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What is an executive sales representative and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
3 min read
Quoted experts
Frederik Beuk,
John Cicala Ph.D.
introduction image

Executive sales representatives are responsible for conducting market research to identify selling possibilities and evaluating customer needs. They actively seek out new sales opportunities through cold calling, networking, and social media while setting up meetings with potential clients and listening to their wishes and concerns. Executive sales representatives earn an average salary of $102,000 annually or $49 per hour.

Executive sales representatives ensure the availability of stock for sales and demonstrations while participating on behalf of the company in exhibitions or conferences. They negotiate/close deals and handle complaints or objections while collaborating with team members to achieve better results. They also gather feedback from customers or prospects and share it with internal teams. These representatives contribute to the company's rapid and sustainable growth by helping them meet and surpass business expectations.

Executive sales representatives typically hold a high school diploma or its equivalent. They are expected to have proven experience as a sales executive or a relevant role. Some employers prefer candidates with excellent knowledge of MS Office and a thorough understanding of marketing and negotiating techniques.

What general advice would you give to an executive sales representative?

Frederik Beuk

Associate Professor of Marketing, University of Akron

The key consideration is whether you really want to maximize your initial salary. For instance, envision two job opportunities: one offering a salary of $50,000 per year, where you'd be the most junior team member, and the other providing $75,000 per year, with the caveat that you would be the sole sales representative for the firm. The optimal choice is to prioritize learning opportunities. In this context, being the lone salesperson for a company that compensates its highest-earning sales professional $75,000 might not be your superior option. Instead, seek a position that offers the greatest potential for learning. Subsequently, demonstrate your negotiating prowess, a critical sales skill, by securing a slightly higher salary. However, it's essential not to fixate on maximizing your starting salary. Your career requires a long-term strategy, and you have several decades ahead of you to maximize income.
ScoreExecutive Sales RepresentativeUS Average
Salary
6.2

Avg. Salary $78,858

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
7.6

Growth rate 4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
3.8
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.23%

Asian 5.16%

Black or African American 3.85%

Hispanic or Latino 14.31%

Unknown 3.71%

White 72.73%

Gender

female 46.30%

male 53.70%

Age - 48
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 48
Stress level
7.6

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level
8.8

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance
3.6

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Executive sales representative career paths

Key steps to become an executive sales representative

  1. Explore executive sales representative education requirements

    Most common executive sales representative degrees

    Bachelor's

    79.5 %

    Master's

    8.1 %

    Associate

    7.0 %
  2. Start to develop specific executive sales representative skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Patients9.83%
    Product Knowledge9.80%
    Oncology7.78%
    Account Management7.50%
    Territory Management6.67%
  3. Complete relevant executive sales representative training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New executive sales representatives learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an executive sales representative based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real executive sales representative resumes.
  4. Research executive sales representative duties and responsibilities

    • Position products above the competition, utilizing data, manage care information and patient benefit to promote the Novartis brands.
    • Achieve sales growth objectives by incorporating product/technical knowledge, teamwork, customer and multi-product focus, innovation and creativity.
    • Call on customers in oncology, pulmonology urology, cardiology, neurology, OB/GYN, psychiatry, gastroenterology and primary care.
    • Promote diabetes medications to family practice, general practice, internal medicine physicians and diabetic educators.
  5. Get executive sales representative experience

    Generally, it takes 1-2 years to become an executive sales representative. The most common roles before becoming an executive sales representative include sales representative, senior sales representative team lead and account executive.
  6. Prepare your executive sales representative resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your executive sales representative resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an executive sales representative resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable executive sales representative resume templates

    Build a professional executive sales representative resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your executive sales representative resume.
    Executive Sales Representative Resume
    Executive Sales Representative Resume
    Executive Sales Representative Resume
    Executive Sales Representative Resume
    Executive Sales Representative Resume
    Executive Sales Representative Resume
    Executive Sales Representative Resume
    Executive Sales Representative Resume
    Executive Sales Representative Resume
  7. Apply for executive sales representative jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for an executive sales representative job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first executive sales representative job

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Average executive sales representative salary

The average executive sales representative salary in the United States is $78,858 per year or $38 per hour. Executive sales representative salaries range between $48,000 and $128,000 per year.

Average executive sales representative salary
$78,858 Yearly
$37.91 hourly

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How do executive sales representatives rate their job?

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Executive sales representative reviews

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A zippia user wrote a review on Jul 2020
Cons

Felt like I was chained to the table, changes were made on a daily basis, and work became a race against the clock for 9 hours. Managers look down at you as a number on their chart and not a human being, good workers became poor workers, great workers were barely good, and the robots working exactly as needed were the only ones lucky enough to escape the cubicle prison.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Jun 2020
Pros

Communicating and helping my clients.

Cons

The travel was extensive. Sometimes. It took more than month to close a deaĺ.


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A zippia user wrote a review on May 2020
Pros

i enjoy the interaction with people, listen the customer in order to convert him/her into your friend, detect and help customer with his/her needs.

Cons

People without vision, dreams and selfishness.


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.