Area sales representative vs outside sales representative

The differences between area sales representatives and outside sales representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an area sales representative and an outside sales representative. Additionally, an outside sales representative has an average salary of $60,443, which is higher than the $58,355 average annual salary of an area sales representative.

The top three skills for an area sales representative include customer service, business development and sales process. The most important skills for an outside sales representative are customer service, work ethic, and sales process.

Area sales representative vs outside sales representative overview

	Area Sales Representative	Outside Sales Representative
Yearly salary	$58,355	$60,443
Hourly rate	$28.06	$29.06
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	199,212	218,034
Job satisfaction	-	4.5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	4	4

What does an area sales representative do?

The primary role of an area sales representative is to sell the company's products and services within a specified region or territory. You will be responsible for attracting new clients, increase profitability, and win new accounts. Other duties typically include building and maintaining relationships with both new and existing customers, traveling across the region to visit customers, and maintaining records of customer accounts and sales leads. As an area sales representative, it is also your duty to close deals and negotiate service agreements, prices, and terms of sale.

What does an outside sales representative do?

An Outside Sales Representative specializes in customer service and relations, focusing on reaching sales targets through selling and networking with clients. Among the duties revolve around reaching out to customers through calls, email, or even arranging appointments, monitoring and keeping an organized record of sales, communicating with managers or supervisors, adhering to the company's policies and regulations, and keeping extensive knowledge about the brand and the trends. Besides building rapport with customers, it is also essential for an Outside Sales Representative to be proactive and create strategies to help meet the sales target.

Area sales representative vs outside sales representative salary

Area sales representatives and outside sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Area Sales Representative	Outside Sales Representative
Average salary	$58,355	$60,443
Salary range	Between $42,000 And $80,000	Between $41,000 And $87,000
Highest paying City	Syracuse, NY	Minneapolis, MN
Highest paying state	Maine	New Jersey
Best paying company	Microsoft	Microsoft
Best paying industry	Finance	Manufacturing

Differences between area sales representative and outside sales representative education

There are a few differences between an area sales representative and an outside sales representative in terms of educational background:

	Area Sales Representative	Outside Sales Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred

Area sales representative vs outside sales representative demographics

Here are the differences between area sales representatives' and outside sales representatives' demographics:

	Area Sales Representative	Outside Sales Representative
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 66.0% Female, 34.0%	Male, 71.5% Female, 28.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between area sales representative and outside sales representative duties and responsibilities

Area sales representative example responsibilities.

Manage and create all content distribute via various social media outlets: Facebook, twitter, feedback blogs, etc.
Create wholesale catalog using Powerpoint and PDF.
Add and update customer information in Seibel CRM application.
Schedule monthly sales, change POS, acquire extra sales/floor space.
Increase sales and product visibility by placing POS material and encouraging promotion participation within accounts.
Execute weekly on premise promotions and off-site special events that generate brand awareness, increase distribution and additional sales.

Outside sales representative example responsibilities.

Manage and maintain a weekly quota for broadband, and other wireless products.
Utilize CRM database to manage and track prospect interaction to ensure accurate documentation of window requirements and ongoing communication.
Web dev, SEO, PPC etc . )
Participate in the launching and marketing of broadband internet in Orlando with great success.
Provide care, materials, and essential tools for doctors and nurses working on patients in the E.R.
Create and maintain successful business partnerships with customers by analyzing, meeting and understanding their needs and patients needs.

Area sales representative vs outside sales representative skills

Common area sales representative skills

Customer Service, 24%
Business Development, 17%
Sales Process, 15%
Customer Relations, 7%
Product Knowledge, 4%
Territory Sales, 3%

Common outside sales representative skills

Customer Service, 17%
Work Ethic, 8%
Sales Process, 4%
Business Sales, 4%
Cold Calls, 4%
Product Knowledge, 4%

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Area Sales Representative
Area Sales Representative vs Outside Sales Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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