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The differences between inside sales executives and sales development representatives 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 executive and a sales development representative. Additionally, an inside sales executive has an average salary of $77,590, which is higher than the $51,504 average annual salary of a sales development representative.
The top three skills for an inside sales executive include customer service, outbound sales and healthcare. The most important skills for a sales development representative are SDR, lead generation, and customer service.
| Inside Sales Executive | Sales Development Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $77,590 | $51,504 |
| Hourly rate | $37.30 | $24.76 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 248,123 | 199,588 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 83% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
An inside sales executive is responsible for reaching out to potential and existing customers to sell goods and services offered by the company. Inside sales executives should have excellent sales capabilities and pitches to persuade the customers in purchasing the products upon demonstrating its features and usage. They also respond to the inquiries and concerns the customers may have before proceeding with their orders and payment details. An inside sales executive supports the sales team in reaching sales targets by identifying business opportunities that would generate more revenues and profits for the company.
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. They develop sales strategies to attract buyers or solicit potential customers. They need to build relationships with their customers to determine their needs and qualify the viability of interests to drive sales. Also, they collaborate with the sales executives making certain that corporate targets and goals are met.
Inside sales executives and sales development representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Inside Sales Executive | Sales Development Representative | |
| Average salary | $77,590 | $51,504 |
| Salary range | Between $51,000 And $117,000 | Between $34,000 And $77,000 |
| Highest paying City | Annapolis, MD | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Amd | PitchBook Data |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Start-up |
There are a few differences between an inside sales executive and a sales development representative in terms of educational background:
| Inside Sales Executive | Sales Development Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 83% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between inside sales executives' and sales development representatives' demographics:
| Inside Sales Executive | Sales Development Representative | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 61.2% Female, 38.8% | Male, 63.1% Female, 36.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.0% Asian, 5.1% White, 73.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |