Despite the retail sector’s faded prospects of returning to its glory days, sales assistants are still in demand with a diverse range of work options. But to get the sales job that’s right for you, you need a job-search strategy that includes a superior sales assistant cover letter.
Sales assistants attend customers at retail outlets like clothing stores, help them find what they’re looking for, recommend products useful to them and ring up their purchases. Also known as sales clerks or sales associates, these workers are also often responsible for stocking and display of merchandise and maintaining an attractive and well-organized store.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the overall outlook demand for retail sales workers in the U.S, is stagnant, projected to show little or no change from 2019 to 2029. The demand for retail salespersons specifically is expected to shrink by 1%. This is because as online sales become increasingly popular, brick-and-mortar retail outlets will experience falling sales, and many will inevitably close.
Still, despite a projected loss of more than 20,000 jobs over the same decade, there are expected to be 4.6 million jobs in this sector by 2029. That’s a lot more jobs than there are in most fields.
The retail sector is sometimes divided into retail sales workers, who assist customers in buying goods such as clothing, furniture and cars, and people who sell replacement parts and equipment, such as car parts.
The pay is modest, with those who sell parts earning a median hourly wage of $15.61 in 2020, while retail salespersons earned a median $13.02 an hour. However, most sales assistants need only a high school diploma or the equivalent, so the sector remains an attractive entry-level option for those with little education or experience.
Bottom line: this is a field where jobs are plentiful, even if no upturn is forecast. But to get the sales job that’s right for you, you need a superior job-search strategy, and that starts with an outstanding resume and cover letter.
Resume.io is a global leader in providing occupation-specific guidance in how to prepare resumes and cover letters, together with corresponding resume and cover letter examples. In addition, we offer formatting advice, plus field-tested templates and builder tools to help you create both resumes and cover letters.
Do not overlook the importance of a job-winning sales assistant cover letter to accompany your resume. This guide will explain why a cover letter is critical and offer step-by-step guidance on how to prepare one.
What we’ll discuss here:
- Why a cover letter is an essential part of a job application
- How a cover letter should be structured, and the goal of each section: header, greeting, introduction, middle section and conclusion
- How a cover letter should be designed and formatted
- The psychology of writing a persuasive cover letter
- Common mistakes to avoid.
What is the goal of a sales assistant cover letter?
Some job seekers in this field will simply walk into a store and fill out an application. But you’ll have a big leg up if you submit a professionally prepared resume and cover letter.
The purpose of a resume is fairly obvious — it lists your employment history, education, job-related skills and contact info, all in a one-page format that’s easy to process. Yet a resume is a somewhat dry and impersonal document that doesn’t even try to establish a deeper connection / reaction from the hiring decision-maker.
And that is the key for getting that interview, and ultimately — the job!
A cover letter, on the other hand, is a way of introducing yourself personally to a hiring manager. It’s a friendly greeting, a handshake from afar, a way of establishing a personal connection to someone who has the power to offer you a job.
A cover letter also gives you the opportunity to showcase your personality, passion and likeability in a way that a resume can’t. It enables you to speak directly to a hiring manager, person to person, initiating a conversation that can only help your chances of success.
Surveys of hiring managers have found that the failure to include a cover letter is one of the most common reasons resumes are rejected. Although a few employers prefer to receive a resume only, you should always include a cover letter with a resume unless you’re specifically asked not.
For additional inspiration, you can check out our related Sales cover letter examples.
Best format for a sales assistant cover letter
A cover letter should almost always be one page only — a maximum of 400 words. The same is true of a resume, meaning that the ideal job-application package consists of only two pages. Sounds easy, right? But you have to get those two pages right.
Your sales assistant cover letter should be structured as follows:
- Header
- Greeting
- Introduction
- Body
- Conclusion
- Signature / cover letter sign-off.
Let’s talk about what each of these cover letter components should look like.
Dear Mrs. Watts,
Having recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in ancient history and after three years of student weekend work at my local bookstore, I feel that the sales assistant role at the Minden Museum would be a perfect first step in my career.
