What is a product representative and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Lloyd Wilson

A product representative represents a company's products to potential customers. They are responsible for promoting and selling products, answering customer inquiries, and providing product information to customers. Product representatives may also attend trade shows and conferences to showcase products, negotiate sales contracts, and build relationships with clients. They work closely with marketing and sales teams to ensure that products are effectively marketed and that sales targets are met.

What general advice would you give to a product representative?

Lloyd Wilson

Professor and Center Director

Be a strong communicator. Make yourself so valuable that the company will lose business if you decide to accept a position with another company. Show your value by being able to improve the company’s bottom line. Earn the company’s respect by earning the respect of the crop consultants, growers, extension agents, and specialists. Be willing to ask for pay increases once you have reached the point that you believe your knowledge separates you from the pack, so-to-speak. Be wiling to change jobs is necessary, but never burn bridges. Be willing to accept leadership roles, even if it means you have to relocate.

ScoreProduct RepresentativeUS Average

Salary

5.1

Avg. Salary $65,710

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 5.19%

Black or African American 3.88%

Hispanic or Latino 14.47%

Unknown 3.72%

White 72.51%

Gender

female 43.95%

male 56.05%

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

What are the pros and cons of being a product representative?

Pros

Flexibility in schedule and work location
Opportunities to travel and attend industry events
Potential for high earnings through commission and bonuses
Ability to work independently and make decisions
Exposure to new technologies and trends in the market

Cons

High pressure to meet sales quotas and targets
Long hours, including evenings and weekends
Limited control over the product or pricing strategy
Need to constantly stay informed about competitors' products and pricing
Can be mentally exhausting to maintain a positive attitude and motivation throughout the day

Key steps to become a product representative

Explore product representative education requirements

Most common product representative degrees

Bachelor's

65.2 %

Associate

17.2 %

Master's

6.7 %

Start to develop specific product representative skills

Skills	Percentages
Product Knowledge	25.01%
Financial Products	12.21%
Customer Service	7.52%
FDA	7.27%
Market Trends	6.17%

Complete relevant product representative training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New product 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 product representative based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real product representative resumes.

Research product representative duties and responsibilities

Interact with all COSTCO members that approach or pass by the product display to achieve maximum sales for the vendor.
Manage telephone relationships with senior management of client companies to troubleshoot and develop product.
Develop and implement marketing programs for distributors and retailers, including co-op advertising plans, promotional events, and merchandising techniques.
Assist in development of proposals & RFP responses to include special pricing module.

Prepare your product representative resume

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

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a product representative resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable product representative resume templates

Build a professional product representative resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your product representative resume.