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Sales support manager skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025
6 min read
Quoted experts
Adry S. Clark Ph.D.,
Andrea Dixon Ph.D.
Below we've compiled a list of the most critical sales support manager skills. We ranked the top skills for sales support managers based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 11.7% of sales support manager resumes contained project management as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a sales support manager needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 sales support manager skills for your resume and career

1. Project Management

Here's how sales support managers use project management:
  • Utilized project management skills to organize network professionals, IT Operations leaderships and product management to participate in on-site audit presentations.
  • Identified and capitalized on business-growth opportunities using strong project management skills & leadership.

2. CRM

CRM stands for Customer relationship management and it is a complete process through which a business or organization monitors and administers its interactions with the customers. A process in which large amounts of data are collected through marketing via a company's website, polls, surveys, and other social media applications. The basic goal of CRM is to target the right audience for their product, and then fulfill their needs, to increase the sales and revenue of the company.

Here's how sales support managers use crm:
  • Developed and implemented CRM campaign process that eliminated noise and increased visibility to key market segments and strategic accounts.
  • Participated fully in cross-functional teams that addressed strategic business issues involving CRM and sales operations.

3. Salesforce

Salesforce is an American cloud-based software company based in San Francisco, California. This company provides customer relationship management services that enable the customers to be closer to the company. It gives the company detailed information about each customer, including marketing, sales, commerce, and services. Salesforce also helps market a product to attract more buyers, and helps win more customers by targeting the right audience.

Here's how sales support managers use salesforce:
  • Coordinate daily workload within team using SalesForce and GP metrics to ensure that assigned tasks are completed expeditiously.
  • Developed analytical reports/dashboards in SalesForce to review performance of direct sales and partner accounts.

4. Sales Training

Here's how sales support managers use sales training:
  • Conducted sales training clinics and sales coaching programs for national and international account sales representatives.
  • Maintained and improved existing dealer relationships by providing excellent sales training and product knowledge.

5. Excellent Interpersonal

Here's how sales support managers use excellent interpersonal:
  • Possess excellent interpersonal, analytical, and organizational skills.

6. Direct Reports

Here's how sales support managers use direct reports:
  • Performed formal monthly and annual developmental one-on-ones with direct reports.
  • Provide input to Sales Supervisors and direct reports regarding individual behavioral opportunities within their team in support of business group plans.

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7. Sales Process

Here's how sales support managers use sales process:
  • Maximize profitability and margin by overseeing and expediting the sales process and offering business solutions and great customer service.
  • Expedited sales process by facilitating requests with other groups, coordinating completion, and ensuring timely installations.

8. Customer Satisfaction

Here's how sales support managers use customer satisfaction:
  • Led continuous improvement initiatives resulting in 10-40% customer satisfaction and loyalty improvements consecutively from 2003- 2008 without additional headcount.
  • Devised and executed tactical plans that generated increased levels of customer satisfaction and retention, gross revenue and profitability annually.

9. Logistics

Logistics is a complete organization and implementation of a problem. Logistics are often considered in a complex business operation, as some works need detailed plannings. Logistics are also used in military action.

Here's how sales support managers use logistics:
  • Processed all orders including invoicing, fulfillment, shipping logistics including BOL, international documentation and tracking for customers.
  • Improved sales order checklist and re-evaluated assigned duties; ensured sales order fulfillment and logistics process improvement.

10. Process Improvement

Here's how sales support managers use process improvement:
  • Applied methodology and direction to deliver continual process improvements and practical solutions that add value to everyday business processes.
  • Manage project engagements for financial institutions related to ECM/document management and process improvement implementations.

11. Business Development

Business development is the ideas or initiatives that work to make business work better. Selling, advertising, product development, supply chain management, and vendor management are only a few of the divisions involved with it. There is still a lot of networking, negotiating, forming alliances, and trying to save money. The goals set for business development guide and coordinate with all of these various operations and sectors.

Here's how sales support managers use business development:
  • Created and represented many top-level proposals for sales in a business development capacity, resulting in substantial new revenue.
  • Obtained and analyzed competitive industry data for the business development team and upper level management.

12. Sales Floor

The sales floor is the area in a company or a business that is specified for retail activities or is designated as the selling area of the shop. A car showroom can be considered a sales floor, as it has cars in its display which are to be sold. A sales floor is generally crowded with sales assistants who are there to help you out while you can search and check out the products. Generally a sales floor has free access to the public and they can observe, view and get information about the product that is being sold.

Here's how sales support managers use sales floor:
  • Managed the flow of new receipts to sales floor for a $32 million facility.
  • Process the arrival of new shipments and place new merchandise on the sales floor.

13. Product Knowledge

Product knowledge is the skill of having better information and knowledge about the product you are selling. Product knowledge is essential for the employees of the companies so they can communicate and inform the customers about the product. Having great product knowledge is essential for a better sales pitch and to give the customer a better and complete idea of the product that will influence him to buy the product eventually.

Here's how sales support managers use product knowledge:
  • Utilized extensive service/product knowledge, client relations, and account management skills to directly support the sales and marketing managers/representatives.
  • Prepare monthly newsletter on product information and corporate activities for international distributors to increase product knowledge.

14. Customer Support

Here's how sales support managers use customer support:
  • Created a consultative customer support organization of seventeen Business to Business subject matter experts to modify and maintain online user data.
  • Developed and implemented a cohesive best practice customer support/customer service model for in house sales and Corporate Partners.

15. Sales Strategies

Here's how sales support managers use sales strategies:
  • Supervised daily activities to ensure optimal customer service by monitoring performance and training team to integrate sales strategies.
  • Advised IT development projects related to consumer data and implemented sales strategies to capture market share and achieve revenue goals.
top-skills

What skills help Sales Support Managers find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What skills stand out on sales support manager resumes?

Adry S. Clark Ph.D.Adry S. Clark Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Director, Western Oregon University

The skills that stand out on resumes fall into two categories: 1) Skills required to do the job and 2) Skills almost all employers look for. The most important aspect of resumes is to make sure it reflects exactly what the employer needs. Study the job description, identify key skills, and have them reflected on your resume. Think about transferrable skills, not the specific roles you've had.

Most employers look for skills such as communication (written/oral), flexibility, proactivity, problem-solving, project management, and technical. Make sure to cultivate those skills in whatever role you have, and have examples that demonstrate those skills.

What soft skills should all sales support managers possess?

Andrea Dixon Ph.D.

Executive Director, Center for Professional Selling, Frank and Floy Smith Holloway Endowed Professorship in Marketing, President, University Sales Center Alliance 2019-2021, Baylor University

Since sales professionals have a lot of information available to them today via customer relationship management (CRM) systems, the sales manager's "supervisory" role is less important (especially for experienced sellers). Consequently, the sales manager needs to be more of a coach and enabler of high performance. Having confidence balanced with humility allows the sales manager to engage more effectively with their salespeople.
One of the critical soft skills for sales managers going forward will be the ability to connect members of the sales team to others in the organization - in other words, the sales manager of the future needs to have strong skills in network building for others. Sellers have access to data which helps them build success.
They also need access to the right people to turn to when they need specific expertise or assistance.

What hard/technical skills are most important for sales support managers?

Andrea Dixon Ph.D.

Executive Director, Center for Professional Selling, Frank and Floy Smith Holloway Endowed Professorship in Marketing, President, University Sales Center Alliance 2019-2021, Baylor University

One of the growing technical skill requirements for sales managers is in the area of data analytics. Our performance and customer systems provide a myriad of data, and the role of the sales manager is to be a sense-maker of that mound of data. What are the implications for changes in strategy or behavior evident in last quarter's activity? How can the sales manager help a specific seller "see" where the data suggest new approaches?

What sales support manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Kerri OrdersKerri Orders LinkedIn profile

Assistant Professor of Business, Aquinas College

In terms of a gap year, I recommend that international business students acquire tangible skills, relevant experience and/or certifications which will enhance their success in their desired area of interest. For example, a gap year could consist of gaining technical or digital training overseas, which would also further the students' cultural intelligence and language proficiency. These types of enriching gap year experiences will assist students to distinguish themselves in a highly competitive market. Furthermore, students should focus on broadening and maintaining their global network during a gap year in order to be ready for the job market once the gap year is concluded.

What type of skills will young sales support managers need?

Michael MikitkaMichael Mikitka LinkedIn profile

Executive Vice President, MHI – Material Handling Industry

Courses and internships are essential. While the required depth of knowledge may vary from one position to another, employers are generally looking for candidates with strong "people-related" skills, those who are willing to continue to learn, and those with the ability to be flexible and adapt.

By "people-related" skills, I mean the abilities associated with effective communication (listen and express ideas and direction) and the skills related to working independently and a team.

As for the interest to continually learn... from a technology, data, and equipment perspective, today's supply chain looks very different than it did 10-years ago. The willingness and ability to continually learn are essential for anyone in a leadership role.

As for flexibility and adapting...supply chain/logistics is as much about responding to disruption and demand as it is planning for it. There is a predictable demand (i.e., seasonal...everyone knows when back-to-school shopping begins). Then there is the unpredictable demand (i.e., power-outages, wildfires, pandemic) that impact market and the ability to operate. Candidates that express flexibility and problem-solving skills will be much sought-after.

What technical skills for a sales support manager stand out to employers?

Todd Lee GoenTodd Lee Goen LinkedIn profile

Instructor & Internship Director, Christopher Newport University

Technical skills are often industry and/or position specific. Applicants should highlight any technical skills related to the position advertisement and those that add value to the position/organization. Most importantly, requirements for technical skills change with time and technological advances. This means employers value workers capable of adapting to change and continually improving and acquiring new technical skills. Thus, it's usually more important to demonstrate you are capable of learning and developing technical skills than it is to have a specific skill set upon hire (although this is not true for some positions/industries).
That said, technical skills related to online presentations, virtual meetings, virtual networking, remote working and the like are hot commodities right now. While most organizations were in the process of adopting many of these technologies and ways of doing business pre-pandemic, the pandemic accelerated the process. Organizations are making it work, but they often don't know best practices or the most efficient means of working in the largely virtual, pandemic environment. Post-pandemic, many of the remote/virtual changes the pandemic brought will stay in some form. Technical skills that support this type of workplace will make applicants stand out to many employers because they need/want to do virtual/remote business better.

List of sales support manager skills to add to your resume

Sales support manager skills

The most important skills for a sales support manager resume and required skills for a sales support manager to have include:

  • Project Management
  • CRM
  • Salesforce
  • Sales Training
  • Excellent Interpersonal
  • Direct Reports
  • Sales Process
  • Customer Satisfaction
  • Logistics
  • Process Improvement
  • Business Development
  • Sales Floor
  • Product Knowledge
  • Customer Support
  • Sales Strategies
  • Sales Reps
  • Order Entry
  • Trade Shows
  • RFP
  • Product Training
  • Sales Associates
  • Customer Complaints
  • Store Operations
  • Loss Prevention
  • Front End
  • Market Research
  • Sales Performance
  • Sales Presentations
  • Enterprise Sales
  • Customer Accounts
  • Customer Inquiries
  • Performance Reviews
  • ERP
  • HR
  • POS
  • Sales Reports
  • Sales Tools
  • Customer Relations
  • Inventory Management
  • Order Processing
  • Product Line
  • Performance Standards
  • Disciplinary Actions
  • Inventory Control
  • Lead Management
  • Customer Issues
  • KPI

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.

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