There is a lot of resume advice floating around the internet. This is because there is a lot of money in resume services. It can be challenging sometimes to sort through all the fluff and determine what advice to pay attention to. There is so much content available that sometimes we even see conflicting advice. We saw one expert state that the resume objective statement was a must have, while another indicated it was best to remove it. Well, who is right? In this article we summarize the best medical sales resume tips.
What Should I Put On My Resume For Medical Sales?
1. Keep It Simple
A solid resume is what gets your foot in the door for the interview. It is not going to get you the job. At the end of the day it is your experience and personality that will seal the deal. So keep this in mind while drafting up your resume. Do away with fancy formatting and overused corporate buzzwords. Make sure to capture the essence of your experience and education in an easy to digest manner. It is important to include the right sections:
- Personal Information
- Objective statement
- Relevant experience
- Education
- Relevant certifications & skills
Remember, you are looking for a job. This is not the time to be lazy. If you are really interested in a specific role make sure to customize the resume and application for that position. Is the experience from one of your previous roles more relevant? Make sure to elaborate on that experience and include less about the others. This effort shows you are a professional and know what you want. Blindly sending out a generic resume makes it look like you are floundering.
Related: How To Prepare A Medical Sales Resume
2. Make Sure To Highlight Formal Sales Training
This is most important for those in the first decade of their career. It takes time and resources to train a sales rep. Hiring managers want to know that a candidate has already been trained. If you worked an entry level B2B sales job makes sure to add a few bullet points capturing the training that was completed.
3. Eliminate Formatting Issues
Keep the formatting simple. You are not going to get a job because you used a fancy font. A resume is well put together if an HR department or hiring manager can scan it in thirty seconds and get the information they need. Pick a professional and simple template and make sure the formatting does not get messed up as you make changes over time.
4. Quantify Prior Performance
Sales is all about hitting quota. In a quick glance, companies should be able to see that you have a track record of high performance. This is an art, not a science. There are so many ways companies quantify performance. These include orders, revenue, percentage to quota, rep by rep comparison, etc. Sales reps are good at highlighting the numbers that make them look best. Hiring managers know this, and frankly for the most part do not care. You either have a track record of solid performance or you do not. I have rarely seen a hiring manager want to did through the specifics. Even rep rankings only mean so much. How does being the number one rep at a small company compare to being the number one rep at J&J?
5. Include Your LinkedIn Profile
This was new to me. Historically, I have not done this. But as my career has involved I understand the important of this recommendation. LinkedIn is a quick credibility check. Hiring managers can immediately see your network and what customers you know. A quick LinkedIn search can demonstrate that you are an industry professional with strong relationships.
Related: Medical Sales LinkedIn
6. Address Special Circumstances
Review your resume and look at it from the perspective of a hiring manager. Do you have a gap in which you did not work? Do you have a job or industry transition that does not make sense? These are the types of things companies are looking for. They want someone reliable with a track record they can trust. All this means is you need to give some context to a timeline that does not make sense on paper.
7. Communicate Clearly
A resume is not a time to show off your vocabulary. Also, it is not the time to go over the top with generic corporate buzzwords. Stick to the basics. Focus on clarity over anything else. Make sure to take a look at other medical device sales resumes online. Get a feel for what others have done. You do not need to reinvent the wheel, you just need to communicate clearly.
8. Differentiate Yourself
What makes you different from all the reps out there with similar experience? I have seen a few experts remind candidates not to include hobbies and personal details. While I agree with this to some extent, I do think there is value in demonstrating that you are a real person. At the end of the day, all resumes start to look the same. I have seen hiring managers look positively at candidates which include some unique personal details. Once, I saw a candidate who included some details about their singing experience on the resume. It was included in a subtle way that made sense. I found this is be cool.
9. Medical Sales Resume Objective Vs. Career Summary
Again, the purpose of a resume is to provide an overview of your career, experience, and skills in thirty seconds. An overview is a good way to make sure this is accomplished. A career summary is a brief statement at the top of your resume. This can also be used as a way to address any specific circumstances such an industry or job change. The purposes of a career summary is to help reduce complexity. You are making it easier for the recruiters and HR departments to get an understanding of your experience. This is another opportunity to include the right keywords for a medical sales resume. So what is the difference between a career summary and objective statement? The objective statement is more geared towards your future careers goals. A career summary covers the past.
10. Ask For Feedback
We can not cover the top medical sales resume tips without emphasizing the importance of getting feedback. Regardless of how much time you put into your resume you are going to miss some things and make mistakes. Make sure to have multiple people proofread the document before applying for jobs. It can even be colleagues in unrelated industries. You just need some professionals to take a quick glance. It can make all the difference.
Related: Where To Look For Medical Sales Job Openings
What Skills Should You Put On A Sales Resume?
- Salesforce CRM
- Prospecting and cold calling
- Relationship management
- Clinical experience
- Surgical case coverage
- Contract negotiation
Keywords For Medical Sales Resume
- Medical sales
- Medical device
- Hospital
- Sales experience
- Surgery
- B2B Sales
- Account management
- Sales rep
