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What is a sales floor associate and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
Quoted experts
Meegan Feori Ph.D.,
Joseph Hancock
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A sales floor associate is an individual who works in a retail setting and assists customers with their purchases. They are responsible for greeting customers, answering questions, and providing product recommendations.They must have knowledge of the products they are selling and be able to effectively communicate that information to customers. Additionally, they may be responsible for operating cash registers. Overall, a sales floor associate plays a crucial role in ensuring customers have a positive shopping experience.

What general advice would you give to a sales floor associate?

Meegan Feori Ph.D.Meegan Feori Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Associate Professor, San Diego Mesa College

Consider your career in terms of what you are willing to do right now to support yourself and be self-sufficient. During the last recession, I was underemployed, working as a part-time pool lifeguard and making funnel cakes at a local amusement park. Not ideal, but with my funds running low, it was necessary. A third part-time position I had, updating apparel tech packs, did pave my way to a full-time job in the fashion industry. So hustle and be flexible. Also, take time to consider what you can do to create opportunities for yourself. This could include an internship, volunteering, taking a warehouse position at a fashion brand, or completing a class that interests you. The best advice I was ever given was to keep pursuing your goals and accept that what you will be doing in ten years will be better than you ever imagined. The advice came true for me, and I think it will be true for you as well.
ScoreSales Floor AssociateUS Average
Salary
1.9

Avg. Salary $24,773

Avg. Salary $59,228

Diversity
6.8
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.55%

Asian 6.50%

Black or African American 10.31%

Hispanic or Latino 21.26%

Unknown 5.03%

White 56.35%

Gender

female 59.45%

male 40.55%

Age - 39
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39
Stress level
6.2

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level
4.5

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance
8.5

Work life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

What are the pros and cons of being a sales floor associate?

Pros

  • Opportunity to interact with a variety of people

  • Chance to develop communication and customer service skills

  • Possibility for commission or bonuses based on sales performance

  • Potential for career advancement within the company

  • Flexible scheduling options

Cons

  • High-pressure sales goals may lead to stress and burnout

  • Physical demands of standing and walking for extended periods of time

  • Dealing with difficult or irate customers can be emotionally taxing

  • Inconsistent or unpredictable hours, including evenings, weekends, and holidays

  • Low starting pay or limited opportunities for salary increases

Sales floor associate career paths

Key steps to become a sales floor associate

  1. Explore sales floor associate education requirements

    Most common sales floor associate degrees

    High School Diploma

    39.3 %

    Bachelor's

    29.1 %

    Associate

    19.8 %
  2. Start to develop specific sales floor associate skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Math37.23%
    Home Health35.50%
    Sales Transactions24.77%
    Customer Service0.97%
    Stock Shelves0.36%
  3. Complete relevant sales floor associate training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New sales floor associates learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a sales floor associate based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real sales floor associate resumes.
  4. Research sales floor associate duties and responsibilities

    • Supervise women's department, manage jewelry department, assist customers on finalizing purchases
    • Obtain training in the operation of the POS system , 10 key, credit card transactions, accounts, etc.
    • Work with other team members to complete sales goals as well as use the POS system to complete guest sales.
    • Prepare quality food products, process accurate register transactions, maintain general appearance and cleanliness of store premises.
  5. Prepare your sales floor associate resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your sales floor associate resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a sales floor associate resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable sales floor associate resume templates

    Build a professional sales floor associate resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your sales floor associate resume.
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    Sales Floor Associate Resume
  6. Apply for sales floor associate jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a sales floor associate job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first sales floor associate job

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Average sales floor associate salary

The average sales floor associate salary in the United States is $24,773 per year or $12 per hour. Sales floor associate salaries range between $19,000 and $31,000 per year.

Average sales floor associate salary
$24,773 Yearly
$11.91 hourly

What am I worth?

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How do sales floor associates rate their job?

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Sales floor associate reviews

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A zippia user wrote a review on Jun 2021
Pros

I like mostly that I work with team oriented people. Some people that care and will help and that help others whether it's work related or not. That have good employee morale amongst each other not necessarily management but amongst each other.

Cons

Double standards extra work extra tasks that aren't in the job description you're doing assumptions that you know everything you're doing and you know the right way of everything that you're doing even though no one's ever trained you to do what you're doing and what you're doing isn't necessarily in the jobs description for the title for lack of a better word that you actually have


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A zippia user wrote a review on Feb 2020
Pros

The customers

Cons

That the management will not disapplin workers who have their spouses, and children at their job during much of their work shift, or off the clock employees who like to be in the store for hours every day with their family visiting workers who are on shift at the time.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Apr 2019
Pros

Meeting people & making them satisfied with value for their money.


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.