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The differences between direct sales 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 direct sales manager and a sales manager. Additionally, a direct sales manager has an average salary of $120,139, which is higher than the $73,952 average annual salary of a sales manager.
The top three skills for a direct sales manager include sales professionals, account executives and customer service. The most important skills for a sales manager are product knowledge, customer satisfaction, and sales performance.
| Direct Sales Manager | Sales Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $120,139 | $73,952 |
| Hourly rate | $57.76 | $35.55 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 140,506 | 119,066 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 8 | 8 |
Direct sales managers are individuals who take responsibility for leading and guiding sales people within an organization. It is the job of the sales managers to set the goals and quotas, create sales plans, and analyze data. They assign sales territories and conduct sales training. They serve as mentors for sales team members and involve in the recruitment and dismissal process. Also, they foresee sales and identify product and service profitability for the company.
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.
Direct sales managers and sales managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Direct Sales Manager | Sales Manager | |
| Average salary | $120,139 | $73,952 |
| Salary range | Between $80,000 And $178,000 | Between $42,000 And $129,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Jersey City, NJ |
| Highest paying state | - | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | - | Capgemini |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a direct sales manager and a sales manager in terms of educational background:
| Direct Sales Manager | Sales Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | 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 direct sales managers' and sales managers' demographics:
| Direct Sales Manager | Sales Manager | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 61.9% Female, 38.1% | 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% |