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The differences between sales associates and sales consultants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a sales consultant has an average salary of $60,135, which is higher than the $32,167 average annual salary of a sales associate.
The top three skills for a sales associate include customer service, sales floor and cash handling. The most important skills for a sales consultant are sales process, product knowledge, and POS.
| Sales Associate | Sales Consultant | |
| Yearly salary | $32,167 | $60,135 |
| Hourly rate | $15.46 | $28.91 |
| Growth rate | - | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 579,849 | 227,636 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 38% | Bachelor's Degree, 56% |
| Average age | 41 | 47 |
| Years of experience | - | 4 |
Sales associates are responsible for promoting the company's goods or services. They are expected to provide exceptional customer service to prospective buyers. They should be familiar with all features of the company's products or services so that they can answer the customers' inquiries. Sales associates also assist customers in processing their checkouts, refunds, returns, and other needs. They should be customer-oriented, and they should have great communication skills. They should know how to sell their products or services to customers. They are considered the company's representatives on the ground.
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.
Sales associates and sales consultants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Sales Associate | Sales Consultant | |
| Average salary | $32,167 | $60,135 |
| Salary range | Between $21,000 And $47,000 | Between $37,000 And $97,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New York | California |
| Best paying company | Barclays | |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Finance |
There are a few differences between a sales associate and a sales consultant in terms of educational background:
| Sales Associate | Sales Consultant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 38% | Bachelor's Degree, 56% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred |
Here are the differences between sales associates' and sales consultants' demographics:
| Sales Associate | Sales Consultant | |
| Average age | 41 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 38.4% Female, 61.6% | Male, 63.2% Female, 36.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 21.4% Asian, 6.9% White, 55.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | 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 | 7% | 6% |