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The differences between sales consultants and sales engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a sales consultant, becoming a sales engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a sales engineer has an average salary of $93,727, which is higher than the $60,135 average annual salary of a sales consultant.
The top three skills for a sales consultant include sales process, product knowledge and POS. The most important skills for a sales engineer are pre sales, customer service, and sales process.
| Sales Consultant | Sales Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $60,135 | $93,727 |
| Hourly rate | $28.91 | $45.06 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 227,636 | 132,324 |
| Job satisfaction | 4.5 | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 47 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 6 |
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.
A sales engineer is responsible for assisting customers with their technical equipment and advanced scientific product needs. Sales engineers must have excellent knowledge of the scientific processes and component functions of the products they're selling to deliver presentations and orient the customers. Sales engineers' duties also include troubleshooting, identifying product defects, and upgrading systems for better optimization. They are also responsible for analyzing cost estimates documents, performing adjustments as needed, process payments, arranging deliveries, and settling customers' complaints by replacing damaged items or doing refunds.
Sales consultants and sales engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Sales Consultant | Sales Engineer | |
| Average salary | $60,135 | $93,727 |
| Salary range | Between $37,000 And $97,000 | Between $66,000 And $132,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | Virginia |
| Best paying company | Meta | |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a sales consultant and a sales engineer in terms of educational background:
| Sales Consultant | Sales Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between sales consultants' and sales engineers' demographics:
| Sales Consultant | Sales Engineer | |
| Average age | 47 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 63.2% Female, 36.8% | Male, 90.1% Female, 9.9% |
| Race ratio | 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% | Black or African American, 1.7% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 7.1% White, 76.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 7% |