Certification in Sales
National Professional Certification in Sales is an industry-driven and endorsed credential that helps employers identify qualified sales professionals.
About the Certification
The certification was designed to capture the core sales duties for a broad range of entry-level through first-line supervisory positions across the sales and service industries. It is appropriate for anyone interested in obtaining a job or pursuing a career in retail and other sales-focused industries.
Knowledge and Skill Areas
The assessment to earn the sales certification measures and validates knowledge in the following areas:
- Prepares for Selling
- Gains Customer Commitment and Closes the Sale
- Develops and Implements Sales and Follow-up Plan
How to Earn
To be eligible for the sales certification, candidates must earn the National Professional Certification in Customer Service first. Candidates can earn the sales certification by passing a 75-question, online assessment. The assessment must be proctored. Candidates can schedule testing at test centers across the U.S.A., or companies can set-up as a private test site, have proctors trained, and offer the assessment internally. The base price of the exam is $50 to $80, depending on the test site.
Training Resources to Help Prepare
The Candidate Handbook outlines the testing process, provides sample questions, and gives detailed information on the three Critical Work Function Areas covered on the exam.
The knowledge and skill areas are found on page 14. Look under the section "Work-Oriented Component." All questions on the certification exam are directly related to the "key activities" in each Critical Work Function.
Candidates can view an online demonstration of the exam to see the format and sample questions. The online demo does not provide automatic scoring, so you will need to write out your answers and check them against the answer key: 1)B, 2)C, 3)B, 4)A, 5)A, 6)D, 7)D, 8)B, 9)A, 10)C, 11)A, 12)C, 13)B, 14)D, 15)C.
Sales & Service Learning Program is a comprehensive program for instructors, designed to prepare participants for entry-level retail sales and customer service positions. This 120-180 hours program helps prepare candidates for both the professional customer service and sales certifications. 
Our Retailing Smarts Series Learner Workbooks are recommended to prepare candidates for the exam, as they were developed using the same skill standards. Books 5-8 help prepare for sales: Explaining Features and Benefits (Workbook 5), Building the Sale (Workbook 6), Closing the Sale (Workbook 7), Completing the Sales Transaction (Workbook 8). These books contain activities that are highly interactive
and scenario-based, much like the tests. There is an instructor's guide to the workbooks that can be ordered separately: Selling and Promoting Products: Leader's Guide, Professional Edition.
There are several online courses available on NRF University wired, NRF Foundation's e-learning platform. The courses that cover similar content found on the assessment are: An Introduction to Selling & Service, Basics of Effective Selling, Closing the Sale, and Solution Selling for Retail Sales Associates.
The Retail Readiness Assessment (RRA) is an assessment tool for instructors to evaluate candidates' critical customer service and sales skills and attitudes. The RRA can help determine strengths and weaknesses of existing employees and employee candidates, to better target sales training.
Customer Service and Sales Skill Standards Publication contains the industry-developed standards for customer service and sales, as guides for employers, educators, and trainers to help build skills.
