policies. "
Interpersonal skills. Many sales assoc duties rely on interpersonal skills. "a friendly and outgoing personality is important for these workers because the job requires almost constant interaction with people.," so a sales assoc will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways sales assoc responsibilities rely on interpersonal skills: "established quick and precise mental math skills provided service to customers via phone and interpersonal interactions"
Math skills. sales assocs are also known for math skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to sales assoc responsibilities, because "retail sales workers must have the ability to calculate price totals, discounts, and change owed to customers." A sales assoc resume example shows how math skills is used in the workplace: "assisted customers with making purchases at cash register; utilized strong communication skills and basic math for financial transactions. "
Selling skills. A big part of what sales assocs do relies on "selling skills." You can see how essential it is to sales assoc responsibilities because "retail sales workers must be persuasive when interacting with customers." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical sales assoc tasks: "completed sales training and programs to enhance sales skills, techniques, meet sales goals, bonus projection and loss prevention. "
The three companies that hire the most sales assocs are:
- Williams Sonoma48 sales assocs jobs
- Hannaford Supermarkets42 sales assocs jobs
- R1 RCM15 sales assocs jobs
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Compare different sales assocs
Sales assoc vs. Associate sales representative
The duties of an associate sales representative depend on one's line of work or industry of employment. Their responsibilities typically revolve around reaching out to clients through calls or door-to-door visits, offering products and services, collecting payments, addressing issues and concerns, and performing corrective measures when necessary. An associate sales representative often has a quota and deadline to reach; therefore, it is essential to be sales driven and goal-oriented. Furthermore, one must adhere to the policies and regulations of the company.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between sales assocs and associate sales representative. For instance, sales assoc responsibilities require skills such as "sales objectives," "retail sales," "store appearance," and "cleanliness." Whereas a associate sales representative is skilled in "work ethic," "patients," "excellent interpersonal," and "excellent organizational." This is part of what separates the two careers.
On average, associate sales representatives reach similar levels of education than sales assocs. Associate sales representatives are 2.9% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.6% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Sales assoc vs. Seasonal sales representative
Usually working on a contractual basis, a seasonal sales representative serves as the clients' point of contact in businesses. They typically offer products and services through calls and correspondence, arrange appointments, discuss promotions, explain product specifications and pricing, negotiate contracts, arrange payment plans, and build positive relationships with clients. Moreover, a seasonal sales representative must perform research and analysis to identify business and client opportunities, generate leads, and develop sales strategies while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that sales assoc responsibilities requires skills like "sales objectives," "store appearance," "strong customer service," and "phone calls." But a seasonal sales representative might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "customer satisfaction," "seasonal sales," "seasonal position," and "sales presentations."
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Seasonal sales representatives tend to reach similar levels of education than sales assocs. In fact, they're 1.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.6% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Sales assoc vs. Retail sales representative
A retail salesperson's responsibility is to sell products and provide necessary information to the consumers to convince them of availing items. Retail salesperson's duties include coordinating with promotional programs, recommending strategies to increase sales, answering customer's inquiries, and escalating any concerns to the management that might affect the company's sales performance. A retail salesperson must have excellent communication skills to build a good rapport with the customers and assist them with their needs. A retail salesperson also helps with inventories and documenting a customer's suggestion for service improvement.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a sales assoc is likely to be skilled in "strong customer service," "cleanliness," "phone calls," and "cash handling," while a typical retail sales representative is skilled in "store management," "strong computer," "customer relationships," and "broadband."
When it comes to education, retail sales representatives tend to earn similar degree levels compared to sales assocs. In fact, they're 1.4% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Sales assoc vs. Retail sales consultant
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.
Types of sales assoc
Updated January 8, 2025
