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The differences between field sales representatives and executive sales representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a field sales representative, becoming an executive sales representative takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, an executive sales representative has an average salary of $78,858, which is higher than the $48,460 average annual salary of a field sales representative.
The top three skills for a field sales representative include excellent time management, customer service and powerpoint. The most important skills for an executive sales representative are patients, product knowledge, and oncology.
| Field Sales Representative | Executive Sales Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $48,460 | $78,858 |
| Hourly rate | $23.30 | $37.91 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 228,254 | 226,902 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 79% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 2 |
A field sales representative is an employee who is employed by business-to-business (B2B) and wholesale organizations to visit leads and sell products or services to their customers in person. Field sales representatives must attract new customers and win new accounts so that they can maximize profitability within their territory. They travel around their assigned territory and visit their customers regularly to educate them on how their products can benefit them. Field sales representatives must also maintain records of all sales leads and monitor the organization's competitor, new products, and market conditions.
An executive sales representative researches and recommends business opportunities. They analyze sales alternatives and help build business relations with clients and prospects. They must keep updated on business trends and potential competitors to best recommend new product ideas. They must be open-minded, risk-takers, adaptive, and innovative to be able to develop successful marketing strategies. It is also necessary for them to be highly skilled at business analysis to distinguish selling opportunities and create an immediate action plan.
Field sales representatives and executive sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Field Sales Representative | Executive Sales Representative | |
| Average salary | $48,460 | $78,858 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $88,000 | Between $48,000 And $128,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | - |
| Highest paying state | Washington | - |
| Best paying company | VMware | - |
| Best paying industry | Technology | - |
There are a few differences between a field sales representative and an executive sales representative in terms of educational background:
| Field Sales Representative | Executive Sales Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 79% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between field sales representatives' and executive sales representatives' demographics:
| Field Sales Representative | Executive Sales Representative | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 69.5% Female, 30.5% | Male, 53.7% Female, 46.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |