Inside sales representative vs field sales representative

The differences between inside sales representatives and field 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 representative and a field sales representative. Additionally, a field sales representative has an average salary of $48,460, which is higher than the $44,413 average annual salary of an inside sales representative.

The top three skills for an inside sales representative include customer service, CRM and outbound calls. The most important skills for a field sales representative are excellent time management, customer service, and powerpoint.

Inside sales representative vs field sales representative overview

	Inside Sales Representative	Field Sales Representative
Yearly salary	$44,413	$48,460
Hourly rate	$21.35	$23.30
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	244,168	228,254
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 66%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	4	4

What does an inside sales representative do?

An inside sales representative is responsible for selling services and products to clients, driving the company's revenues and increase sales profitability. Duties of an inside sales representative include developing strategic sales pitches, responding to customer's inquiries and requests, offering promotional products and discounts, researching potential clients, creating sales reports, and managing customer's possible complaints. An inside sales representative also provides strategic solutions to share with the sales team to improve their sales performance. Inside sales representatives must have excellent communication and negotiation skills to deal with customers' needs.

What does a field sales representative do?

A field sales representative is an employee who is employed by business-to-business (B2B) and wholesale organizations to visit leads and sell products or services to their customers in person. Field sales representatives must attract new customers and win new accounts so that they can maximize profitability within their territory. They travel around their assigned territory and visit their customers regularly to educate them on how their products can benefit them. Field sales representatives must also maintain records of all sales leads and monitor the organization's competitor, new products, and market conditions.

Inside sales representative vs field sales representative salary

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

	Inside Sales Representative	Field Sales Representative
Average salary	$44,413	$48,460
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $69,000	Between $26,000 And $88,000
Highest paying City	Seattle, WA	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	Wyoming	Washington
Best paying company	Berkshire Hathaway	VMware
Best paying industry	Technology	Technology

Differences between inside sales representative and field sales representative education

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

	Inside Sales Representative	Field Sales Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 66%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred

Inside sales representative vs field sales representative demographics

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

	Inside Sales Representative	Field Sales Representative
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 54.7% Female, 45.3%	Male, 69.5% Female, 30.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.0% Asian, 5.1% White, 73.1% 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 representative and field sales representative duties and responsibilities

Inside sales representative example responsibilities.

Coordinate commercial sales and manage projects with HVAC contractors for Georgia district.
Accomplish tasks in a timely manner.Skills UsedComputer, math, reading wiring schematics.
Generate leads through the use of Linkedin, firm websites and legal magazines.
Manage and develop a nationwide territory through cold calling utilizing LinkedIn?, DiscoverOrg.
Manage help desk support for company ERP system as well as employee hardware and software issues.
Manage a team of 15-25 ISE's through effective sales coaching, call monitoring and creating sales spiff programs.

Field sales representative example responsibilities.

Train and manage new DSR's.
Lead seminars for the CPA community for CPE credits.
Develop and manage sales in major retail accounts in the Mid-Atlantic region.
Manage and assist a vast customer base in the market for new roofing needs after a large hail storm in Lubbock.
Manage merchandising and POS materials at the retail store level ensuring meticulous compliance with all current corporate initiative regulations.
Conduct effective group Medicare HMO/PPO presentations/seminars, as well as one-on-one field sales presentations.

Inside sales representative vs field sales representative skills

Common inside sales representative skills

Customer Service, 22%
CRM, 6%
Outbound Calls, 5%
Product Knowledge, 4%
Work Ethic, 4%
Sales Process, 3%

Common field sales representative skills

Excellent Time Management, 17%
Customer Service, 8%
PowerPoint, 6%
Medicare, 6%
Account Management, 6%
Sales Presentations, 5%

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Inside Sales Representative
Inside Sales Representative vs Field Sales Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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