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The differences between commercial account managers and sales managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-8 years to become both a commercial account manager and a sales manager. Additionally, a sales manager has an average salary of $73,952, which is higher than the $59,175 average annual salary of a commercial account manager.
The top three skills for a commercial account manager include customer service, CRM and account management. The most important skills for a sales manager are product knowledge, customer satisfaction, and sales performance.
| Commercial Account Manager | Sales Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $59,175 | $73,952 |
| Hourly rate | $28.45 | $35.55 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 166,435 | 119,066 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 8 | 8 |
A commercial account manager's role is to offer products and services to businesses and firms, building positive relationships to establish a strong client base. Their responsibilities often revolve around performing research and market analysis to find sales opportunities, devising strategies to identify client needs, and maintaining records of all data and transactions. They may also reach out to potential clients through calls and correspondence, even arrange appointments to discuss products and negotiate sales. Furthermore, as a commercial account manager, it is essential to lead and encourage the workforce, all while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.
Sales managers are responsible for leading the organization's sales team. They oversee the progress and performance of the whole team, set area assignments to team members, and set weekly or monthly quotas. Sales managers oversee training team members during onboarding and providing further coaching to help them achieve their goals. They manage the challenges that team members may meet and help mitigate any problems that come along the way. Sales managers also set the strategic direction of the sales team and follow through by ensuring that the team's activities are in line with the goals.
Commercial account managers and sales managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Commercial Account Manager | Sales Manager | |
| Average salary | $59,175 | $73,952 |
| Salary range | Between $41,000 And $84,000 | Between $42,000 And $129,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Jersey City, NJ |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | VMware | Capgemini |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | - |
There are a few differences between a commercial account manager and a sales manager in terms of educational background:
| Commercial Account Manager | Sales Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Southern California | University of Southern California |
Here are the differences between commercial account managers' and sales managers' demographics:
| Commercial Account Manager | Sales Manager | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 60.1% Female, 39.9% | Male, 68.7% Female, 31.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.2% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 4.1% White, 78.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.2% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 4.1% White, 78.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |