What CRM Experience Should I Include on My Resume?

Customer Relations Management (CRM) skills are in hot demand as employers search for job candidates who know how to communicate with their customers. CRM experience can include either soft skills or technical skills, depending on the position. Both people management and technological understanding are included in CRM experience in order to handle customers and use CRM software.

The acronym “CRM” can also refer to a system that runs back-end data for a company. This article is less about the software or technology for CRM than strategies and approaches included in the CRM resume skills you'll want to highlight.

What Technical CRM Experience Should I Include on My Resume?

• Data entry: Being organized is a must for any effective CRM specialist. Keeping track of names of clients, phone numbers, email addresses and more takes time and effort. Having a solid background in data entry helps.
• Industry-specific software: CRM developers need to have a handle on the software used within their own industry. That may mean managing a digital CRM system. As far as CRM technical skills, sharpening your skills in industry-specific software is one of the smartest choices you can make to prepare for your professional future.
• General office software: Along with software designed specifically for managing customers, you will want to be familiar with standard office software. Know how to use a word processing program such as Google Docs or Microsoft Word. You should also know how to use a Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets spreadsheets, as well as a slideshow maker such as Microsoft Powerpoint.

What Soft Skills Should I Include in my CRM Experience?

Most of the work for many CRM specialists comes down to soft skills. Having the right combination of these skills can help you land a dream job in customer relationship management.

• Customer service skills: It should go without saying that a career spent on customer relationship management would require some customer service skills. Taking time to understand the needs of your customers can help you produce top-dollar results for your company.
• Quick thinking: Perhaps more than other fields, CRM specialists have to be quick on their feet. Knowing how to pivot when a customer requires is an important aspect of CRM experience. Outlining instances in which you successfully improvised solutions for your customers can really set you apart from other candidates.

• Phone etiquette: Much of your time may be spent over the phone in your role as a CRM director or specialist. Excellent telephone etiquette means knowing how to make people feel comfortable and welcome. It’s a soft skill that is often necessary in the CRM field.
• Sales focus: Ultimately, your work as a CRM specialist coincides with marketing and sales. As such, the more you can demonstrate a facility with sales and marketing, the better you will be able to work as a team toward revenue goals.
• Attention to detail: By some estimates, a good CRM service is worth $8 for every $1 spent on it. By paying close attention to who your customers are and what they want, you can bring value to your company.
• Leadership: Although hard to quantify, leadership may be the best possible soft skill to demonstrate as a CRM specialist. When you have a grasp on your customers’ needs and behaviors, as well as those of your colleagues and direct reports, you are in a prime position to lead.

How Much Can I Make as a CRM Specialist or Developer?

Customer service managers make different salaries depending on the part of the country in which they work. For people who live and work in low-income regions, the average salary for a customer service manager is $47,000.

For someone who lives and works in a middle income region, your average salary for CRM is going to be closer to $56,000. For those of us who live in upper income regions, the average salary of a CRM specialist is more like $78,500.

To help you gauge the market, see SkillsetGroup's income breakdown of the US, coupled with our ever-growing list of city-specific salary guides.

A CRM developer, however, is more a software developer that designs, maintains and upgrades back-office CRM systems. This is an IT specialty, meaning these skills are in high demand all over the country. Back-end developers, data analytics developers and cloud developers all may have the right skillsets to work on CRM systems. These professionals can command over $100,000 per year in even the lowest-paid markets across the US, going all the way up to over $190,000 in the priciest markets like San Francisco and New York.

What CRM Experience Should Specialists Include on their Resumes?

CRM specialists make the customer experience better. Anything that highlights your ability to understand your customer base will help as you build your resume. As with any resume, you will want to chronicle your relevant work history. Be sure to highlight any technical skills or soft skills your previous jobs required.

Next, be sure to include your skills in their own section on the resume. Your skills may include customer management, team building, organization, Microsoft Office Suite, and much more.

Finally, as you polish up your resume, consider putting a summary of your work experience and job skills at the top. Recruiters and employers are often inundated with resumes when a new position becomes available, so taking some of the work off their shoulders with a tightly-written summary can save them time and help you get noticed faster.