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The differences between general sales managers and directors of sales can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-8 years to become both a general sales manager and a director of sales. Additionally, a general sales manager has an average salary of $118,744, which is higher than the $111,068 average annual salary of a director of sales.
The top three skills for a general sales manager include customer service, dealership and customer satisfaction. The most important skills for a director of sales are sales process, customer service, and customer satisfaction.
| General Sales Manager | Director Of Sales | |
| Yearly salary | $118,744 | $111,068 |
| Hourly rate | $57.09 | $53.40 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 196,210 | 91,891 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 77% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 8 | 8 |
General sales managers are responsible for monitoring the daily operation of the sales team and analyze marketing strategies to improve sales performance and generate more revenues. General sales managers develop strategic plans, adjust sales quotas as needed, identify business opportunities, research current market trends, and evaluate the annual budget. General sales managers also respond to the customers' inquiries and high-level complaints, providing immediate resolutions to ensure customer satisfaction. A general sales manager must have excellent communication and leadership skills to handle the sales department, especially on sales techniques in reaching the business' profitability goals.
A sales director is responsible for managing the sales operation of the team, ensuring that members comply with the sales strategies and procedures in meeting sales goals. Sales directors' duties include maintaining consistency of sales targets, providing reports and important updates for sales improvement, managing customers' inquiries and resolving complaints, launching new services to expand product offers, researching the current market trends, and improving sales plans. A sales director must have excellent leadership and decision-making skills to support and acknowledge the team's best efforts.
General sales managers and directors of sales have different pay scales, as shown below.
| General Sales Manager | Director Of Sales | |
| Average salary | $118,744 | $111,068 |
| Salary range | Between $71,000 And $196,000 | Between $73,000 And $168,000 |
| Highest paying City | Westport, CT | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Maine | New York |
| Best paying company | Meta | Mayo Clinic |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Finance |
There are a few differences between a general sales manager and a director of sales in terms of educational background:
| General Sales Manager | Director Of Sales | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 77% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Southern California | University of Southern California |
Here are the differences between general sales managers' and directors of sales' demographics:
| General Sales Manager | Director Of Sales | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 85.5% Female, 14.5% | Male, 69.4% Female, 30.6% |
| 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% |