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The differences between inside product specialists and sales specialists 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 a sales specialist. Additionally, a sales specialist has an average salary of $53,004, 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 a sales specialist are building relationships, customer complaints, and customer orders.
| Inside Product Specialist | Sales Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $34,230 | $53,004 |
| Hourly rate | $16.46 | $25.48 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 79,599 | 324,069 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| 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.
A sales specialist is responsible for offering the best goods and services to customers in order to boost the company's sales. Sales specialists also promote strategies and solutions to contribute to the company's growth and profitability. A sales specialist must have extensive knowledge of the current market trends and the best sales skills to perform marketing tasks. Sales specialists should have excellent communication and customer service skills to assist existing and potential clients with their inquiries and concerns.
Inside product specialists and sales specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Inside Product Specialist | Sales Specialist | |
| Average salary | $34,230 | $53,004 |
| Salary range | Between $23,000 And $49,000 | Between $30,000 And $91,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | - | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | - | VMware |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between an inside product specialist and a sales specialist in terms of educational background:
| Inside Product Specialist | Sales Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| 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 sales specialists' demographics:
| Inside Product Specialist | Sales Specialist | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 72.7% Female, 27.3% | Male, 55.1% Female, 44.9% |
| 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, 14.2% Asian, 5.1% White, 72.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |