What does a distribution sales manager do?
A distribution sales manager is tasked to find whole and retail sellers to distribute goods and services. Alongside distribution, the manager's tasks include monitoring all sales, orders, product performance, and retailer feedback to further improve the product. The distribution manager must also have skills in email marketing, B2B correspondence, engage with potential clients and customers, and ensuring all orders are fulfilled on time and without delays.
Distribution sales manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real distribution sales manager resumes:
- Manage a distributor network throughout EMEA.
- Travele to Quito Ecuador to manage opening of Latin American site.
- Work as part of a team to achieve ISO 9002 certification.
- Arrange and manage the approval process for EU and Australian product markings.
- Manage directly a budget of $1.1MM for POS, events, and incentives ,.
- Manage POS inventory levels and all POS purchasing, including evaluating potential suppliers and cost effectiveness.
- Interact with manufacturers, freight forwarders and sales agency to ensure all PO terms are follow up accurately.
- Develop wholesale business with freight forwarders assisting with establishing DGX / DHX as one of the leading co-load providers.
- Visit new agents in UK and Europe to introduce company and outline product ranges and company objectives.
- Manage, plan and implement strategic sales strategy for the entire Caribbean market on monthly, quarterly basis.
- Manage a network of distributors throughout the Caribbean to ensure that adequate orders and inventory levels are consistently keep.
- Provide strategic development and management of major OEM accounts for an assign territory.
- Provide expertise and leadership during the successful acquisition and formation of a UK base manufacturing facility.
- Partner with distributors developing sales and marketing strategies to penetrate new markets, including the capitalization of existing OEM relationships.
- Trade delegation trips to Guatemala, Ecuador, Brazil, and Indonesia for marketing research and sales purposes.
Distribution sales manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 21% of Distribution Sales Managers are proficient in Customer Service, Customer Complaints, and Sales People. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Customer-service skills.
We break down the percentage of Distribution Sales Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Customer Service, 21%
Provided personal customer service coordinated my distributors and maintained customer satisfaction by selling natural plant based wellness products.
- Customer Complaints, 9%
Resolved customer complaints by investigating problems, developing solutions and suggesting recommendations to management.
- Sales People, 7%
Performed on site training of new product and made buddy calls with the sales people.
- Product Line, 7%
Assessed customer needs and designed solutions that retained and expanded product lines that maximized profitably.
- Retail Store, 6%
Identified new channels of distribution by prospecting and qualifying possible new retail store owners in the U.S. and Mexico.
- Business Development, 6%
Facilitated business development by collaborating with distributors as technical resources and addressing architects and engineers regarding technical aspects of manufactured products.
Common skills that a distribution sales manager uses to do their job include "customer service," "customer complaints," and "sales people." You can find details on the most important distribution sales manager responsibilities below.
Analytical skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a distribution sales manager to have is analytical skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "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." Distribution sales managers often use analytical skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "analyzed and evaluated the effectiveness of distributor sales reps through the use of scorecards. "
Communication skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling distribution sales manager duties is communication skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "sales managers need to work with colleagues and customers, so they must be able to communicate clearly." According to a distribution sales manager resume, here's how distribution sales managers can utilize communication skills in their job responsibilities: "assisted customers with orders * sold electronic devices * customer support/telecommunication"
Customer-service skills. This is an important skill for distribution sales managers to perform their duties. For an example of how distribution sales manager responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "when helping to make a sale, sales managers must listen and respond to the customer’s needs." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a distribution sales manager: "carried out direct sales weekly to existing customers while building relationships by securing new customers. ".
Leadership skills. For certain distribution sales manager responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "leadership skills." The day-to-day duties of a distribution sales manager rely on this skill, as "sales managers must be able to evaluate how their sales staff performs and must develop strategies for meeting sales goals." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what distribution sales managers do: "attended sales training camp and brought best practices leadership back to the company. "
The three companies that hire the most distribution sales managers are:
- Qualcomm7 distribution sales managers jobs
- Accenture6 distribution sales managers jobs
- Rain Bird6 distribution sales managers jobs
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Compare different distribution sales managers
Distribution 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.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a distribution sales manager are more likely to require skills like "retail store," "route sales," "erp," and "sales territory." On the other hand, a job as a product manager/sales requires skills like "product management," "cycle management," "product development," and "project management." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Product managers/sales earn the highest salaries when working in the education industry, with an average yearly salary of $108,541. On the other hand, distribution sales managers are paid more in the technology industry with an average salary of $88,153.The education levels that product managers/sales earn slightly differ from distribution sales managers. In particular, product managers/sales are 0.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a distribution sales manager. Additionally, they're 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Distribution sales manager vs. Regional sales and marketing manager
A regional sales and marketing manager's role is to oversee a company's marketing operations, ensuring efficiency and smooth workflow. Their responsibilities include performing research and analysis to identify new business opportunities, gathering and analyzing data to determine the strengths and weaknesses of current programs and procedures, setting goals and budgets, assessing the performance of the workforce, and monitoring the progress of the different company branches within the region. Furthermore, as a regional sales and marketing manager, it is essential to lead and encourage the employees to reach goals, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that distribution sales manager responsibilities requires skills like "customer service," "customer complaints," "retail store," and "route sales." But a regional sales and marketing manager might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "digital marketing," "customer satisfaction," "sales process," and "regional sales."
Regional sales and marketing managers earn a higher average salary than distribution sales managers. But regional sales and marketing managers earn the highest pay in the automotive industry, with an average salary of $100,223. Additionally, distribution sales managers earn the highest salaries in the technology with average pay of $88,153 annually.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Regional sales and marketing managers tend to reach similar levels of education than distribution sales managers. In fact, they're 1.9% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for distribution 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
Distribution 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.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from distribution sales manager resumes include skills like "sales people," "retail store," "route sales," and "market trends," whereas a sales account manager is more likely to list skills in "crm," "customer satisfaction," "account management," and "powerpoint. "
Sales account managers earn the best pay in the technology industry, where they command an average salary of $68,777. Distribution sales managers earn the highest pay from the technology industry, with an average salary of $88,153.When it comes to education, sales account managers tend to earn similar degree levels compared to distribution sales managers. In fact, they're 2.7% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Distribution sales manager vs. Sales/field sales manager
Sales or Field Sales Managers oversee the group in charge of conducting sales activities outside of the office or company branches. They manage field sales employees by hiring and training them. They also set goals on a weekly or monthly basis. They provide strategic direction to ensure that these goals are met. They monitor the performance of the team and identify areas for improvement. They would then create programs to address these challenges. Field Sales Managers should be familiar with the company's target market. They should also be familiar with the scope of area operations. This would help them create strategies in the context of their target market. Field sales managers should have a strong sales background and a determined attitude.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between distribution sales managers and sales/field sales managers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a distribution sales manager might have more use for skills like "customer complaints," "sales people," "retail store," and "customer relations." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of sales/field sales managers require skills like "lead generation," "account management," "training sessions," and "powerpoint. "
In general, sales/field sales managers earn the most working in the professional industry, with an average salary of $80,605. The highest-paying industry for a distribution sales manager is the technology industry.sales/field sales managers reach similar levels of education compared to distribution sales managers, in general. The difference is that they're 4.3% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.2% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of distribution sales manager
Updated January 8, 2025
