Outside account executive vs inside sales representative

The differences between outside account executives and inside sales representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an outside account executive has an average salary of $81,372, which is higher than the $44,413 average annual salary of an inside sales representative.

The top three skills for an outside account executive include marketing campaigns, salesforce and sales presentations. The most important skills for an inside sales representative are customer service, CRM, and outbound calls.

Outside account executive vs inside sales representative overview

	Outside Account Executive	Inside Sales Representative
Yearly salary	$81,372	$44,413
Hourly rate	$39.12	$21.35
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	185,399	244,168
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Average age	44	47
Years of experience	-	4

What does an outside account executive do?

An outside account executive is in charge of developing strategies to secure sales in the field, aiming to reach sales targets and client satisfaction. To carry out their duties, they must research client and business opportunities, reach out to clients through face to face interactions, offer products and services, explain product specifications, and process payments. They may also perform product demonstrations, arrange payment plans, and negotiate contracts, building positive relationships with clients along the way. Moreover, an outside account executive must produce regular sales and account reports, updating managers as required.

What does an inside sales representative do?

An inside sales representative is responsible for selling services and products to clients, driving the company's revenues and increase sales profitability. Duties of an inside sales representative include developing strategic sales pitches, responding to customer's inquiries and requests, offering promotional products and discounts, researching potential clients, creating sales reports, and managing customer's possible complaints. An inside sales representative also provides strategic solutions to share with the sales team to improve their sales performance. Inside sales representatives must have excellent communication and negotiation skills to deal with customers' needs.

Outside account executive vs inside sales representative salary

Outside account executives and inside sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Outside Account Executive	Inside Sales Representative
Average salary	$81,372	$44,413
Salary range	Between $51,000 And $127,000	Between $28,000 And $69,000
Highest paying City	-	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	-	Wyoming
Best paying company	-	Berkshire Hathaway
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between outside account executive and inside sales representative education

There are a few differences between an outside account executive and an inside sales representative in terms of educational background:

	Outside Account Executive	Inside Sales Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred

Outside account executive vs inside sales representative demographics

Here are the differences between outside account executives' and inside sales representatives' demographics:

	Outside Account Executive	Inside Sales Representative
Average age	44	47
Gender ratio	Male, 61.7% Female, 38.3%	Male, 54.7% Female, 45.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.0% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 14.8% Asian, 5.7% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.0% Asian, 5.1% White, 73.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	5%	6%

Differences between outside account executive and inside sales representative duties and responsibilities

Outside account executive example responsibilities.

Manage all aspects of tactical implementations, including creative and technical development, measurement, reporting and ROI analysis.
Account analysis and preparation, assessing customer needs, and preparation of professional sales recommendations tailor to each customer s business.
Supervise and coordinate the daily activities of manufacturers representatives engage in promoting and selling roofing products.

Inside sales representative example responsibilities.

Coordinate commercial sales and manage projects with HVAC contractors for Georgia district.
Accomplish tasks in a timely manner.Skills UsedComputer, math, reading wiring schematics.
Generate leads through the use of Linkedin, firm websites and legal magazines.
Manage and develop a nationwide territory through cold calling utilizing LinkedIn?, DiscoverOrg.
Manage help desk support for company ERP system as well as employee hardware and software issues.
Manage a team of 15-25 ISE's through effective sales coaching, call monitoring and creating sales spiff programs.

Outside account executive vs inside sales representative skills

Common outside account executive skills

Marketing Campaigns, 24%
Salesforce, 22%
Sales Presentations, 19%
Client Relationships, 17%
Cold Calls, 4%
SEO, 3%

Common inside sales representative skills

Customer Service, 22%
CRM, 6%
Outbound Calls, 5%
Product Knowledge, 4%
Work Ethic, 4%
Sales Process, 3%

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Outside Account Executive
Outside Account Executive vs Inside Sales Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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