You have 30 seconds or less to impress recruiters with your resume, according to a recent CareerBuilder survey. That’s mere seconds to prove to medical device sales recruiters that you’re right for an open role — on a piece of paper.

As if the medical device sales world wasn’t stressful enough. Now, you need to revamp your resume in a way that immediately draws recruiters to you. It’s your unique abilities and history that give them the clearest picture of who you are as a professional.

Of course, any sales experience, medical or not, should be included. But impressing recruiters goes far beyond your history with sales. There are many other critical aspects that form an impressive medical device sales resume.

To make recruiters — in one of the most competitive sales industries — notice you, we’ve compiled a list of must-have resume points. Here’s what you need to add to your medical device sales resume today:

1. Knowledge of hospital protocol

Medical device sales companies don’t have a ton of time to train you on hospital protocol. However, this is knowledge that will make or break your career in this field.

Showing that you’re already an expert on the topic is beneficial for the company and the safety of patients. Research hospitals and other healthcare facilities in your area. Familiarize yourself with the common policies that pertain to you.

For example, Mercy Hospital offers online policies and guidelines. Their policies range from cultural policy to child protection, hand hygiene, and even human resources policies. These, of course, will differ between hospitals. However, the basic understanding of this frequently updated information gives you an advantage above candidates who aren’t in the loop.   

2. Experience with customers on all levels

Medical device sales reps don’t always have the same point of contact. You’ll meet with med techs, doctors, administrators, and even executives in the C-Suite. Recruiters need to know you acknowledge and understand the nuances in how you approach these individuals.

Moreover, they want to know you have experience with talking to people at various levels in an organization. List your main points of contact along with each job experience.

Your job could have been serving at a local restaurant. And that’s perfectly fine. Validate that job by sharing specific details about who you served. Was it a hotspot for CEOs to take lunch breaks? Did sales reps bring clients there for meetings?

Every single interaction you had gives you a unique advantage. This is especially true in medical device sales where recruiters need to know they can trust you to connect with various individuals who have different concerns and needs.

3. Professional etiquette that transfers to the OR

Much like hospital protocol, medical device sales companies provide OR etiquette training. However, it’s often limited. Their main goal is to get you in front of customers and selling as quickly as possible.

Show recruiters you already have a deep understanding and respect for proper sales etiquette, especially in the OR. Do this by connecting past work or volunteer experiences to the same type of respect and professionalism you need to show a patient while on the operating table.

Patient confidentiality, for example, must be held sacred. Assist with product questions but do not offer anymore to the conversation than which you’re encouraged. Under your work and volunteer experiences, note times when you were held to high confidentiality standards or were expected to listen more than talk.

While these details seem small, they’re necessary for getting OR time — and being invited back.  

4. Proof of persistence

My team has interviewed many inspiring medical device sales reps. One that has stood out to us throughout the years, though, is Victoria Styles, Director of U.S. Sales at CONMED. After falling in love with the sales world and, ultimately, being turned down for a sales role at Bard, she spent 12 years building up her portfolio.

No, I’m not saying you need to take a 12-year hiatus to find ways to impress recruiters. But Styles’ persistence is something you need to take note of for your own resume. It’s not completely about the experiences she gained. For Styles, it was also proving that she wasn’t going to give up.

This is the exact type of go-getter attitude medical device sales recruiters are looking for in new talent. List persistence as a trait on your resume. Then, show accomplishments in your career that proves you don’t just accept no. You go out and do better.

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What do you put on your medical device sales resume to really stand out? Let us know!