Outside sales executive vs sales consultant

The differences between outside sales executives and sales consultants 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 sales consultant. Additionally, an outside sales executive has an average salary of $71,981, which is higher than the $60,135 average annual salary of a sales consultant.

The top three skills for an outside sales executive include customer service, CRM and account management. The most important skills for a sales consultant are sales process, product knowledge, and POS.

Outside sales executive vs sales consultant overview

	Outside Sales Executive	Sales Consultant
Yearly salary	$71,981	$60,135
Hourly rate	$34.61	$28.91
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	249,969	227,636
Job satisfaction	-	4.5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 56%
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 sales consultant do?

Sales consultants are employees who work in the sales department of a company. They are usually more skilled than usual sales employees. As such, they are usually given more complicated products or services to sell because they will be able to explain the product or service to the customers better. Sales consultants have in-depth knowledge of the offerings of the company. They talk to customers, understand what the customers need, and match the customers' needs with company products that can address the needs. They should also be updated on trends in the market and what is currently popular with the masses.

Outside sales executive vs sales consultant salary

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

	Outside Sales Executive	Sales Consultant
Average salary	$71,981	$60,135
Salary range	Between $49,000 And $104,000	Between $37,000 And $97,000
Highest paying City	Seattle, WA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Washington	California
Best paying company	Marshberry	Google
Best paying industry	Technology	Finance

Differences between outside sales executive and sales consultant education

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

	Outside Sales Executive	Sales Consultant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 56%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred

Outside sales executive vs sales consultant demographics

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

	Outside Sales Executive	Sales Consultant
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 65.4% Female, 34.6%	Male, 63.2% Female, 36.8%
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, 14.2% Asian, 5.1% White, 72.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between outside sales executive and sales consultant 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.

Sales consultant example responsibilities.

Achieve monthly sales goals through new business and upselling current clients.
Utilize CRM systems to effectively manage accounts; leverage competitor and market intelligence to drive offer posture and capture competitor accounts.
Create print ads design and create ad word campaign for SEO and SEM products.
Deliver effective sales presentations to individuals and groups while cross-selling additional vehicle products and services.
Handle incoming calls from Medicare recipients.
Hire and train employees teach effective upselling strategies.

Outside sales executive vs sales consultant skills

Common outside sales executive skills

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

Common sales consultant skills

Sales Process, 13%
Product Knowledge, 11%
POS, 11%
Pre Sales, 7%
Work Ethic, 5%
Cross-Selling, 5%

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Outside Sales Executive
Outside Sales Executive vs Sales Consultant

Updated January 8, 2025

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