Top 12 Counter Person Skills to Put on Your Resume

Building a sharp resume as a counter person means showing the mix that matters: warm, quick-on-your-feet customer care plus clean, reliable execution at the register and behind it. Choose skills that actually match what you do on shift, that prove you can move a line, solve a snag, and keep the numbers straight without breaking stride.

Counter Person Skills

1. POS Systems
2. Customer Service
3. Cash Handling
4. Inventory Management
5. Salesforce CRM
6. Microsoft Office
7. Bilingual Communication
8. Conflict Resolution
9. Time Management
10. QuickBooks
11. Data Entry
12. SAP ERP

1. POS Systems

A POS (Point of Sale) system runs transactions from start to finish—ringing items, taking payments, printing receipts, and feeding sales to inventory—so a counter person can work fast and with fewer errors.

Why It's Important

POS systems speed up checkout, track sales and stock in real time, and reduce mistakes. That means smoother service, shorter lines, and cleaner records.

How to Improve POS Systems Skills

Make the system work for you, not the other way around:

1. Simplify screens: Keep buttons clear, flows short, and common actions front and center.
2. Train often: Short refreshers, quick reference guides, and hands-on practice for new features.
3. Integrate: Connect POS with inventory, accounting, and CRM to avoid double entry.
4. Use reliable hardware: Fast scanners, sturdy receipt printers, and stable card readers cut downtime. Lightspeed Retail and Toast are common retail and restaurant options.
5. Harden security: Enforce user permissions, enable encryption, and require unique logins.
6. Customize: Tailor menus, tax rules, discounts, and receipt formats to your operation.
7. Add mobile POS: Bust lines and take payments anywhere on the floor with tablets or handhelds. Square and Clover offer strong mobile setups.

Dial these in and you’ll trim keystrokes, speed service, and keep counts honest.

How to Display POS Systems Skills on Your Resume

2. Customer Service

For a counter person, customer service means greeting, guiding, and solving—fast answers, clean transactions, and calm fixes when something goes sideways.

Why It's Important

Service at the counter shapes repeat business. Happy customers come back, tell friends, and make the day easier for everyone.

How to Improve Customer Service Skills

1. Listen first: Let customers finish, reflect back what you heard, then act.
2. Know your products: Prices, options, promos, where things are—confidence shows.
3. Use positive language: Short, clear, friendly. No jargon. Offer solutions, not excuses.
4. Move with purpose: Work the line, triage quick requests, and keep wait times down.
5. Follow up: Confirm the fix, thank the customer, note any pattern you’re seeing.

How to Display Customer Service Skills on Your Resume

3. Cash Handling

Cash handling covers taking payments, counting change, balancing drawers, and safeguarding funds across cash, cards, and other tenders.

Why It's Important

Accuracy and security protect the business and build trust. Clean tills, clean books.

How to Improve Cash Handling Skills

1. Standardize steps: One routine for counts, drops, and reconciliations—every shift.
2. Train detection: Spot counterfeit, verify IDs, and validate high-value transactions.
3. Leverage tech: Use updated POS and cash drawers; consider cash recyclers where volume is high.
4. Audit regularly: Blind counts and spot checks reduce shrink and catch issues early.
5. Limit touchpoints: Fewer handoffs, more sealed drops, secured storage.
6. Secure storage: Lockboxes, safes, and clear access controls.

How to Display Cash Handling Skills on Your Resume

4. Inventory Management

For a counter role, inventory management means tracking stock, rotating items, placing orders on time, and keeping shelves ready for the next rush.

Why It's Important

No stockouts, no dead stock. The right goods in the right place, when customers ask for them.

How to Improve Inventory Management Skills

1. Use real-time tools: Barcode scans, live counts, and automatic adjustments linked to the POS.
2. Run FIFO: First in, first out—especially for perishables and trend items.
3. Audit routinely: Cycle counts and periodic full counts to catch discrepancies.
4. Set reorder points: Base on lead times and demand patterns; review seasonally.
5. Tighten vendor comms: Clear specs, agreed lead times, and backup suppliers.
6. Lean stocking: Keep levels nimble; trim slow-movers with promos or returns.
7. Forecast from data: Use historical sales, events, and weather to project demand.
8. Train the team: Proper receiving, labeling, and storage keep data accurate.

How to Display Inventory Management Skills on Your Resume

5. Salesforce CRM

Salesforce CRM centralizes customer data—profiles, preferences, history—so you can personalize service and spot opportunities on the spot.

Why It's Important

With context at your fingertips, conversations get smarter, and follow-ups don’t slip.

How to Improve Salesforce CRM Skills

1. Customize views: Surface the fields you use most; hide the noise.
2. Automate routine work: Triggers for follow-ups, reminders, and status updates.
3. Integrate systems: Tie in email, calendar, POS, and inventory for one source of truth.
4. Practice with Trailhead: Short lessons build fluency fast and keep you current.
5. Collect feedback: Note what slows you down and request tweaks to layouts or flows.

How to Display Salesforce CRM Skills on Your Resume

6. Microsoft Office

Office tools—Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook—help with documents, spreadsheets, quick visuals, and communication.

Why It's Important

Invoices, schedules, updates, simple analyses: the everyday admin that keeps the front counter humming.

