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What is a sales support engineer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

A sales support engineer is an individual who works to provide technical assistance to sales teams. They act as a liaison between the sales team and technical staff, helping to bridge the gap between these two departments. Sales support engineers are responsible for analyzing technical specifications, creating product demonstrations, and answering questions about products or services. They are an essential part of any sales team, as they ensure that customers receive accurate information about products.

ScoreSales Support EngineerUS Average
Salary
6.1

Avg. Salary $78,335

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
7.3

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
3.4
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.33%

Asian 8.17%

Black or African American 1.65%

Hispanic or Latino 7.96%

Unknown 6.19%

White 75.70%

Gender

female 15.17%

male 84.83%

Age - 44
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 44
Stress level
7.3

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level
8.5

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance
4.2

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

What are the pros and cons of being a sales support engineer?

Pros

  • Opportunity to work with different clients and industries

  • Exposure to various sales techniques and strategies

  • Possibility for career advancement within the company

  • Ability to work remotely or have a flexible schedule

  • Competitive compensation and benefits package

Cons

  • High-pressure and fast-paced work environment

  • Challenging to balance technical expertise with sales goals

  • Dealing with difficult customers or clients

  • Need to continuously adapt to changing technologies and products

  • Can be stressful due to tight deadlines and quotas

Sales support engineer career paths

Key steps to become a sales support engineer

  1. Explore sales support engineer education requirements

    Most common sales support engineer degrees

    Bachelor's

    66.5 %

    Associate

    15.8 %

    Master's

    12.5 %
  2. Start to develop specific sales support engineer skills

    SkillsPercentages
    CRM8.56%
    Product Line5.22%
    Sales Process4.79%
    Trade Shows4.45%
    Engineering Support4.45%
  3. Complete relevant sales support engineer training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New sales support engineers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a sales support engineer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real sales support engineer resumes.
  4. Research sales support engineer duties and responsibilities

    • Manage inbound domestic and international logistics and domestic shipping with respect to carrier selection, forwarding, brokering and expediting.
    • Complete RFP responses with technical specs for project hardware.
    • Assist with HVAC design-build for several high profile projects :.
    • Prepare cost estimates and scheduling for plan and spec HVAC projects.
  5. Prepare your sales support engineer resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your sales support engineer resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a sales support engineer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable sales support engineer resume templates

    Build a professional sales support engineer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your sales support engineer resume.
    Sales Support Engineer Resume
    Sales Support Engineer Resume
    Sales Support Engineer Resume
    Sales Support Engineer Resume
    Sales Support Engineer Resume
    Sales Support Engineer Resume
    Sales Support Engineer Resume
    Sales Support Engineer Resume
    Sales Support Engineer Resume
  6. Apply for sales support engineer jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a sales support engineer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first sales support engineer job

Zippi

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Average sales support engineer salary

The average sales support engineer salary in the United States is $78,335 per year or $38 per hour. Sales support engineer salaries range between $52,000 and $116,000 per year.

Average sales support engineer salary
$78,335 Yearly
$37.66 hourly

What am I worth?

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How do sales support engineers rate their job?

-/5

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1 star

Sales support engineer reviews

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A zippia user wrote a review on Feb 2020
Pros

IF you have enough experience you get to walk around different manufacturing plants and tell them how you solution will impact their bottom line. every day is different.

Cons

Cold Call is pretty bad because your success rate is 1-2%. Surprises when a competitor sells to a company you did not know about and your marketing folks cant help find them.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Dec 2019
Cons

no general certification like PMP exists for pre sales engineer, they are all specified for one product. requires an absurd amount of concentration required for proposals writing if you don't have the adequate tools to help.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2019
Pros

Active Networking & Security Solutions

Cons

Presales tasks are usually working under Pressure, no enough time to improve skills


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.