Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between pre sales engineers and sales development representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a pre sales engineer, becoming a sales development representative takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a pre sales engineer has an average salary of $116,651, which is higher than the $51,504 average annual salary of a sales development representative.
The top three skills for a pre sales engineer include sales process, pre sales and cloud. The most important skills for a sales development representative are SDR, lead generation, and customer service.
| Pre Sales Engineer | Sales Development Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $116,651 | $51,504 |
| Hourly rate | $56.08 | $24.76 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 68,855 | 199,588 |
| Job satisfaction | 4 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 83% |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
A pre-sales engineer's role is to assist clients by offering technology recommendations and advice, aiming to secure sales and client satisfaction. Aside from selling products and services, a pre-sales engineer is also responsible for coordinating with various sales personnel, identifying the needs of clients, discussing how the equipment and devices can help attain business goals, and answering any inquiries about the subject. Furthermore, it is essential to develop positive relationships with clients, all while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.
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.
Pre sales engineers and sales development representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Pre Sales Engineer | Sales Development Representative | |
| Average salary | $116,651 | $51,504 |
| Salary range | Between $84,000 And $160,000 | Between $34,000 And $77,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | Oregon | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Apple | PitchBook Data |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Start-up |
There are a few differences between a pre sales engineer and a sales development representative in terms of educational background:
| Pre Sales Engineer | Sales Development Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 83% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between pre sales engineers' and sales development representatives' demographics:
| Pre Sales Engineer | Sales Development Representative | |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.5% Female, 16.5% | Male, 63.1% Female, 36.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 1.7% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 8.4% White, 75.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | 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 | 7% | 6% |