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The differences between instruments sales representatives and sales representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become an instruments sales representative, becoming a sales representative takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an instruments sales representative has an average salary of $129,809, which is higher than the $56,591 average annual salary of a sales representative.
The top three skills for an instruments sales representative include capital equipment, mixers and spine. The most important skills for a sales representative are sales process, product knowledge, and customer service.
| Instruments Sales Representative | Sales Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $129,809 | $56,591 |
| Hourly rate | $62.41 | $27.21 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 159,779 | 205,456 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.33 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
An Instruments Sales Representative is in charge of reaching out to potential clients and businesses, aiming to secure sales. They typically offer products and services to clients through calls, correspondence, or even face-to-face interactions, depending on their company of employment. They conduct market research and analysis to find business and client opportunities, identify and utilize marketing trends, generate leads, discuss product and payment details to clients, and develop sales strategies while adhering to its policies and regulations.
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.
Instruments sales representatives and sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Instruments Sales Representative | Sales Representative | |
| Average salary | $129,809 | $56,591 |
| Salary range | Between $93,000 And $179,000 | Between $33,000 And $94,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | - | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | - | |
| Best paying industry | - | Pharmaceutical |
There are a few differences between an instruments sales representative and a sales representative in terms of educational background:
| Instruments Sales Representative | Sales Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred |
Here are the differences between instruments sales representatives' and sales representatives' demographics:
| Instruments Sales Representative | Sales Representative | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 66.4% Female, 33.6% | Male, 58.1% Female, 41.9% |
| Race ratio | 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% | 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% |