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The differences between medical sales specialists and outbound 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 a medical sales specialist, becoming an outbound sales representative takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a medical sales specialist has an average salary of $69,959, which is higher than the $45,723 average annual salary of an outbound sales representative.
The top three skills for a medical sales specialist include patients, medical devices and medical sales. The most important skills for an outbound sales representative are outbound sales, customer service, and excellent interpersonal.
| Medical Sales Specialist | Outbound Sales Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $69,959 | $45,723 |
| Hourly rate | $33.63 | $21.98 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 76,398 | 240,781 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | High School Diploma, 33% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
A medical sales specialist is an individual who advertises, markets, and distributes a specific pharmaceutical product or medical equipment to medical establishments. Medical sales specialists must manage a network of independent representatives and maintain relationships with their clients to attain territory-specific sales goals. They develop marketing strategies and business sales plans to identify key growth areas and deliver short and long-term corporate objectives. Medical sales specialists should also conduct analyses on product and market trends to achieve and exceed sales goals.
An outbound sales representative focuses on securing sales by reaching out to clients through calls, correspondence, or face-to-face interactions. They primarily offer products and services, assisting customers every step of the way to ensure client satisfaction. To carry out their duties, they must perform research and analysis to identify business opportunities, develop sales strategies, generate leads, discuss product specifications with customers, introduce payment plans, and negotiate contracts. Moreover, an outbound sales representative must build positive relationships with clients while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.
Medical sales specialists and outbound sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Medical Sales Specialist | Outbound Sales Representative | |
| Average salary | $69,959 | $45,723 |
| Salary range | Between $47,000 And $102,000 | Between $24,000 And $84,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Hoboken, NJ |
| Highest paying state | California | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Medline | Altice USA |
| Best paying industry | Pharmaceutical | - |
There are a few differences between a medical sales specialist and an outbound sales representative in terms of educational background:
| Medical Sales Specialist | Outbound Sales Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | High School Diploma, 33% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred |
Here are the differences between medical sales specialists' and outbound sales representatives' demographics:
| Medical Sales Specialist | Outbound Sales Representative | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 50.8% Female, 49.2% | Male, 45.9% Female, 54.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 5.1% White, 72.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 5.1% White, 72.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |