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The differences between inside sales account executives 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 sales account executive and a sales specialist. Additionally, an inside sales account executive has an average salary of $63,049, which is higher than the $53,004 average annual salary of a sales specialist.
The top three skills for an inside sales account executive include strong work ethic, customer service and CRM. The most important skills for a sales specialist are building relationships, customer complaints, and customer orders.
| Inside Sales Account Executive | Sales Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $63,049 | $53,004 |
| Hourly rate | $30.31 | $25.48 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 262,582 | 324,069 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
An inside sales account executive is responsible for handling the sales performance of multiple client accounts, ensuring that the project management processes reach target sales goals and business objectives. Inside sales account executives work with the sales and marketing team to develop effective marketing strategies and promotional techniques to boost brand awareness to the market and target audience. They also analyze the current industry trends, identifying business opportunities to generate resources for revenues, and improve project plans according to clients' specifications and budget limitations.
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 sales account executives and sales specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Inside Sales Account Executive | Sales Specialist | |
| Average salary | $63,049 | $53,004 |
| Salary range | Between $37,000 And $104,000 | Between $30,000 And $91,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | California | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | VMware | |
| Best paying industry | Technology | - |
There are a few differences between an inside sales account executive and a sales specialist in terms of educational background:
| Inside Sales Account Executive | Sales Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | 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 sales account executives' and sales specialists' demographics:
| Inside Sales Account Executive | Sales Specialist | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 59.4% Female, 40.6% | Male, 55.1% Female, 44.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.4% 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% |