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The differences between inside product specialists and outside sales can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an inside product specialist and an outside sales. Additionally, an outside sales has an average salary of $77,292, which is higher than the $34,230 average annual salary of an inside product specialist.
The top three skills for an inside product specialist include sales process, service offerings and customer relationships. The most important skills for an outside sales are customer service, product knowledge, and ongoing support.
| Inside Product Specialist | Outside Sales | |
| Yearly salary | $34,230 | $77,292 |
| Hourly rate | $16.46 | $37.16 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 79,599 | 333,400 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
An Inside Product Specialist is typically in charge of securing product sales by reaching out to potential customers and businesses through calls and correspondence, building positive client relationships along the way. They offer products and services, discuss product specifications, introduce promotions, answer inquiries, arrange payment plans, and even process payments. Their responsibilities also include conducting research and analysis to find client and business opportunities, generating leads, and maintaining transaction records. Inside Product Specialists may perform follow-up calls, negotiate contracts, and address issues and concerns, resolving them promptly and efficiently.
An outside sales representative is responsible for generating the company's sales and revenues by offering goods and services to existing and potential clients, responding to the customers' inquiries and concerns about the products, and researching on possible leads. Outside sales representatives monitor the current industry trends to identify new business opportunities that would help the business adjust to market changes to achieve profitability goals. An outside sales representative must have excellent communication and customer service skills, immediately resolving complaints and assisting on marketing promotions to gain sales prospects.
Inside product specialists and outside sales have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Inside Product Specialist | Outside Sales | |
| Average salary | $34,230 | $77,292 |
| Salary range | Between $23,000 And $49,000 | Between $56,000 And $104,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Arlington, VA |
| Highest paying state | - | New Hampshire |
| Best paying company | - | Morgan Stanley |
| Best paying industry | - | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between an inside product specialist and an outside sales in terms of educational background:
| Inside Product Specialist | Outside Sales | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred |
Here are the differences between inside product specialists' and outside sales' demographics:
| Inside Product Specialist | Outside Sales | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 72.7% Female, 27.3% | Male, 78.3% Female, 21.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.3% 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, 72.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |