How to hire an inside sales associate

How to hire an inside sales associate, step by step

Here's a step-by-step inside sales associate hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write an inside sales associate job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new inside sales associate
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does an inside sales associate do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the inside sales associate you need to hire. Certain inside sales associate roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   An inside sales associate's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, inside sales associates from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   Here's a comparison of inside sales associate salaries for various roles:

   Type of Inside Sales Associate	Description	Hourly rate
   Inside Sales Associate	Wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives sell goods for wholesalers or manufacturers to businesses, government agencies, and other organizations. They contact customers, explain product features, answer any questions that their customers may have, and negotiate prices.	$14-25
   Sales Development Representative	A sales development representative qualifies leads at the sales funnel's initial stages. Sales development representatives need to conduct research for prospective clients and qualify the leads before handing them to the sales team... Show more	$16-37
   Sales Internship	Sales internship is a program that requires work in the business and sales development. Sales interns work as assistants to managers and senior staff... Show more	$12-21

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Inside Sales
   • Sales Associates
   • Strong Customer Service
   • Sales Process
   • Customer Satisfaction
   • Sales Floor
   • Data Entry
   • Work Ethic
   • CRM
   • Phone Calls
   • Plumbing
   • Product Knowledge
   • Outbound Calls
   • Cold Calls

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage individual sales activities by developing highly effective, communications focuse relationship with multiple sales channels.
   • Provide awareness to customers of the benefits of moving to a cloud platform for intra/customer facing web applications.
   • Develop a standardize, customize CRM system to track sales and marketing ROI that link into operational and financial ERP systems.
   • Calculate roofing amounts/square footage etc.
   • Maintain cleanliness and organization of stockroom shelves.
   • Conduct effective outbound telemarketing calls to potential and existing clients.

   More inside sales associate duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your inside sales associate job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. An inside sales associate can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, inside sales associates' average salary in hawaii is 50% less than in washington.
   • Seniority. Entry-level inside sales associates 44% less than senior-level inside sales associates.
   • Certifications. An inside sales associate with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in an inside sales associate's salary.

   Average inside sales associate salary

   $40,687yearly

   $19.56 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level inside sales associate salary

   $30,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 23, 2025

   Average inside sales associate salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Washington	$57,295	$28
   2	Wisconsin	$50,497	$24
   3	New York	$45,963	$22
   4	Virginia	$44,394	$21
   5	Indiana	$44,320	$21
   6	Colorado	$43,156	$21
   7	Alabama	$42,735	$21
   8	Nevada	$41,237	$20
   9	New Mexico	$40,949	$20
   10	Illinois	$40,001	$19
   11	South Carolina	$39,999	$19
   12	California	$39,501	$19
   13	North Carolina	$39,001	$19
   14	Ohio	$38,560	$19
   15	Utah	$38,303	$18
   16	Missouri	$38,279	$18
   17	Oklahoma	$37,783	$18
   18	Texas	$37,397	$18
   19	Tennessee	$36,999	$18
   20	Arizona	$36,908	$18

   Average inside sales associate salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	MSCI	$65,045	$31.27	7
   2	Maxim Integrated	$63,572	$30.56
   3	Elemica	$58,527	$28.14
   4	Johnson Controls	$52,495	$25.24	140
   5	QC Supply	$51,791	$24.90	1
   6	WG&R Furniture	$50,820	$24.43
   7	Arrow Electronics	$49,064	$23.59	46
   8	Efinancial	$48,291	$23.22
   9	Western Flyer Xpress	$48,006	$23.08	1
   10	ConvaTec	$47,808	$22.98	2
   11	NEW ENGLAND SERVICE	$47,589	$22.88
   12	H.B. Fuller	$47,498	$22.84	5
   13	VEGA Americas	$47,019	$22.61	5
   14	Core & Main	$46,386	$22.30	69
   15	Catalent Pharma Solutions	$46,159	$22.19
   16	Springfield	$46,048	$22.14
   17	H&E Equipment Services	$45,962	$22.10
   18	Benefit Recovery	$45,767	$22.00
   19	Mazzella Companies	$45,578	$21.91	4
   20	Raymond	$45,432	$21.84	4

4. Writing an inside sales associate job description

   A good inside sales associate job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of an inside sales associate job description:

   Inside sales associate job description example

   AutoNation Ford Panama City
   
   Position Overview
   
   The Equity Mining Sales Associate is focused and specifically trained for driving incremental sales and acquiring additional inventory for their dealership by actively prospecting our current sales and service databases, as well as identifying conquest customers in our service drives. The Associate will maximize utilization of the Equity Mining Tool (EMT), AutoNation's proprietary Equity Mining software, to increase incremental sales and customer retention, while achieving target unit goals and delighting every customer along the way. Lastly, the Associate will align with the service department to achieve these goals without disrupting our service operations or the customer experience.
   
   The Equity Mining Sales Associate interacts with hundreds of customers to help guide them in their vehicle purchase in our no-haggle sales environment. With your outstanding communication and listening skills, you'll offer to buy a customer's vehicle, and when appropriate help select their perfect vehicle, negotiate terms that ensure payment options meet their lifestyles, budgets, and expectations and close the deal.
   
   Our Sales Associates provide an exceptional customer experience, driving loyalty by following up to ensure customer satisfaction and helping transition customers to the Service department to support their ownership experience.
   
   Pay Plan
   
   Base Salary + Incentive
   
   Take advantage of stability. Earn a base salary of $2,500 per month for three months while training. After training, earn $2,000 per month, or a similar hourly rate, plus bonuses based on each vehicle sold, vehicle purchased, your longevity with the company and more.
   
   What are the requirements?
   
   + High school diploma or equivalent
   
   + Proven ability to provide an exceptional customer experience
   
   + Drive to set and achieve targeted goals
   
   + Prior sales experience, retail preferred
   
   + Excellent communication, consultative, interpersonal and organizational skills
   
   + The willingness to follow up with customers
   
   + Experience and desire to work with technology
   
   + Valid in-state driver's license and an acceptable, safe driving record
   
   AutoNation is an equal opportunity employer and a drug-free workplace.
   
   Company Overview
   
   As America's largest and most recognized automotive retailer, AutoNation is transforming the automotive industry through its bold leadership, innovation, and comprehensive brand extensions. We are committed to hiring driven, diverse Associates and supporting them in growing their career within AutoNation. We offer paid training, competitive pay & benefits and a culture that believes in investing in our Associates' professional futures. With over 315 locations from coast to coast, AutoNation has an opportunity for you. We've sold over 13 million vehicles, the first automotive retailer to reach this milestone. Our success is driven by our commitment to delivering a peerless Customer experience through customer-focused sales and service processes. We believe deeply in giving back, and every car we sell helps to raise cancer research and treatment awareness with a Pink Plate. We have proudly raised over $25 million dollars to drive out cancer, create awareness, and support critical research. Join us as we pave the way to moving our company, our communities and our industry forward. Apply today at a location near you or wherever you dream the road will take you.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find inside sales associates for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your inside sales associate job on Zippia to find and attract quality inside sales associate candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as salesjobs, salesheads, allretailjobs.com, sales trax.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit inside sales associates, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new inside sales associate

   Once you've found the inside sales associate candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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