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The differences between surgical sales representatives and outside sales representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a surgical sales representative, becoming an outside sales representative takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a surgical sales representative has an average salary of $73,379, which is higher than the $60,443 average annual salary of an outside sales representative.
The top three skills for a surgical sales representative include medical sales, product knowledge and GYN. The most important skills for an outside sales representative are customer service, work ethic, and sales process.
| Surgical Sales Representative | Outside Sales Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $73,379 | $60,443 |
| Hourly rate | $35.28 | $29.06 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 124,729 | 218,034 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 85% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
A surgical sales representative is responsible for selling surgical devices for health care facilities with cost-efficient offers but high-quality standards. Surgical sales representatives negotiate contracts with existing and potential clients by discussing the features and benefits of their products that would attract the clients' purchasing decisions. They also manage their business proposals by sending out e-mail campaigns or personally visiting the clients' area. A surgical sales representative must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially in identifying the recent medical technology trends that would generate more revenue resources for the business.
An Outside Sales Representative specializes in customer service and relations, focusing on reaching sales targets through selling and networking with clients. Among the duties revolve around reaching out to customers through calls, email, or even arranging appointments, monitoring and keeping an organized record of sales, communicating with managers or supervisors, adhering to the company's policies and regulations, and keeping extensive knowledge about the brand and the trends. Besides building rapport with customers, it is also essential for an Outside Sales Representative to be proactive and create strategies to help meet the sales target.
Surgical sales representatives and outside sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Surgical Sales Representative | Outside Sales Representative | |
| Average salary | $73,379 | $60,443 |
| Salary range | Between $47,000 And $113,000 | Between $41,000 And $87,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Minneapolis, MN |
| Highest paying state | - | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | - | Microsoft |
| Best paying industry | - | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a surgical sales representative and an outside sales representative in terms of educational background:
| Surgical Sales Representative | Outside Sales Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 85% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred |
Here are the differences between surgical sales representatives' and outside sales representatives' demographics:
| Surgical Sales Representative | Outside Sales Representative | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 66.6% Female, 33.4% | Male, 71.5% Female, 28.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 13.9% Asian, 5.1% White, 73.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |