Outside sales executive vs outside sales representative

The differences between outside sales executives and outside 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 an outside sales representative. Additionally, an outside sales executive has an average salary of $71,981, which is higher than the $60,443 average annual salary of an outside sales representative.

The top three skills for an outside sales executive include customer service, CRM and account management. The most important skills for an outside sales representative are customer service, work ethic, and sales process.

Outside sales executive vs outside sales representative overview

	Outside Sales Executive	Outside Sales Representative
Yearly salary	$71,981	$60,443
Hourly rate	$34.61	$29.06
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	249,969	218,034
Job satisfaction	-	4.5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
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 an outside sales representative do?

An Outside Sales Representative specializes in customer service and relations, focusing on reaching sales targets through selling and networking with clients. Among the duties revolve around reaching out to customers through calls, email, or even arranging appointments, monitoring and keeping an organized record of sales, communicating with managers or supervisors, adhering to the company's policies and regulations, and keeping extensive knowledge about the brand and the trends. Besides building rapport with customers, it is also essential for an Outside Sales Representative to be proactive and create strategies to help meet the sales target.

Outside sales executive vs outside sales representative salary

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

	Outside Sales Executive	Outside Sales Representative
Average salary	$71,981	$60,443
Salary range	Between $49,000 And $104,000	Between $41,000 And $87,000
Highest paying City	Seattle, WA	Minneapolis, MN
Highest paying state	Washington	New Jersey
Best paying company	Marshberry	Microsoft
Best paying industry	Technology	Manufacturing

Differences between outside sales executive and outside sales representative education

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

	Outside Sales Executive	Outside Sales Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred

Outside sales executive vs outside sales representative demographics

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

	Outside Sales Executive	Outside Sales Representative
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 65.4% Female, 34.6%	Male, 71.5% Female, 28.5%
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, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between outside sales executive and outside 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.

Outside sales representative example responsibilities.

Manage and maintain a weekly quota for broadband, and other wireless products.
Utilize CRM database to manage and track prospect interaction to ensure accurate documentation of window requirements and ongoing communication.
Web dev, SEO, PPC etc . )
Participate in the launching and marketing of broadband internet in Orlando with great success.
Provide care, materials, and essential tools for doctors and nurses working on patients in the E.R.
Create and maintain successful business partnerships with customers by analyzing, meeting and understanding their needs and patients needs.

Outside sales executive vs outside 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 outside sales representative skills

Customer Service, 17%
Work Ethic, 8%
Sales Process, 4%
Business Sales, 4%
Cold Calls, 4%
Product Knowledge, 4%

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Outside Sales Executive
Outside Sales Executive vs Outside Sales Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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