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The differences between sales engineers and technical sales 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 sales engineer, becoming a technical sales representative takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a sales engineer has an average salary of $93,727, which is higher than the $71,310 average annual salary of a technical sales representative.
The top three skills for a sales engineer include pre sales, customer service and sales process. The most important skills for a technical sales representative are sales process, business development, and sales support.
| Sales Engineer | Technical Sales Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $93,727 | $71,310 |
| Hourly rate | $45.06 | $34.28 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 132,324 | 237,456 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 57% |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 2 |
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.
A technical sales representative is responsible for selling products and services by demonstrating the product's details and features to existing and potential clients. Technical sales representatives evaluate clients' needs and recommend solutions through the organization's technology-based products. They also assist with promotional offers and marketing campaigns to boost brand awareness and increase revenues and achieve profitability goals while ensuring the highest customer satisfaction. A technical sales representative must have excellent communication and customer service skills, handling customers' inquiries, and resolving complaints.
Sales engineers and technical sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Sales Engineer | Technical Sales Representative | |
| Average salary | $93,727 | $71,310 |
| Salary range | Between $66,000 And $132,000 | Between $39,000 And $129,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Virginia | New York |
| Best paying company | Meta | |
| Best paying industry | Technology | - |
There are a few differences between a sales engineer and a technical sales representative in terms of educational background:
| Sales Engineer | Technical Sales Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 57% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between sales engineers' and technical sales representatives' demographics:
| Sales Engineer | Technical Sales Representative | |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 90.1% Female, 9.9% | Male, 73.3% Female, 26.7% |
| Race ratio | 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% | 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% |