How to hire a Sales Representative

How to hire a sales representative, step by step

Here's a step-by-step sales representative hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a sales representative job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new sales representative
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a Sales Representative do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a sales representative, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine Employee vs Contractor Status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A sales representative's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, sales representatives from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   The following list breaks down different types of sales representatives and their corresponding salaries.

   Type Of Sales Representative	Description	Hourly Rate
   Sales Representative	Wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives sell goods for wholesalers or manufacturers to businesses, government agencies, and other organizations. They contact customers, explain product features, answer any questions that their customers may have, and negotiate prices.	$15-45
   Consultant And Sales Representative	A consultant and sales representative's role is to perform research and analysis to devise strategies for reaching sales targets and optimal services. Aside from providing consultations and business plans, they may also represent the company by reaching out to clients through calls and correspondence... Show More	$68-171
   Sales Development Representative	A sales development representative qualifies leads at the sales funnel's initial stages. Sales development representatives need to conduct research for prospective clients and qualify the leads before handing them to the sales team... Show More	$16-37

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common Skills:

   • Sales Process
   • Product Knowledge
   • Customer Service
   • CRM
   • Business Development
   • Sales REP
   • Customer Relations
   • Work Ethic
   • PowerPoint
   • Business Relationships
   • Sales Territory
   • Sales Quota
   • Develop Strong Relationships
   • Sales Presentations

   Check All Skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage prospective leads and existing accounts through a CRM platform to accurately forecast revenue and develop long-term business partnerships.
   • Manage and create all content distribute via various social media outlets: Facebook, twitter, feedback blogs, etc.
   • Search for procurement contracts, attend trade shows, design flyers, postcards, etc.
   • Utilize POS sales software to maintain monetary sales information produce reports for organizational review.
   • Develop and maintain business relationships with businesses and policyholders using establish methods such as customer relationship management CRM.
   • Handle administrative and sales duties as Jr.

   More Sales Representative duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your sales representative job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A sales representative salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a sales representative in Florida may be lower than in Massachusetts, and an entry-level sales representative usually earns less than a senior-level sales representative. Additionally, a sales representative with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average sales representative salary

   $56,591yearly

   $27.21 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level sales representative salary

   $33,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 14, 2025

   Average sales representative salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. Salary	Hourly Rate
   1	Massachusetts	$71,996	$35
   2	Pennsylvania	$63,367	$30
   3	Indiana	$62,244	$30
   4	New York	$60,443	$29
   5	California	$58,941	$28
   6	Minnesota	$58,917	$28
   7	Maryland	$58,134	$28
   8	Washington	$57,955	$28
   9	Nebraska	$56,771	$27
   10	Kentucky	$56,725	$27
   11	Virginia	$56,628	$27
   12	Colorado	$56,320	$27
   13	Iowa	$55,792	$27
   14	North Carolina	$55,567	$27
   15	Kansas	$55,267	$27
   16	Wisconsin	$55,188	$27
   17	Ohio	$55,063	$26
   18	Illinois	$54,363	$26
   19	South Carolina	$54,201	$26
   20	Texas	$53,747	$26

   Average sales representative salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average Salary	Hourly Rate	Job Openings
   1	Google	$118,278	$56.86	114
   2	Palo Alto Networks	$116,908	$56.21	14
   3	Erie Homes for Children and Adults	$106,282	$51.10	1
   4	American Residential Services	$105,077	$50.52	34
   5	HP	$102,743	$49.40	63
   6	Juniper Networks	$102,717	$49.38
   7	Sun Communities	$102,536	$49.30	15
   8	Vista Equity Partners	$102,516	$49.29	6
   9	Champion Mortgage Holdings Corp.	$101,836	$48.96
   10	IBM	$101,499	$48.80	13
   11	QuinStreet	$101,395	$48.75	10
   12	Cottage Health	$100,913	$48.52	8
   13	Better	$100,526	$48.33	2
   14	Century 21 Alliance Realty	$99,619	$47.89	1
   15	Bloomberg	$99,576	$47.87	3
   16	State Street	$99,432	$47.80
   17	Roberts Brothers	$99,423	$47.80	5
   18	Burgan Bank	$99,342	$47.76
   19	Comey & Shepherd	$99,271	$47.73	4
   20	Intero Real Estate Services	$99,259	$47.72	3

4. Writing a Sales Representative Job Description

   A sales representative job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a sales representative job description:

   Sales Representative job description example

   · Supports small revenue opportunities within select focused channel partners and existing ‘20’ direct customers through communications and other activities as needed.

   · Prospects, qualifies and generates sales within ITWPP’s established distribution partners.

   · Maintains smaller distribution partners and named direct accounts with pricing notification and other communication and support as required.

   · Effectively utilize sales processes and tools in Salesforce (opportunities, call plans, dashboards) to support significant growth for the Americas

   · Identifies and closes additional purchases of products and services by customers' communities.

   · Works closely with Sales, Marketing, Tech Services, and Customer Service.

   · Able to provide basic technical support and redirect inquires related to customer service, quality and more detailed technical requests while ensuring timely response to customers.

   · Keeps management informed of all activity, including timely preparation of reports

   · May Assist in providing training to both customers and employees.

   · Promotes, supports and adheres to all safety, environmental and quality related policies and procedures.

   · Effectively communicate with others inside and outside of the company in a professional manner to promote customer service orientation.

   · May provide other reports or analysis as requested

   Qualifications
   
   

   BASIC REQUIREMENTS :

   · Strong written and verbal communication skills,

   · solid technical acumen,

   · comfortable cold-calling and collecting customer/market information,

   · highly organized, detail oriented and good multi-tasker.

   · Strong bias for action and the ability to super-serve customers.

   EDUCATION: Advanced two to four- year degree in technical (Chemical Engineer or similar) discipline preferred.

   EXPERIENCE : Recent college grad with like internship experience required. 2 plus years of experience in a technical role and a desire to sell and interact with customers preferred.

   SKILLS:

   · Computer skills in Word, Excel, Salesforce.com and ERP Systems is preferred.

   · Demonstrated competency for developing relationship-building, identifying key decision makers. Strong understanding and follow up of sales processes.

   · Ability to research companies and contacts through various methods (web search, existing records in CRM, other tools/websites.

   · Excellent time management and ability to prioritize tasks

   TRAVEL: Occasional

   
   
   Additional Information
   
   

   All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

   ITW is an equal opportunity employer. We value our colleagues’ unique perspectives, experiences and ideas and create workplaces where everyone can develop their careers and perform to their full potential.

   As an equal employment opportunity employer, ITW is committed to equal employment opportunity and fair treatment for employees, beginning with the hiring process and continuing through all aspects of the employment relationship.

   All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, age, disability, protected Veteran status or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws.

   Copy This Example

   

5. Post your job

   To find sales representatives for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any sales representatives they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level sales representatives with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your sales representative job on Zippia to find and attract quality sales representative candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as salesjobs, salesheads, allretailjobs.com, sales trax.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with sales representative candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new sales representative

   Once you've found the sales representative candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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