How to write a job description: Advertising sales jobs

What is included in a job description?

Writing a good job description starts with writing a good job title.

Job descriptions that stand out are titled effectively.

It is important that your sales job title is targeted, concise and includes keywords that accrue a high amount of searches.

For example, if you are looking to hire a senior salesperson that is responsible for generating new business, ‘Business Development Manager‘ would be an effective title.

An inviting tone of voice is crucial when it comes to job advert wording more generally.

In terms of content, a good job description will include:

• A comprehensive company profile
• A detailed outlining of responsibilities
• A specification of job requirements
• A salary and benefits section

1. Company Profile

Most job specifications start with a company profile that contains general information about your business.

Importantly, your company profile should be extensive enough to show off your business and entice candidates to join your team.

Consider the following talking points:

• What is there to like about your company or be impressed by?
• What exciting clients do you work with?
• What has spurred on your recent expansion?
• What is your work environment like?

Information to include:

• Company type (SME, startup, global etc.)
• Industry/ sector
• Years in operation
• Awards won
• Your USP (unique selling point)
• Example clients
• Growth rate & why you’re hiring
• Recent accomplishments

2.  Job Responsibilities

Your job description and responsibilities section should provide candidates with a snapshot of what their day-to-day tasks will involve.

A good job description enables a candidate to picture themselves in the role and provides them with an understanding of whether they would be a good fit or not.

It’s a good idea to display the key responsibilities in bullet points, making sure they are as detailed as possible so that you provide a clear picture of the role to potential candidates.

Consider the following talking points:

• Who will they be working with/reporting to?
• What daily tasks will they be involved in?
• What goals/targets will they be working towards?
• What systems will they be using?

Information to include:

• Role overview
• Impact on the business
• Teams they operate in / who they’ll be reporting to
• Key career opportunities
• Daily tasks they’ll be involved in
• Example projects
• What goals/targets will they be working towards
• Any tools or software they’ll be using

3. Job Requirements

The job requirements section contains a list of what applicants need in order to be considered for the role.

It is important that a candidate can discern whether they are qualified or not from the information you provide in the job requirements section. knows whether they are qualified for the role.

If descriptions can be specific enough to include industry-relevant keywords, such as CRM, PPC or Java, this will help SEO-wise and in terms of streamlining efforts.

Consider the following:

• Degree (e.g. if this is a junior sales role, do they need to have a degree? If so, what subject/grade?)
• Skills (e.g. if this is a business development role, do they need to have great communication skills?)
• Experience (e.g. if this is an account manager role, do they need to have a certain amount of experience?)
• Interest (e.g. if this is a financial sales role, do they need to be able to evidence an interest in a career in finance/the finance industry?)

Information to include:

• Qualifications and any specific grades required
• Degree subject
• Soft skills
• Technical skills needed to do the job
• Previous work experience / number of years exp.
• Interests – i.e. do they need to be able to evidence an interest in your industry?
• Any languages needed

4. Salary & Benefits

As the final section of the job description, the benefits of the job segment serves to inform the candidate of the job salary, holiday allowance and other work perks.

To make sure the job is attractive, you should aim for at least five bullet points.

Consider the following:

• Do you have a commission scheme?
• Are your offices in a good location?
• Do you offer private healthcare?
• Do you have mentorship or training opportunities?
• Do you hold regular socials or host company away days?
• Do you offer flexible/remote working options?

Information to include:

• Perks of the job, i.e. health insurance, pension, office snacks
• Salary and any bonuses
• Commission structure and potential OTE (on target earnings)
• Rewards to be won
• Mentorship or training opportunities
• Company culture & employee social events
• Progression structure
• Remote or flexible working options
• Charity work

Make sure to list the salary transparently instead of labelling it as ‘competitive’ – displaying the pay in terms of numbers is more appealing to prospective candidates.

Great sales candidates know their worth, so it is important to take some time to research industry standards around salaries, in order to offer a competitive package that will help secure top talent.

If in doubt, our Graduate Employment Statistics Archive holds the average salaries for a range of industries, including sales – check it out!

Not sure how to calculate annual leave days?

Find out annual leave allowance for part-time and full-time salespeople with our UK holiday entitlement calculator!

What makes a good job advert?

To be clear, when writing a sales job description, you should not be aiming for the ‘perfect’ job description.

The style, format and content of a job description will vary depending on the company that is hiring and the type of role that is being advertised.

Regardless of these variables, what a good job description should include remains consistent:

• A job title that is accurate, to the point and includes SEO keywords
• A company profile that highlights internal culture and external successes
• A job overview of the day-to-day responsibilities of the role
• A list of necessary, and beneficial, qualifications and characteristics
• A transparent salary bracket and appealing benefits package

In terms of marketing, a good job advert will be accompanied by an effective organic strategy (email campaigns, social media, SEO) that will enable greater candidate conversions.

If budget allows, this organic strategy can be complemented by paid ads, to ensure that your job description stands out amongst the crowd.

After all, jobs in sales are notoriously abundant – a good job advertisement needs to be distinct.

Whilst the examples provided can be used as job advert templates, it is important to ensure your job ads are unique.

Remember, you do not just want to attract people that want to work in sales, you want to attract people that want to work for you.

Whether you’re hiring account managers or advertising sales executive jobs, writing a good job description is the first step to finding top talent.

If you’re looking to hire salespeople for your business, get in touch and discover how we can help to grow your teams this year.