Sales team leader vs outside sales manager

The differences between sales team leaders and outside sales managers 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 team leader, becoming an outside sales manager takes usually requires 6-8 years. Additionally, an outside sales manager has an average salary of $84,408, which is higher than the $51,578 average annual salary of a sales team leader.

The top three skills for a sales team leader include sales floor, product knowledge and customer service. The most important skills for an outside sales manager are product knowledge, CRM, and customer service.

Sales team leader vs outside sales manager overview

	Sales Team Leader	Outside Sales Manager
Yearly salary	$51,578	$84,408
Hourly rate	$24.80	$40.58
Growth rate	4%	5%
Number of jobs	227,509	138,054
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 60%	Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Average age	43	46
Years of experience	6	8

What does a sales team leader do?

A sales team leader oversees the sales operations within a particular area, ensuring to reach goals within the allotted time. They are primarily responsible for setting goals, devising sales strategies, evaluating sales team performance, assigning tasks, and providing support and corrective measures should there be any concerns. Furthermore, as a team leader, it is essential to encourage the sales force, shape them into valuable members of the company, and implement all of the organization's regulations and policies.

What does an outside sales manager do?

An outside sales manager is responsible for monitoring the sales staff performance in selling goods and services to existing and potential clients and ensuring that the team meets sales objectives. Outside sales managers set reasonable sales targets and establish techniques to maximize the staff's efficiency and productivity. They regularly connect with the clients to determine their needs and make any adjustments to business plans as needed. An outside sales manager should have excellent knowledge of the current market trends to identify business opportunities that would generate more revenues and resources.

Sales team leader vs outside sales manager salary

Sales team leaders and outside sales managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Sales Team Leader	Outside Sales Manager
Average salary	$51,578	$84,408
Salary range	Between $35,000 And $73,000	Between $51,000 And $138,000
Highest paying City	Middletown, NJ	Albany, NY
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	Hawaii
Best paying company	Idera	Dominion Enterprises
Best paying industry	Finance	Finance

Differences between sales team leader and outside sales manager education

There are a few differences between a sales team leader and an outside sales manager in terms of educational background:

	Sales Team Leader	Outside Sales Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 60%	Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	SUNY College of Technology at Delhi	University of Southern California

Sales team leader vs outside sales manager demographics

Here are the differences between sales team leaders' and outside sales managers' demographics:

	Sales Team Leader	Outside Sales Manager
Average age	43	46
Gender ratio	Male, 60.4% Female, 39.6%	Male, 79.1% Female, 20.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 6.9% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 3.2% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 4.1% White, 78.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	9%	7%

Differences between sales team leader and outside sales manager duties and responsibilities

Sales team leader example responsibilities.

Achieve proficiency in multitasking by performing multiple duties and managing differing responsibilities periodically.
Increase electronics sales and attainment goals on a quarterly basis, rank 4th in company in certain KPI.
Process cell phone contracts and sales through POS system while helping customers and using computer applications to complete transactions.
Facilitate developmental meetings and conversations with sales teams to discuss KPI and metrics like incremental sales and points of purchase.
Conduct PowerPoint training presentations for new and present members.
Open and closing the store, including counting cash, opening and closing POS's and creating staff assignments.

Outside sales manager example responsibilities.

Manage a team of sales executives to establish and maintain professional relationships with healthcare professionals in their prospective territories.
Develop a complete marketing program where none previously exist, now serves as CRM base for company.
Used CRM tools in order to provide current and detail information relate to activities, opportunity pipeline, and close business.
Channele marketing through the establishment of international distributors servicing Mexico (Hermosillo, Mexicali, and Tijuana) and Korea.
Plan and schedule work perform by HVAC technicians.
Educate and present new approach to facility managers and plant managers including ROI analysis.

Sales team leader vs outside sales manager skills

Common sales team leader skills

Sales Floor, 22%
Product Knowledge, 14%
Customer Service, 10%
Customer Satisfaction, 6%
Exceptional Client, 5%
KPI, 4%

Common outside sales manager skills

Product Knowledge, 12%
CRM, 10%
Customer Service, 10%
Sales Territory, 7%
Sales Strategies, 4%
Sales Growth, 3%

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Sales Team Leader
Sales Team Leader vs Outside Sales Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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