Inside sales executive vs sales representative

The differences between inside sales executives and sales 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 representative. Additionally, an inside sales executive has an average salary of $77,590, which is higher than the $56,591 average annual salary of a sales representative.

The top three skills for an inside sales executive include customer service, outbound sales and healthcare. The most important skills for a sales representative are sales process, product knowledge, and customer service.

Inside sales executive vs sales representative overview

	Inside Sales Executive	Sales Representative
Yearly salary	$77,590	$56,591
Hourly rate	$37.30	$27.21
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	248,123	205,456
Job satisfaction	-	4.33
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	4	4

What does an inside sales executive do?

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.

What does a sales representative do?

Sales representatives primarily sell the company's products and services to businesses or organizations. They should be adept at closing out sales, negotiating, and providing customer service. They should be knowledgeable about the products or services of the manufacturer or producer they represent. They must also have strong analytical skills that would help them in coming up with cost-benefit analysis in assessing the current roster of clients and even prospective ones. Sales representatives should also be able to maintain good working relationships with all involved stakeholders, especially clients.

Inside sales executive vs sales representative salary

Inside sales executives and sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Inside Sales Executive	Sales Representative
Average salary	$77,590	$56,591
Salary range	Between $51,000 And $117,000	Between $33,000 And $94,000
Highest paying City	Annapolis, MD	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	New Jersey	Massachusetts
Best paying company	Amd	Google
Best paying industry	Professional	Pharmaceutical

Differences between inside sales executive and sales representative education

There are a few differences between an inside sales executive and a sales representative in terms of educational background:

	Inside Sales Executive	Sales Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred

Inside sales executive vs sales representative demographics

Here are the differences between inside sales executives' and sales representatives' demographics:

	Inside Sales Executive	Sales Representative
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 61.2% Female, 38.8%	Male, 58.1% Female, 41.9%
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, 72.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between inside sales executive and sales representative duties and responsibilities

Inside sales executive example responsibilities.

Manage individual sales activities by developing highly effective, communications focuse relationship with multiple sales channels.
Operate as inside sales consultant, primarily in areas of customer relations, sales/service support, coordinating production and transportation scheduling
Train new hire on SFDC and help him with messaging and solution description.
Master and utilize all sales relate tools including SFDC, SalesLoft, ZoomInfo, InsideView, and Engagio.
Present ADT security systems presentations to those businesses by reviewing their needs for security.

Sales representative example responsibilities.

Manage prospective leads and existing accounts through a CRM platform to accurately forecast revenue and develop long-term business partnerships.
Manage and create all content distribute via various social media outlets: Facebook, twitter, feedback blogs, etc.
Search for procurement contracts, attend trade shows, design flyers, postcards, etc.
Utilize POS sales software to maintain monetary sales information produce reports for organizational review.
Develop and maintain business relationships with businesses and policyholders using establish methods such as customer relationship management CRM.
Handle administrative and sales duties as Jr.

Inside sales executive vs sales representative skills

Common inside sales executive skills

Customer Service, 12%
Outbound Sales, 8%
Healthcare, 6%
Outbound Calls, 6%
Digital Marketing, 5%
Lead Generation, 4%

Common sales representative skills

Sales Process, 9%
Product Knowledge, 9%
Customer Service, 7%
CRM, 6%
Business Development, 6%
Sales REP, 5%

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Inside Sales Executive
Inside Sales Executive vs Sales Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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