Head of sales vs national sales manager

The differences between heads of sales and national 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 head of sales and a national sales manager. Additionally, a head of sales has an average salary of $166,100, which is higher than the $102,742 average annual salary of a national sales manager.

The top three skills for a head of sales include CRM, sales strategy and sales organization. The most important skills for a national sales manager are customer service, product development, and trade shows.

Head of sales vs national sales manager overview

	Head Of Sales	National Sales Manager
Yearly salary	$166,100	$102,742
Hourly rate	$79.86	$49.40
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	112,592	94,554
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	8	8

What does a head of sales do?

The head of sales is primarily responsible for overseeing the sales performance of a company and devising strategies to optimize practices. Their responsibilities typically revolve around monitoring the progress of every sales effort, setting objectives and deadlines, performing research and analysis to identify sales opportunities, and coordinating with different departments to improve procedures and reach sales targets. Furthermore, as the head of sales, it is essential to lead and encourage the workforce, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.

What does a national sales manager do?

A national sales manager is responsible for leading a large group of sales teams, monitoring sales performance, and implementing strategic sales procedures to drive revenues and achieve the organization's profitability goals. National sales managers identify business opportunities by analyzing current market trends and closing business partnerships to boost the company's brand popularity and attract more customers. They also monitor marketing strategies and negotiate continuous agreements with existing customers to keep them purchasing the company's services. A national sales manager creates sales forecasts, ensuring that the services provided by the organization align with the standard budget goals.

Head of sales vs national sales manager salary

Heads of sales and national sales managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Head Of Sales	National Sales Manager
Average salary	$166,100	$102,742
Salary range	Between $110,000 And $248,000	Between $67,000 And $155,000
Highest paying City	Portland, OR	Hartford, CT
Highest paying state	Vermont	Washington
Best paying company	Flexport	NetApp
Best paying industry	Technology	Manufacturing

Differences between head of sales and national sales manager education

There are a few differences between a head of sales and a national sales manager in terms of educational background:

	Head Of Sales	National Sales Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of Southern California

Head of sales vs national sales manager demographics

Here are the differences between heads of sales' and national sales managers' demographics:

	Head Of Sales	National Sales Manager
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 66.5% Female, 33.5%	Male, 80.4% Female, 19.6%
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%

Differences between head of sales and national sales manager duties and responsibilities

Head of sales example responsibilities.

Coordinate social media work (Facebook, apps, and social post within the managed brands).
Create, and manage social media initiatives.including facebook, twitter, instagram, pinterest, and youtube.3.
Full responsibility for all sales activities for a start-up electronic commerce company managing electronic data flow in the healthcare industry.
Establish the group sales strategy, group ceiling, and booking calendar for groups.
Initiate and execute a customer service development program, CRM implementation and adoption.
Advance c-level and senior relationships with brand, agency, networks and publishers.

National sales manager example responsibilities.

Manage nationwide SAAS sales team, train, hire, develop territories, create budgets, marketing and sales development.
Manage relationships with clients via CRM, conducted/coordinate city wide site visits, craft creative presentations, proposals and bid packets.
Lead team on product redesign to web-base SaaS infrastructure and generate feature content base on customer need and marketability.
Introduce a foreign manufacture into a dominant domestic automotive and aerospace markets while achieving business goals and domestic tool production plans.
Experience with on-line, call center, recruitment with the use of Salesforce software.
Implement CRM tool tailor specifically for the collegiate market, creating equity and accountability in the inside and outside sales force.

Head of sales vs national sales manager skills

Common head of sales skills

CRM, 8%
Sales Strategy, 7%
Sales Organization, 5%
Product Knowledge, 5%
Business Development, 5%
Sales Operations, 5%

Common national sales manager skills

Customer Service, 10%
Product Development, 10%
Trade Shows, 7%
Sales Growth, 6%
Sales Strategies, 5%
Business Development, 4%

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Head Of Sales vs National Sales Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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