Outside sales executive vs business sales representative

The differences between outside sales executives and business sales representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an outside sales executive and a business sales representative. Additionally, an outside sales executive has an average salary of $71,981, which is higher than the $58,288 average annual salary of a business sales representative.

The top three skills for an outside sales executive include customer service, CRM and account management. The most important skills for a business sales representative are business sales, customer accounts, and customer service.

Outside sales executive vs business sales representative overview

	Outside Sales Executive	Business Sales Representative
Yearly salary	$71,981	$58,288
Hourly rate	$34.61	$28.02
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	249,969	226,438
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	4	4

What does an outside sales executive do?

An outside sales executive is primarily in charge of spearheading and overseeing the sales procedures in an organization. Their responsibilities typically revolve around setting goals and objectives, establishing guidelines, liaising with key clients, and developing strategies to develop strong business relationships with customers and other external parties. Furthermore, as an outside sales executive, it is essential to lead and encourage the workforce to reach goals while implementing the company's policies and regulations, creating new ones as needed.

What does a business sales representative do?

A business sales representative's role is to develop strategies in identifying leads and opportunities to secure sales. Their responsibilities revolve around reaching out to clients to offer products and services, discussing the pricing and specifications of products, processing payments, and gathering necessary client information. They may also arrange appointments with clients to negotiate and sign contracts. Furthermore, as a business sales representative, it is essential to produce progress reports and presentations, handle issues and complaints, maintain records of all transactions, and regularly update databases.

Outside sales executive vs business sales representative salary

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

	Outside Sales Executive	Business Sales Representative
Average salary	$71,981	$58,288
Salary range	Between $49,000 And $104,000	Between $31,000 And $108,000
Highest paying City	Seattle, WA	Bothell, WA
Highest paying state	Washington	Washington
Best paying company	Marshberry	Amazon
Best paying industry	Technology	-

Differences between outside sales executive and business sales representative education

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

	Outside Sales Executive	Business Sales Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred	Stanford University

Outside sales executive vs business sales representative demographics

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

	Outside Sales Executive	Business Sales Representative
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 65.4% Female, 34.6%	Male, 61.4% Female, 38.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 13.9% Asian, 5.1% White, 73.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between outside sales executive and business sales representative duties and responsibilities

Outside sales executive example responsibilities.

Manage a team of 15-25 ISE's through effective sales coaching, call monitoring and creating sales spiff programs.
Sell SaaS B2B for leading cloud-base expense management provider.
Track all sales activity within the company database and SalesLogix, a CRM software program.
Maintain CRM and provide assistance in customer's needs, including engine, chassis and transmission parts.
Perform regular sales visits throughout assign territory to develop relationship with independent grocery and convenient stores.
Assist MRO organizations in composite shop design and organization.

Business sales representative example responsibilities.

Lead recruitment and marketing efforts via social media channels such as LinkedIn, Google+, Facebook, etc.
Generate qualify leads through B2B telemarketing services specialize in identifying and nurturing prospects for computer hardware, software and technology services.
Assist with coordinating and organizing marketing projects such as direct mail and team telemarketing initiatives.
Generate qualify leads through B2B telemarketing services specialize in identifying and nurturing prospects for computer hardware, software and technology services.
Assist in the training of newly hire salespeople on technical aspects of CCTV camera systems.
Maintain a neat display kiosk that are up to par with Costco's standards

Outside sales executive vs business sales representative skills

Common outside sales executive skills

Customer Service, 16%
CRM, 12%
Account Management, 7%
Business Sales, 6%
Cold Calls, 6%
Business Solutions, 4%

Common business sales representative skills

Business Sales, 13%
Customer Accounts, 12%
Customer Service, 11%
Business Relationships, 11%
Lead Generation, 11%
Security Industry, 6%

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Outside Sales Executive
Outside Sales Executive vs Business Sales Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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