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The differences between pharmaceutical sales specialists and sales consultants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a pharmaceutical sales specialist, becoming a sales consultant takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a pharmaceutical sales specialist has an average salary of $73,003, which is higher than the $60,135 average annual salary of a sales consultant.
The top three skills for a pharmaceutical sales specialist include patients, sales territory and diabetes. The most important skills for a sales consultant are sales process, product knowledge, and POS.
| Pharmaceutical Sales Specialist | Sales Consultant | |
| Yearly salary | $73,003 | $60,135 |
| Hourly rate | $35.10 | $28.91 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 23,474 | 227,636 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 85% | Bachelor's Degree, 56% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
A pharmaceutical sales specialist's primary duty is to reach out to pharmacies, medical facilities, and physicians to discuss the latest medical drugs in an effort to secure sales. Their responsibilities typically revolve around learning and understanding everything about the products that they are offering, traveling to different areas to deliver samples, and maintaining records of all transactions. Furthermore, as a pharmaceutical sales specialist, it is essential to create marketing materials and build positive relationships with clients to accomplish sales targets, all while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.
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.
Pharmaceutical sales specialists and sales consultants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Pharmaceutical Sales Specialist | Sales Consultant | |
| Average salary | $73,003 | $60,135 |
| Salary range | Between $47,000 And $112,000 | Between $37,000 And $97,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Nevada | California |
| Best paying company | AstraZeneca | |
| Best paying industry | Pharmaceutical | Finance |
There are a few differences between a pharmaceutical sales specialist and a sales consultant in terms of educational background:
| Pharmaceutical Sales Specialist | Sales Consultant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 85% | Bachelor's Degree, 56% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred |
Here are the differences between pharmaceutical sales specialists' and sales consultants' demographics:
| Pharmaceutical Sales Specialist | Sales Consultant | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 47.9% Female, 52.1% | Male, 63.2% Female, 36.8% |
| Race ratio | 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% | 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% |