What does a commercial sales manager do?
Commercial sales managers have various duties and responsibilities. These include managing marketing campaigns via phone, direct mail, and the internet, supervising the sales executive teams to develop and maintaining good relations with healthcare professionals, and managing client relationships and identifying opportunities for new business. Additional duties include evaluating supply chain and logistics infrastructure, negotiating contract terms, and bidding on new projects. Commercial sales managers are also responsible for overseeing the company's business growth, identifying areas that can be developed, and generating quotes for prospective customers.
Commercial sales manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real commercial sales manager resumes:
- Lead efforts on the renewable energy, energy efficiency and GHG goals & KPI's.
- Manage the commercial agreements between Rolls-Royce and their customers (airline owners and/or operators) in the Americas region.
- Analyze and manage export-import logistics for select Chilean products import to Spain.
- Manage a team of sales executives to establish and maintain professional relationships with healthcare professionals in their prospective territories.
- Produce accurate KPI reports for strategic and tactical decision making.
- Experience in apply, commercial and residential HVAC products and installation accessories.
- Redesign variable sales compensation plan, build KPI s, and institute CRM requirements.
- Leverage CRM software to provide a level of follow-up and service unique to the industry.
- Provide vision and content for numerous sales tools and promotional campaigns to support the sale of business and treasury management services.
- Launch U.S. subsidiary of third-party logistics company.
- Design and estimate HVAC systems for commercial and residential installation.
- Channele marketing through the establishment of international distributors servicing Mexico (Hermosillo, Mexicali, and Tijuana) and Korea.
- Focuse sales efforts on both large OEM's and job shops.
- Add several large OEM's to the customer base increasing market share and resulting in greater market diversification.
- Create marketing content for pages and promotional initiatives, newsletter design and implementation, create designed and produce PowerPoint presentations.
Commercial sales manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 59% of Commercial Sales Managers are proficient in Customer Service, Sales Targets, and CRM. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Customer-service skills.
We break down the percentage of Commercial Sales Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Customer Service, 59%
Provided exceptional customer service to all current and prospective customers always meeting or exceeding their automotive needs and expectations.
- Sales Targets, 36%
Established and implemented business plans and sales targets to attain business development objectives.
- CRM, 1%
SAP Anywhere is a full front office suit including CRM, Order Management, Inventory Management and POS among other things.
- Customer Satisfaction, 0%
Work closely with customers and up-fitters providing technical guidance on a face-to-face basis in order to insure customer satisfaction.
- Product Knowledge, 0%
Recruited pro sales account representatives and enhanced product knowledge training.
- Work Ethic, 0%
Promoted to Assistant Store Manager as a reward for good work ethic and high sales rate
"customer service," "sales targets," and "crm" are among the most common skills that commercial sales managers use at work. You can find even more commercial sales manager responsibilities below, including:
Analytical skills. One of the key soft skills for a commercial sales manager to have is analytical skills. You can see how this relates to what commercial sales managers do because "sales managers must collect and interpret complex data to target the most promising geographic areas and demographic groups, and determine the most effective sales strategies." Additionally, a commercial sales manager resume shows how commercial sales managers use analytical skills: "train new sales representatives in product presentation, market analysis, and customer relations. "
Communication skills. Another essential skill to perform commercial sales manager duties is communication skills. Commercial sales managers responsibilities require that "sales managers need to work with colleagues and customers, so they must be able to communicate clearly." Commercial sales managers also use communication skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "conducted accurate communications with staff regarding customer feedback, gross profit analysis, average monthly sales and future sales projections. "
Customer-service skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of commercial sales managers is customer-service skills. This skill is critical to many everyday commercial sales manager duties, as "when helping to make a sale, sales managers must listen and respond to the customer’s needs." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "demonstrated extensive knowledge of product lines handled by the corporation and is able to relate this information to customers. "
Leadership skills. A big part of what commercial sales managers do relies on "leadership skills." You can see how essential it is to commercial sales manager responsibilities because "sales managers must be able to evaluate how their sales staff performs and must develop strategies for meeting sales goals." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical commercial sales manager tasks: "provide sales management and leadership to a team of 17 sales executives in the achievement of a multimillion dollar sales plan. "
The three companies that hire the most commercial sales managers are:
- AutoZone4,770 commercial sales managers jobs
- TripActions8 commercial sales managers jobs
- Amazon4 commercial sales managers jobs
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Compare different commercial sales managers
Commercial sales manager vs. Product manager/sales
A sales product manager is responsible for monitoring the sales performance of a specific product and ensuring that the marketing strategies adhere to market standards and client requirements. Sales product managers work closely with the marketing and public relations team to enhance the product's brand image on various market platforms to reach the target audience. They also conduct data and statistical analysis to identify business opportunities that would generate more revenue resources and increase the company's profitability.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between commercial sales managers and product manager/sales. For instance, commercial sales manager responsibilities require skills such as "sales targets," "work ethic," "sales professionals," and "cold calls." Whereas a product manager/sales is skilled in "product sales," "pos," "product management," and "cycle management." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Product managers/sales tend to make the most money working in the education industry, where they earn an average salary of $108,541. In contrast, commercial sales managers make the biggest average salary, $90,326, in the manufacturing industry.The education levels that product managers/sales earn slightly differ from commercial sales managers. In particular, product managers/sales are 2.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a commercial sales manager. Additionally, they're 0.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Commercial sales manager vs. Sales account manager
The account sales manager is in charge of the retention of their customer relationship. They have to supervise the portfolio of existing clients, develop new business with them, and seek new sales opportunities. Account sales managers act as liaisons between the company and customer as well as build strong, long-lasting relationships by providing an improved customer experience. It is their responsibility to negotiate contracts and close deals to maximize sales profits. Also, they forecast track sales results and prepare reports on account status.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that commercial sales manager responsibilities requires skills like "hvac," "sales professionals," "business plan," and "commercial vehicles." But a sales account manager might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "powerpoint," "sales process," "sales territory," and "excellent interpersonal."
Sales account managers may earn a lower salary than commercial sales managers, but sales account managers earn the most pay in the technology industry with an average salary of $68,777. On the other hand, commercial sales managers receive higher pay in the manufacturing industry, where they earn an average salary of $90,326.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Sales account managers tend to reach similar levels of education than commercial sales managers. In fact, they're 0.2% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for commercial sales managers in the next 3-5 years?
Bill Thorne
Executive Director of the NRF Foundation and Senior Vice President of Communication and Public Affairs of NRF, National Retail Federation
Commercial sales manager vs. Business development sales manager
A business development sales manager is in charge of securing sales by reaching out to clients through calls, correspondence, or appointments. Their responsibilities often revolve around performing research and analysis to identify new leads and sales opportunities, offering different products and services, and creating proposals and price quotes for potential clients. A business development sales manager may also tailor payment plans, process billing, participate in various marketing initiatives, and produce progress reports. Furthermore, it is essential to ensure customer satisfaction and build positive relationships to strengthen the company's client base.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from commercial sales manager resumes include skills like "customer satisfaction," "work ethic," "project management," and "hvac," whereas a business development sales manager is more likely to list skills in "healthcare," "salesforce," "relationship building," and "sales process. "
Business development sales managers earn the highest salary when working in the professional industry, where they receive an average salary of $130,807. Comparatively, commercial sales managers have the highest earning potential in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $90,326.business development sales managers typically earn similar educational levels compared to commercial sales managers. Specifically, they're 4.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Commercial sales manager vs. Sales team manager
A sales team manager is responsible for monitoring the sales performance and goals of an organization by strategizing on efficient techniques to sell goods and services to customers. Sales team managers identify business opportunities by analyzing the current market trends that would increase the company's revenues and profitability. They also provide training for the sales team members to maximize their efficiency and increase productivity. A sales team manager must have excellent communication and leadership skills, especially in developing sales plans to achieve sales targets.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between commercial sales managers and sales team managers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a commercial sales manager might have more use for skills like "customer service," "sales targets," "work ethic," and "project management." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of sales team managers require skills like "grass," "sales floor," "customer care," and "customer traffic. "
The average resume of sales team managers showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to commercial sales managers. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 0.7% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.0%.Types of commercial sales manager
Updated January 8, 2025
