Key account representative vs field sales representative

The differences between key account 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 a key account representative and a field sales representative. Additionally, a key account representative has an average salary of $48,841, which is higher than the $48,460 average annual salary of a field sales representative.

The top three skills for a key account representative include business development, account management and product knowledge. The most important skills for a field sales representative are excellent time management, customer service, and powerpoint.

Key account representative vs field sales representative overview

	Key Account Representative	Field Sales Representative
Yearly salary	$48,841	$48,460
Hourly rate	$23.48	$23.30
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	236,207	228,254
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 73%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	4	4

What does a key account representative do?

A key account representative identifies opportunities for increasing sales and defines outreach strategies. Key account representatives find, develop, and maintain customer accounts. The account representatives serve as the main point of contact between an organization and its clients. They make regular communication with the clients, address their concerns, and track their transactions and payments. Part of their job is to present expanded and new opportunities to the clients. They have to be adaptable and have empathy in performing their job. Among the skills they need to develop include people or communication skills, relationship building, and time management.

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.

Key account representative vs field sales representative salary

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

	Key Account Representative	Field Sales Representative
Average salary	$48,841	$48,460
Salary range	Between $34,000 And $69,000	Between $26,000 And $88,000
Highest paying City	-	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	VMware
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between key account representative and field sales representative education

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

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

Key account representative vs field sales representative demographics

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

	Key Account Representative	Field Sales Representative
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 52.3% Female, 47.7%	Male, 69.5% Female, 30.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.7% 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 key account representative and field sales representative duties and responsibilities

Key account representative example responsibilities.

Evaluate monthly budgets and territory saturation levels quarterly while managing lease renewals through needs analysis and ROI presentations
Prepare catalogs, PowerPoint presentations, and cost spreadsheets in accordance with client product requests and within budgetary parameters.
Develop concepts and procedures, analyze and resolve general ledger interfaces with computerize payroll, time tracking and project accounting system.
Install and maintain software, hardware and networking and troubleshoot computer systems for problems ranging from software incompatibilities to electrical problems.

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.

Key account representative vs field sales representative skills

Common key account representative skills

Business Development, 15%
Account Management, 12%
Product Knowledge, 12%
Post Sales, 10%
Customer Complaints, 7%
CRM, 5%

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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Key Account Representative
Key Account Representative vs Field Sales Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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