How to Improve Microsoft Office Skills

1. Use templates: Invoices, receipts, and checklists save time and standardize output.
2. Learn shortcuts: Keyboard commands in Word, Excel, and Outlook speed repetitive work.
3. Track with Excel: Build basic inventory and sales trackers; pivot tables for quick insights.
4. Streamline Outlook: Email templates, rules, shared calendars, and task lists keep you organized.
5. Automate: Power Automate can move data or trigger reminders between apps.
6. Sharpen visuals: PowerPoint for bite-size product demos or team huddles.
7. Stay updated: Keep apps current for stability and security.

How to Display Microsoft Office Skills on Your Resume

7. Bilingual Communication

Serving customers in two languages—clearly, respectfully, and without awkward gaps—broadens who you can help and how fast you can help them.

Why It's Important

Language access removes friction. It turns confusion into momentum and makes more customers feel at home.

How to Improve Bilingual Communication Skills

1. Practice daily: Short, consistent sessions beat long, rare ones. Apps like Duolingo or Babbel help.
2. Immerse lightly: Music, films, and news in your target language sharpen tone and phrasing.
3. Speak with natives: Language exchanges (Tandem, local meetups) build real-world fluency.
4. Train for service: Customer-service scenarios and role-play build confidence.
5. Seek feedback: Coworkers or supervisors can pinpoint phrases and habits to refine.

How to Display Bilingual Communication Skills on Your Resume

8. Conflict Resolution

Conflict resolution means cooling heated moments and guiding both sides toward a fix everyone can accept.

Why It's Important

It protects the customer experience, keeps the floor calm, and preserves the brand’s reputation—one tricky moment at a time.

How to Improve Conflict Resolution Skills

1. Listen and clarify: Reflect back the issue. Ask short, neutral questions.
2. Show empathy: Acknowledge the frustration. Keep your tone steady.
3. State options: Offer clear, fair choices within policy.
4. Stay solution-focused: Address the problem, not the person.
5. Close the loop: Confirm the resolution and thank the customer.

How to Display Conflict Resolution Skills on Your Resume

9. Time Management

Time management for a counter person is prioritizing the right task at the right moment—serving the line swiftly while keeping back-end duties moving.

Why It's Important

Less waiting, fewer bottlenecks, more done. Customers feel it immediately.

How to Improve Time Management Skills

1. Plan the shift: Map peak times and batch back-room tasks for lulls.
2. Prioritize: Urgent and important first; defer or delegate the rest.
3. Reduce distractions: Keep the counter tidy; set blocks for messages or admin.
4. Use tools: Simple boards or apps like Trello or Asana to track tasks.
5. Timebox: Set tight windows (Pomodoro-style) for focused work.
6. Reset often: Short breaks restore focus; quick end-of-day review sharpens tomorrow’s plan.

How to Display Time Management Skills on Your Resume

10. QuickBooks

QuickBooks tracks sales, expenses, invoices, and inventory, giving you tidy books and simple reporting.

Why It's Important

It streamlines daily money movement and ties records to real transactions—clean, consistent, audit-ready.

How to Improve QuickBooks Skills

1. Automate imports: Use bank feeds and rules to cut manual entry.
2. Learn shortcuts: Speed up invoice creation, payments, and searches.
3. Retail setup: Use item lists, classes, and categories for precise tracking.
4. Connect a modern POS: QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale was discontinued; pair QuickBooks Online with a supported POS integration to sync sales and inventory.
5. Train periodically: Short refreshers keep reports and workflows crisp.
6. Go mobile: The mobile app helps check balances and invoices on the fly.

How to Display QuickBooks Skills on Your Resume

11. Data Entry

Data entry means getting information into systems quickly and accurately—customers, items, orders, counts—so the numbers match reality.

Why It's Important

Good data fuels good decisions. Errors ripple into inventory issues, customer headaches, and messy reports.

How to Improve Data Entry Skills

1. Standardize forms: Consistent fields and formats cut mistakes.
2. Automate where possible: Use imports, barcode scans, and integrations to reduce manual typing. Tools like Zapier or IFTTT can help connect systems.
3. Validate inputs: Required fields, dropdowns, and basic checks catch errors early.
4. Template common tasks: Pre-filled sheets and checklists speed repeat entries.
5. Train and refresh: Short, focused sessions on systems and shortcuts.
6. Optimize the workspace: Good lighting, ergonomic setup, and minimal clutter support accuracy.
7. Review regularly: Spot-check for anomalies and fix root causes.

How to Display Data Entry Skills on Your Resume

12. SAP ERP

SAP ERP ties together sales, purchasing, inventory, finance, and more—one platform, shared data, real-time visibility.

Why It's Important

For a counter person, it means accurate stock status, smooth order flow, and fewer surprises during checkout.

How to Improve SAP ERP Skills

1. Role-based training: Learn the exact screens and transactions you use daily.
2. Personalize: Favor quick-access lists, saved searches, and clean layouts.
3. Connect CRM: Link customer history to orders for context at the counter.
4. Enable mobile: Access key data on handhelds for speed and flexibility.
5. Automate repeats: Use workflows and bots for routine entries and checks.
6. Use real-time analytics: Dashboards and alerts surface issues before they hit the line.
7. Create a feedback loop: Collect pain points and iterate with admins or IT.

How to Display SAP ERP Skills on Your Resume