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The differences between sales representatives and territory sales representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a sales representative and a territory sales representative. Additionally, a sales representative has an average salary of $56,591, which is higher than the $34,431 average annual salary of a territory sales representative.
The top three skills for a sales representative include sales process, product knowledge and customer service. The most important skills for a territory sales representative are customer service, CRM, and product knowledge.
| Sales Representative | Territory Sales Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $56,591 | $34,431 |
| Hourly rate | $27.21 | $16.55 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 205,456 | 219,928 |
| Job satisfaction | 4.33 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 54% | Bachelor's Degree, 79% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Sales representatives primarily sell the company's products and services to businesses or organizations. They should be adept at closing out sales, negotiating, and providing customer service. They should be knowledgeable about the products or services of the manufacturer or producer they represent. They must also have strong analytical skills that would help them in coming up with cost-benefit analysis in assessing the current roster of clients and even prospective ones. Sales representatives should also be able to maintain good working relationships with all involved stakeholders, especially clients.
A territory sales representative is responsible for selling goods and services, assisting customers with their inquiries and concerns, and monitoring the assigned area's sales reports. Territory sales representatives coordinate with the rest of the sales team to develop effective marketing strategies and promotional techniques to increase revenues and profitability. Territory sales representatives research current market trends to identify business opportunities to meet consumer demands and widen their services. A territory sales representative must have excellent knowledge of the sales disciplines and principles, managing the market approach to ensure customer satisfaction.
Sales representatives and territory sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Sales Representative | Territory Sales Representative | |
| Average salary | $56,591 | $34,431 |
| Salary range | Between $33,000 And $94,000 | Between $15,000 And $78,000 |
| Highest paying City | Boston, MA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | IBM | |
| Best paying industry | Pharmaceutical | - |
There are a few differences between a sales representative and a territory sales representative in terms of educational background:
| Sales Representative | Territory Sales Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 54% | Bachelor's Degree, 79% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between sales representatives' and territory sales representatives' demographics:
| Sales Representative | Territory Sales Representative | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 58.1% Female, 41.9% | Male, 69.1% Female, 30.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 5.1% White, 72.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |