How To Become A Manufacturer's Representative: What It Is and Career Path

What is a manufacturer's representative and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted experts

Frederik Beuk,

John Cicala Ph.D.

The average manufacturer's representative salary is $57,622. The most common degree is a bachelor's degree degree with an business major. It usually takes 2-4 years of experience to become a manufacturer's representative. Manufacturer's representatives with a Certified Sales Professional (CSP) certification earn more money. Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 4% and produce 63,300 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a manufacturer's representative?

Frederik Beuk

Associate Professor of Marketing, University of Akron

The key consideration is whether you really want to maximize your initial salary. For instance, envision two job opportunities: one offering a salary of $50,000 per year, where you'd be the most junior team member, and the other providing $75,000 per year, with the caveat that you would be the sole sales representative for the firm. The optimal choice is to prioritize learning opportunities. In this context, being the lone salesperson for a company that compensates its highest-earning sales professional $75,000 might not be your superior option. Instead, seek a position that offers the greatest potential for learning. Subsequently, demonstrate your negotiating prowess, a critical sales skill, by securing a slightly higher salary. However, it's essential not to fixate on maximizing your starting salary. Your career requires a long-term strategy, and you have several decades ahead of you to maximize income.

ScoreManufacturer's RepresentativeUS Average

Salary

4.5

Avg. Salary $57,622

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.1

Growth rate 4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.8

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.23%

Asian 5.07%

Black or African American 3.77%

Hispanic or Latino 13.81%

Unknown 3.70%

White 73.41%

Gender

female 19.00%

male 81.00%

Age - 48

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 48

Stress level

7.1

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.4

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.9

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a manufacturer's representative

Explore manufacturer's representative education requirements

Most common manufacturer's representative degrees

Bachelor's

74.1 %

Associate

14.2 %

Master's

5.9 %

Start to develop specific manufacturer's representative skills

Skills	Percentages
Product Line	21.68%
Trade Shows	7.71%
Distribution Channels	7.57%
General Contractors	6.24%
OEM	5.02%

Complete relevant manufacturer's representative training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New manufacturer's representatives learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a manufacturer's representative based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real manufacturer's representative resumes.

Research manufacturer's representative duties and responsibilities

Lead consultative sales engagements identifying value and ROI create for the customer through process mapping.
Manage Mid-Atlantic geographic trading area.
Champion certify in windows, entry doors, roofing and siding.
Create packages of equipment to address all aspects of a facility's HVAC needs.

Prepare your manufacturer's representative resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your manufacturer's representative resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a manufacturer's representative resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable manufacturer's representative resume templates

Build a professional manufacturer's representative resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your manufacturer's representative resume.