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The differences between outside sales engineers and sales account managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an outside sales engineer, becoming a sales account manager takes usually requires 6-8 years. Additionally, an outside sales engineer has an average salary of $79,145, which is higher than the $58,630 average annual salary of a sales account manager.
The top three skills for an outside sales engineer include customer relationships, HVAC and product line. The most important skills for a sales account manager are customer service, CRM, and customer satisfaction.
| Outside Sales Engineer | Sales Account Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $79,145 | $58,630 |
| Hourly rate | $38.05 | $28.19 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 113,925 | 163,697 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Average age | 44 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 8 |
An outside sales engineer is both a specialist and a salesperson of scientific and technological products or services to businesses. You have an in-depth knowledge of the products and the engineering processes that make these products work so that you can demonstrate their benefits to customers. Outside sales engineers are technical customer service representatives working for businesses that sell engineering products or the makers - they are out in the field interacting, educating, and selling to potential customers.
The account sales manager is in charge of the retention of their customer relationship. They have to supervise the portfolio of existing clients, develop new business with them, and seek new sales opportunities. Account sales managers act as liaisons between the company and customer as well as build strong, long-lasting relationships by providing an improved customer experience. It is their responsibility to negotiate contracts and close deals to maximize sales profits. Also, they forecast track sales results and prepare reports on account status.
Outside sales engineers and sales account managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Outside Sales Engineer | Sales Account Manager | |
| Average salary | $79,145 | $58,630 |
| Salary range | Between $55,000 And $113,000 | Between $33,000 And $101,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | - | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | - | |
| Best paying industry | - | Technology |
There are a few differences between an outside sales engineer and a sales account manager in terms of educational background:
| Outside Sales Engineer | Sales Account Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | University of Southern California |
Here are the differences between outside sales engineers' and sales account managers' demographics:
| Outside Sales Engineer | Sales Account Manager | |
| Average age | 44 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 91.2% Female, 8.8% | Male, 63.4% Female, 36.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 1.6% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 5.8% White, 78.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 3.2% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 4.1% White, 78.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |