Car Salesman Resume&Cover Letter Guide
06 August 20225 min read
Wisedoc
Wisedoc
Wisedoc Expert Team

As semiconductor shortages and anti-pandemic measures weigh on global auto markets, car sales in China, Europe, and the United States remain down compared to last year's levels. However, instead of collapsing in the face of the epidemic, earnings for carmakers and dealers skyrocketed and continued to grow. And automobile dealers had their finest year ever.

Moreover, industry experts are optimistic that electric cars in 2022 will continue to rise, and about 45% of new car sales could be electric by 2035, according to an industry analysis by IHS Markit.

The average salary for a Car Salesman is $44,260 per year and can go all the way up to about $90K.

So, if you are considering looking for a position in the automotive sales industry, this is the right time.

How to get a job?

Let’s start with preparing a perfect resume!

Read on to Learn:
  1. What Are the Daily Work for a Car Salesman
  2. What Kind of Candidates Are Recruiters Looking For
  3. Tips for Entry-Level Applicants
  4. Tips for Experienced Applicants
  5. Tips for Applicants Who Want to Find a Job in Electric Vehicle Sales Specifically
  6. Don’t Forget Your Cover Letter
What Are the Daily Work for a Car Salesman

You may think as a salesman, all you need to do is take care of the selling process. Such as greeting customers when they arrive, recommending the dealership's vehicles that satisfy their needs to the customers, answering customers' questions, and negotiating the price to nail the deal.

In fact, your responsibility is more than that. You should understand the federal, state and local laws related to retail auto sales just in case you may need it. Be able to make potential business, you need to maintain an owner follow-up system that encourages repeat and referral business. Moreover, sometimes you may have to be the customer service for your clients to ensure their customer satisfaction. Because business is not a temporary thing, a good impression and reputation will play an important role in your future business.

What Kind of Candidates Are Recruiters Looking For

Let’s take a real job post as an example.

Clearly we see the recruitor is looking for people who:

  • Understands how to engage with customers
  • Be familiar with the car’s makes, models, features, and pricing structures
  • Has strong communication skills
  • Can handle negotiation in the best interest of the dealership
  • Has outstanding customer service skills
  • Can build relationship with customers
  • Decent software skills

All the skills that are mentioned above would eventually help a salesman to close a deal and possibly improve the possibility of potential sales in the future.

In other words, these are the skills and abilities you would like the recruiters to capture once they browse through your resume.

Tips for Entry-Level Applicants

In most cases, hard skills are more important than soft skills, for example, Software Engineer and Civil Engineer positions. But for a salesman, they are equally important.

As an entry-level car salesman, you should address things like your communication skills, active listening skills, emotional intelligence, and negotiation skills, which are the essential skills needed for completing any deal. They don't have to be reflected only from your previous jobs, but also can from events or trainings that you've ever participated.

Examples like:

  • Participated in the UCLA debate team and won the first place in the university.
  • Worked as a part-time at local McDonald’s for two years.
  • Taught primary school students to play baseball as a volunteer.
  • Won the monthly sales champion for three months at local Ford dealership in 2012.
  • Completed “Persuasive Communication: Building Trust and Influence” class which is offered by Harvard Business School Online.
  • I repaired my car’s engine in my garage with my father’s help.

If you cannot decide what to put, a good way is to build your skills section around keywords from the job description. Not only does this help you pinpoint where your abilities fit what the employer is looking for, but it also improves the effectiveness of your resume if the recruiter screens prospects using an Applicant Tracking System (ATS).

An extra tip, if you are applying for a brand specific sales role, your resume should make mention of the brand (e.g., Ford, Nissan, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz) somewhere on your resume.

Tips for Experienced Applicants

If you are looking for a senior position, then do not limit your resume only on fundamental skills, You need to demonstrate skills at the management level, such as leadership, team management skills, presentation skills, organization skills and planning skills.

Examples like:

  • Trained 10 new team members.
  • Coached 5 existing team members.
  • Represented our store to give a presentation in the company's annual meeting.
  • Doing the dealership’s inventory management and inventory reporting for 2 years.
  • Completed “Persuasive Communication: Building Trust and Influence” class which is offered by Harvard Business School Online.
  • Maintaining a customer database.
  • Assisting with the new car showroom setup.
  • Organizing sales meetings.

You need to make HR not question your leadership as soon as they see your work experiences on your resume. Try to list the achievements that are quantifiable for each of your previous jobs, these outputs that can be quantified will make your resume look more authentic and convincing.

Be a Salesperson in Eelectric Vehicle Sales

More customers are switching to electric, moving away from gas-powered cars to electric vehicles. Why? Because electric cars are generally greater efficiency, better performance, smarter, quieter driving, and cheaper maintenance. Or just because it is “cool”.

According to Facts and Factors, the demand of Global Electric Vehicle (EV) Market size is estimated to cross USD 980 billion by 2028, at a CAGR of 24.5% between 2022 and 2028. The EV demand is rising!

Now come back to resume preparation. How do you convince recruiters that you can do a good job in electric vehicle sales?

First of all, it is still a sales job. You still need to demonstrate that you have the fundamental sales techniques. You do understand the entire sales process and how the customer support works.

Second, you have to show your passion for electric vehicle. It could be reflected from your hobbies&interets.

  • 1000+ hrs Model Y driving experience.
  • Attended 32nd International Electric Vehicle Symposium.
  • Owning an electric car related Facebook page that has 200K followers.
  • Regularly organizing local electric car owner offline event.

Last but not least, you should demonstrate that you are familiar with the company's models and other products in the market. When people consider whether to buy an EV, they inevitably compare existing products on the market. Then at this time, your familiarity with other companies' products is critical.

  • Test-driven five different brands of electric vehicles.
  • Familiar with the layout of local charging station.
Don’t Forget Your Cover Letter

There is only one goal for your cover letter: Explaining why you are a good fit for the company.

Selling yourself through your cover letter. Show your personality, talk about your related experience, and explain the values you can bring to the team.

Here is an complete guide on how to prepare a stunning cover letter.

A good cover letter will make the recruiter feel very confident in you after reading it, and that is our goal.

Here is a good cover letter sample for you, you can use it as a reference and craft a standout cover letter for yourself.

And again, what is our goal??

Get hired!!

In summary

To make your resume on top of others, you need to:

  • Including keywords throughout that match the listed job description.
  • Highlighting your communication skills and negotiation skills.
  • Show your passion in the resume.
  • Show your leadership when you apply for senior position.
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Wisedoc
Wisedoc
Wisedoc Expert Team
Wisedoc's team of experts organizes the key learnings of career growth from recruiter's point of view and help users to add right content in their career profiles.