Outside sales executive vs sales development representative

The differences between outside sales executives and sales development 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 sales development representative. Additionally, an outside sales executive has an average salary of $71,981, which is higher than the $51,504 average annual salary of a sales development representative.

The top three skills for an outside sales executive include customer service, CRM and account management. The most important skills for a sales development representative are SDR, lead generation, and customer service.

Outside sales executive vs sales development representative overview

	Outside Sales Executive	Sales Development Representative
Yearly salary	$71,981	$51,504
Hourly rate	$34.61	$24.76
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	249,969	199,588
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 83%
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 development representative do?

A sales development representative qualifies leads at the sales funnel's initial stages. Sales development representatives need to conduct research for prospective clients and qualify the leads before handing them to the sales team. They develop sales strategies to attract buyers or solicit potential customers. They need to build relationships with their customers to determine their needs and qualify the viability of interests to drive sales. Also, they collaborate with the sales executives making certain that corporate targets and goals are met.

Outside sales executive vs sales development representative salary

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

	Outside Sales Executive	Sales Development Representative
Average salary	$71,981	$51,504
Salary range	Between $49,000 And $104,000	Between $34,000 And $77,000
Highest paying City	Seattle, WA	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	Washington	Alaska
Best paying company	Marshberry	PitchBook Data
Best paying industry	Technology	Start-up

Differences between outside sales executive and sales development representative education

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

	Outside Sales Executive	Sales Development Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 83%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred	University of Pennsylvania

Outside sales executive vs sales development representative demographics

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

	Outside Sales Executive	Sales Development Representative
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 65.4% Female, 34.6%	Male, 63.1% Female, 36.9%
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, 14.5% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between outside sales executive and sales development 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.

Sales development representative example responsibilities.

Manage organization website and Facebook page; writing articles for websites and newsletters.
Develop social media strategies for Facebook, LinkedIn, and emerging social networks, generating leads.
Manage individual sales activities by developing highly effective, communications focuse relationship with multiple sales channels.
supply chain management and procurement software (SaaS).
Handle customer service inquiries, returns, and RMA exchanges.
Develop a strong knowledge of SaaS sales techniques and lead management/generation.

Outside sales executive vs sales development 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 sales development representative skills

SDR, 11%
Lead Generation, 6%
Customer Service, 6%
Account Executives, 5%
Linkedin, 5%
Outbound Calls, 4%

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Outside Sales Executive
Outside Sales Executive vs Sales Development Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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