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The differences between outside sales engineers and sales/account representatives 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 representative takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an outside sales engineer has an average salary of $79,145, which is higher than the $56,954 average annual salary of a sales/account representative.
The top three skills for an outside sales engineer include customer relationships, HVAC and product line. The most important skills for a sales/account representative are customer service, CRM, and sales process.
| Outside Sales Engineer | Sales/Account Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $79,145 | $56,954 |
| Hourly rate | $38.05 | $27.38 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 113,925 | 257,122 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
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.
A sales account representative is responsible for managing and responding promptly to customer complaints and queries of clients. They focus on customer concerns and contact prospects. They work on upselling or cross-selling products and services, collaborating with account executives, and prepare reports to upper management. This job requires you to be a goal-driven person, energetic, and have excellent communication skills. Moreover, this is a challenging job; at times, it requires being extra polite and calm in handling customer complaints and other related situations.
Outside sales engineers and sales/account representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Outside Sales Engineer | Sales/Account Representative | |
| Average salary | $79,145 | $56,954 |
| Salary range | Between $55,000 And $113,000 | Between $39,000 And $81,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Olympia, WA |
| Highest paying state | - | Washington |
| Best paying company | - | Smartsheet |
| Best paying industry | - | Technology |
There are a few differences between an outside sales engineer and a sales/account representative in terms of educational background:
| Outside Sales Engineer | Sales/Account Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred |
Here are the differences between outside sales engineers' and sales/account representatives' demographics:
| Outside Sales Engineer | Sales/Account Representative | |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 91.2% Female, 8.8% | Male, 57.8% Female, 42.2% |
| 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, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 6% |