How To Become A Premise Sales Representative: What It Is and Career Path

What is a premise sales representative and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted experts

Frederik Beuk,

John Cicala Ph.D.

Premise sales representatives are responsible for maintaining current accounts with orders and courteous customer service. They conduct sales review with accounts and prepare monthly planning and goals and tracks as required. They also place orders to ensure the best customer service is provided while scheduling product promotions.

Premise sales representatives are tasked with traveling through assigned territory to call on regular and prospective customers in a bid to solicit orders. They coordinate customer training, attend trade shows, and ride with suppliers to showcase brands and increase sales. They also maintain frequent and open communication with other employees and maintain training and product knowledge.

Premise sales representatives typically hold an associate's degree from a college or a technical school and a significant experience or training level. They are expected to possess the ability to sustain a current and valid alcohol sales permit and a driver's license. Some employers prefer candidates with sound knowledge of order processing systems. They also need to have a keen eye for detail and be physically fit to perform various duties as assigned. Premise sales representatives earn an average salary of approximeately $100,000 annually, or $48 per hour.

What general advice would you give to a premise sales representative?

Frederik Beuk

Associate Professor of Marketing, University of Akron

The key consideration is whether you really want to maximize your initial salary. For instance, envision two job opportunities: one offering a salary of $50,000 per year, where you'd be the most junior team member, and the other providing $75,000 per year, with the caveat that you would be the sole sales representative for the firm. The optimal choice is to prioritize learning opportunities. In this context, being the lone salesperson for a company that compensates its highest-earning sales professional $75,000 might not be your superior option. Instead, seek a position that offers the greatest potential for learning. Subsequently, demonstrate your negotiating prowess, a critical sales skill, by securing a slightly higher salary. However, it's essential not to fixate on maximizing your starting salary. Your career requires a long-term strategy, and you have several decades ahead of you to maximize income.

ScorePremise Sales RepresentativeUS Average

Salary

3.6

Avg. Salary $46,405

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.1

Growth rate 4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.8

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.23%

Asian 5.16%

Black or African American 3.84%

Hispanic or Latino 14.28%

Unknown 3.71%

White 72.78%

Gender

female 38.33%

male 61.67%

Age - 48

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 48

Stress level

7.1

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.4

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.9

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a premise sales representative

Explore premise sales representative education requirements

Most common premise sales representative degrees

Bachelor's

78.3 %

Associate

12.0 %

Master's

4.4 %

Start to develop specific premise sales representative skills

Skills	Percentages
Wine	29.68%
Customer Service	9.02%
POS	7.24%
Sales Presentations	4.13%
Product Knowledge	4.02%

Complete relevant premise sales representative training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New premise sales representatives learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a premise sales representative based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real premise sales representative resumes.

Research premise sales representative duties and responsibilities

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Prepare your premise sales representative resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your premise sales representative resume.

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