How To Become A National Account Representative: What It Is and Career Path

What is a national account representative and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted experts

Kaustav Misra Ph.D.,

John Cicala Ph.D.

National account representatives act in a supporting role to a company's more-senior national account managers or other sales executives. Savvy salespeople of a business' products or services, national account representatives work to establish new clients while maintaining profitable contracts with existing nationwide accounts.

The job of a national account representative is generally focused on customer satisfaction and increased sales. They work with assigned clients on a daily basis, facilitating information requests, coordinating orders, and reviewing and remedying customer complaints. In general, they manage client relationships.

National account representatives might also strategize with account managers to expand their company's market, contacting and scheduling sales meetings with prospective clients. This can involve actively searching for new opportunities or instructing sales teams in cold-calling operations.

Strong sales tactics are essential for this position, so a national account representative needs strong communication, presentation, organizational, and interpersonal skills. A four-year business degree is usually required for this role--and though some companies will hire at an entry-level position--prior experience in a field sales environment is preferred.

A career as a national account representative offers many opportunities for advancement and an average salary of $17 per hour. As your experience grows, you might expect to earn up to $62,000 per year.

What general advice would you give to a national account representative?

Kaustav Misra Ph.D.

Associate Dean, Central Connecticut State University

I have spent almost two decades in the higher education industry and about a decade in administration. I often advised students, and it is astonishing to see how many of these students do not plan for their future. A good plan is a starting point to lead a good and successful career and life. Hence, by all means, it is worth noting that developing a future-oriented focus is important, so taking time to streamline the plan should be an important exercise for every graduate before they begin to do anything.

ScoreNational Account RepresentativeUS Average

Salary

3.5

Avg. Salary $44,826

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 5.09%

Black or African American 3.79%

Hispanic or Latino 13.94%

Unknown 3.71%

White 73.24%

Gender

female 45.54%

male 54.46%

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 national account representative

Explore national account representative education requirements

Most common national account representative degrees

Bachelor's

72.0 %

Associate

13.5 %

Master's

6.9 %

Start to develop specific national account representative skills

Skills	Percentages
National Accounts	16.88%
Customer Service	14.74%
Product Knowledge	13.05%
Account Management	5.18%
Sales Growth	3.90%

Complete relevant national account representative training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New national account 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 national account representative based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real national account representative resumes.

Research national account representative duties and responsibilities

Manage and assist a vast customer base in the market for new roofing needs after a large hail storm in Lubbock.
Increase revenue through upselling new specialize testing options with key clinic staff and physicians.
Provide sales and technical support to distributors and OEM'S in the electrical distribution industry.
Maintain continuous contact with customers, including OEM, distribution, system integrators and end users.

Prepare your national account representative resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your national account 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 national account 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 national account representative resume templates

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