I fully understand the mechanics of working in a small retail operation (where everything is your responsibility), but I also appreciate the unique nature of a museum shop. Visitors expect a shop to be an extension of the museum experience, pausing to remember what they have discovered and considering buying a memento to remind them.
You need your sales assistants to enhance their visit by gently entertaining and educating them. After an hour or two of contemplating the exhibits, it is vital that a sales assistant represents the museum in the appropriate way. My background in amateur dramatics and warm personality will be an asset to your retail team.
During my bookshop experience, I was equally passionate about the products, and I am proud to say that I also made a commercial and operational difference to the store:
- Weekend sales rose +45% in my first year and +20% for the following two years
- Stock holding improved from 60 days’ sales to 48 days. We stocked the sellers.
- Transactions increased +15% and average purchase value rose from $8.50 to $14.30.
- A regular promotional strategy resulted in customers visiting us more often.
In a small shop, sales assistants need to offer far more value than simply filling shelves and sticking on prices. In a museum shop, the scope of the role is even broader. I hope that I might have the opportunity to demonstrate just what a difference my knowledge and outlook will make to the visitor experience of your museum.
Sincerely,
Joseph Bear
Header
The header is the space at the top of your sales assistant cover letter that contains your essential contact information: name, occupation, address, phone number and email address.
The header is also an important design element, allowing for creative use of color, typography and layout in a letter that will otherwise be all body text.
Designing an attractive header is not easy, which is why we recommend using a template where the header is already designed and all you need to do is supply your own information. You can review some professionally designed headers in the free cover letter templates at resume.io, choose one you like, type in your relevant info — and you’re good to go.
Align document styles
Your sales assistant cover letter and resume are a package deal, and can work for you as a powerful “brand ambassador”.
This may sound complicated but it’s pretty simple in essence: it means they should use the same fonts and formatting styles, and the header on both should be very similar if not identical.
Making these two documents match gives you a “visual brand,” demonstrates your attention to detail and makes it obvious that they both came from the same person. If your resume and cover letter look totally different, it creates the appearance that you are sloppy and you don’t understand the importance of coherent design. It may also suggest that you are writing a new cover letter but using an old resume.
NEVER underestimate how powerful and important it is to be remembered and recognized. In a pile of hundreds of applications, if yours stand out for the obvious extra effort made, you’ve already won. Plus, there is much less chance of your documents getting lost and forgotten. They’ll be associated with you.
The best way to ensure a cohesive design is to use matching sets of templates to create your resume and cover letter. Resume.io makes this easy with templates that are meant to go together. Our online cover letter builder provides a simple way to make these documents your own, edited any way you like.
Goal of the cover letter header: Set yourself apart from other job applicants with a visually branded document that shows your regard for detail, quality and cohesiveness.
Cover letter greeting
Also known as a salutation, the greeting is the part of your sales assistant cover letter that starts with the word “Dear” (or more informal options like “Greetings”), followed by “Mr.” or “Ms.” and the last name of the hiring manager.
Whenever possible, you should use the name of the person responsible for hiring at the company you’re targeting. If you don’t know the name of that person, do some legwork to find out. If necessary, just call the company and ask.
There are several reasons for this. People like to read their own names, and a letter addressed to a specific individual is more likely to receive a reply. Using the name of the actual hiring manager shows that you’ve done your homework on this company, and you’re not just firing off the same cover letter to multiple employers.
In some cases you may find that a hiring manager prefers to remain anonymous. If that’s the case, find a more generic way to write your salutation, such as “Dear [Company Name] Hiring Team.”
Goal of the cover letter greeting: Start off on a professional note by connecting directly with the hiring manager, using the recipient’s name if possible.
Dear Mrs. Watts,
Cover letter introduction
The opening paragraph of your sales assistant cover letter should be a sincere, confident, well-written introduction. Use lively language that makes the reader want to keep reading. It should identify the job you’re seeking and provide a preview of your qualifications for this job, such as your relevant employment experience or your passion for customer service.
It’s important to establish the right tone of voice from the outset — confident, interesting, optimistic and bold, yet never arrogant or too familiar. Consider your position relative to your reader and be appropriately respectful and professional. But write in a style that commands attention and makes this person want to read on.
Goal of the cover letter introduction: Command the reader’s attention with an intriguing, confident preview of your qualifications that sustains interest in reading more.
Having recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in ancient history and after three years of student weekend work at my local bookstore, I feel that the sales assistant role at the Minden Museum would be a perfect first step in my career.
Body
The central two or three paragraphs of your sales assistant cover letter must make the case that you are eminently qualified for the job you are seeking. Typically this is accomplished by citing your work experience, education and job-related skills.
In any field, employers look for relevant job experience above all. If you already have experience as a sales assistant, you should probably mention that first. And don’t just say you worked at a given store for however long; be specific about your achievements on the job.
Wherever possible, use facts and figures to quantify your accomplishments, such as the number of customers you attended every day or the dollar sales for which you were responsible. Also, use anecdotes to describe job-related challenges you faced in the past and how you addressed them to achieve winning results.
Yet retail sales positions are often entry-level, and most retailers will not expect you to have extensive job experience. If your experience is thin, emphasize instead your biggest selling points, whether it’s your education, internships, volunteer work, or simply your passion for customer service and your “people skills.”
Goal of the cover letter body: Highlight your most relevant accomplishments in a specific way, emphasizing your biggest selling points.
I fully understand the mechanics of working in a small retail operation (where everything is your responsibility), but I also appreciate the unique nature of a museum shop. Visitors expect a shop to be an extension of the museum experience, pausing to remember what they have discovered and considering buying a memento to remind them.
You need your sales assistants to enhance their visit by gently entertaining and educating them. After an hour or two of contemplating the exhibits, it is vital that a sales assistant represents the museum in the appropriate way. My background in amateur dramatics and warm personality will be an asset to your retail team.
During my bookshop experience, I was equally passionate about the products, and I am proud to say that I also made a commercial and operational difference to the store:
- Weekend sales rose +45% in my first year and +20% for the following two years
- Stock holding improved from 60 days’ sales to 48 days. We stocked the sellers.
- Transactions increased +15% and average purchase value rose from $8.50 to $14.30.
- A regular promotional strategy resulted in customers visiting us more often.
Cover letter conclusion and signature / sign-off
Your closing of your sales assistant cover letter should include a recap, a thank-you and a call to action. For example, you may want to ask whether you can call in a week or so to see if it’s possible to set up an interview. Or you may simply want to say that you’re eager to follow up and would be delighted to talk further.
The one thing you don’t want is for your reader to scan your letter and put it in a discard pile, never to be reviewed again. Plant the thought that you are eagerly anticipating some response because you are really serious about this job. Without being presumptive or overconfident, try to make it difficult for your reader to ignore your letter and do nothing about it.
Close with a “Sincerely,” “Cordially,” “All my best,” or the equivalent, followed by a blank space and your typed name. It’s also acceptable, though not essential, to insert a scanned version of your actual signature in a cover letter delivered electronically.
Goal of the cover letter closing: End on a positive, self-assured note with a call to action that makes it difficult for your letter to be ignored and dismissed.
In a small shop, sales assistants need to offer far more value than simply filling shelves and sticking on prices. In a museum shop, the scope of the role is even broader. I hope that I might have the opportunity to demonstrate just what a difference my knowledge and outlook will make to the visitor experience of your museum.
Sincerely,
Joseph Bear
Cover letter design and formatting
An ugly, dirty, disorganized retail outlet trying to sell goods to the public will probably not get much attention. And the same is true of your sales assistant cover letter.
Appearances matter, and you need to pay close attention to the formatting and design of your cover letter so that it looks as good as it reads. Here are some guidelines to follow:
- Fonts: Use a modern, easy-to-read font that makes the reader focus on your content and not your splashy, exotic typography. Fonts like Verdana, Georgia, Helvetica, Arial and Open Sans are widely regarded (even by Google experts) to be among the best for ease of reading and avoiding visual fatigue.
- Font size: Make your font size 10 to 12 points, not so small that it’s hard to read or so large that it looks like it’s aimed at the visually impaired. If the first draft of your letter exceeds one page, resist the temptation to reduce font size, margins or paragraph breaks just to make it fit. Focus instead on cutting unnecessary text from your letter.
- Text alignment: Align body text left rather than justifying from margin to margin.
- Margins: Include a 1-inch margin on the top, bottom, left and right of your letter.
- Paragraphs: Avoid paragraphs that are too long, and leave a space between them.
- White space: Incorporate a judicious amount of space that contains nothing at all, giving the reader’s eye a break and giving your letter a more eye-pleasing look at a glance.
- File type: Save your letter as a PDF, a file type that will preserve your formatting so that it looks the same on any computer. A few employers prefer other formats, such as Word files, but unless asked otherwise, always use a PDF. If you require Word files however, you can always supply those too.
- Use a template: A professionally designed cover letter template (along with pre-generated and/or recruiter-approved samples) like those at resume.io will spare you the trouble of worrying about any of these formatting issues.
The psychology of writing a cover letter
Always remember that you’re writing this letter to a human being, and try to put yourself in that person’s shoes. One way of looking at this: Instead of writing the letter you want to write, write the letter that person would want to receive.
Does your letter use an appropriate tone that is both professional and personal? Is it interesting, engaging and persuasive? Does it include a brief yet compelling review of the experience, qualifications and skills that make you a great candidate for the job?
Or is your letter meandering, unfocused and full of cliché-ridden fluff that says nothing meaningful?
Psychologists say the human brain responds to stimuli with a mix of emotional and rational responses, and your letter should trigger both of these. Emotional responses tend to be quick, automatic, not the result of a lot of introspection, and yet they are powerful because they come from the heart more than the head. You want to use a certain amount of emotional language in your letter to trigger heartfelt, intrinsically human responses.
Yet you also need to use rational language that appeals to the head more than the heart — for example, the factual information about your background that demonstrates your readiness to do the job. You want your reader to like you, but you also want your reader to know that you’re qualified for the position.
You need to study your target, research the company where you want to work, and identify its needs. You’re not writing to convince the company that you need a job, but that your contribution can make the company stronger.
Common mistakes you need to avoid
Here are some of the most common errors people make in writing cover letters.
- Typos and other English mistakes: Misspellings, poor grammar and bad punctuation give employers an automatic reason to throw your letter in the trash. Probably the easiest way of preventing this is using a cover letter builder that has a spell-check function.
- Bad formatting: Exotic fonts, tiny text, minuscule margins, a densely crowded page or a file saved in an unreadable format can all spare the reader the trouble of even reading your letter.
- Copy-paste letters: A one-size-fits-all letter that you send to all employers is a non-starter. Do not begrudge that extra little bit of effort. It will pay off a hundred times over.
Customize EACH cover letter and resume towards every individual job application. - Clichés, HR-speak and hackneyed corporate lingo: If it’s been said a thousand times before, don’t fall into the trap of becoming cliched. You need to show off your professional personality… and overuse of cliched phrases works against that, concealing why you can be a valuable member of the team.
Key takeaways for a sales assistant cover letter
- Sales assistant jobs will stagnate or decline somewhat in future years as online sales rise, but there will still be millions of jobs in this sector open to those who make the most persuasive pitch.
- An outstanding cover letter is an essential part of a job application because it enables you to introduce yourself and establish a personal connection to a hiring manager.
- From the header to the signature, cover letters should follow an established structure to ensure that they contain all the necessary content.
- Cover letters must be designed and formatted so that they look as good as they read.
- To write a good cover letter, put yourself in the shoes of your reader and use language that triggers both emotional and rational responses focused on the employer’s needs.
- Typos, clichés, bad formatting and lazy writing will all sink your chances with prospective employers.
- The easiest and safest way to write a proper cover letter is to use a professionally designed template, along with cover letter samples and phrases where all the formatting and recruiter testing is already done.
For more information, consult our guide on how to write an excellent cover letter. To get started on yours, review our free cover letter templates, choose a design you like and use our step-by-step builder tool to make it your own. You’ll be building on a successful foundation that has been proven to work.
