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The differences between consumer sales associates and commercial sales associates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a consumer sales associate has an average salary of $79,429, which is higher than the $55,859 average annual salary of a commercial sales associate.
The top three skills for a consumer sales associate include product knowledge, customer service and outbound calls. The most important skills for a commercial sales associate are cash handling, financial statements, and treasury.
A Consumer Sales Associate works on the sales floor to assist customers so that they can have a positive shopping experience. Their responsibilities include greeting customers, identifying their needs and preferences, answering inquiries, helping locate items, and offering promotions. There are instances when they must discuss product specifications, conduct product demonstrations, and produce sales reports. There are instances when they may also participate in arranging products on shelves, resolving issues, and maintaining the cleanliness of the sales floor.
A commercial sales associate specializes in representing a company to offer products and services to businesses and organizations, ensuring efficiency and client satisfaction. Their responsibilities include performing research and analysis to identify business and client opportunities, pursuing leads, reaching out through calls and correspondence, arranging appointments, explaining or demonstrating products, and negotiating contracts. Aside from securing sales with businesses, a commercial sales associate must also perform clerical tasks such as producing progress reports and presentations, arranging schedules, and maintaining records of all transactions, all while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.
Consumer sales associates and commercial sales associates have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Consumer Sales Associate | Commercial Sales Associate | |
| Average salary | $79,429 | $55,859 |
| Salary range | Between $49,000 And $128,000 | Between $28,000 And $111,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | Glen Cove, NY |
| Highest paying state | New York | Maine |
| Best paying company | The Citadel | AstraZeneca |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a consumer sales associate and a commercial sales associate in terms of educational background:
| Consumer Sales Associate | Commercial Sales Associate | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 52% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred |
Here are the differences between consumer sales associates' and commercial sales associates' demographics:
| Consumer Sales Associate | Commercial Sales Associate | |
| Average age | 41 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 52.1% Female, 47.9% | Male, 71.0% Female, 29.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.1% Asian, 7.6% White, 58.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 6% |