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The differences between software sales representatives and 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 software sales representative and a sales representative. Additionally, a software sales representative has an average salary of $82,188, which is higher than the $56,591 average annual salary of a sales representative.
The top three skills for a software sales representative include cloud, software sales and healthcare. The most important skills for a sales representative are sales process, product knowledge, and customer service.
| Software Sales Representative | Sales Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $82,188 | $56,591 |
| Hourly rate | $39.51 | $27.21 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 146,618 | 205,456 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.33 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A software sales representative is responsible for selling technology products and software applications, as well as responding to the customers' inquiries and concerns, and resolving complaints. Software sales representatives take customer orders, process their payments, and set the delivery schedule according to the customers' preference. They also discuss the products' terms of service, including its maintenance instructions, and other related conditions. A software sales representative must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially when updating customers' information in the database accurately and verifying the adequacy of stock inventories.
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.
Software sales representatives and sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Software Sales Representative | Sales Representative | |
| Average salary | $82,188 | $56,591 |
| Salary range | Between $58,000 And $115,000 | Between $33,000 And $94,000 |
| Highest paying City | Sacramento, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Varian Medical Systems | |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Pharmaceutical |
There are a few differences between a software sales representative and a sales representative in terms of educational background:
| Software Sales Representative | Sales Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred |
Here are the differences between software sales representatives' and sales representatives' demographics:
| Software Sales Representative | Sales Representative | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 71.2% Female, 28.8% | Male, 58.1% Female, 41.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |