Telephone sales representative vs sales representative

The differences between telephone sales representatives and sales representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a sales representative has an average salary of $56,591, which is higher than the $28,512 average annual salary of a telephone sales representative.

The top three skills for a telephone sales representative include outbound calls, telephone sales and life insurance. The most important skills for a sales representative are sales process, product knowledge, and customer service.

Telephone sales representative vs sales representative overview

	Telephone Sales Representative	Sales Representative
Yearly salary	$28,512	$56,591
Hourly rate	$13.71	$27.21
Growth rate	-4%	4%
Number of jobs	214,765	205,456
Job satisfaction	-	4.33
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 32%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Average age	37	47
Years of experience	-	4

What does a telephone sales representative do?

The primary job of telephone sales representatives is to sell products and services to prospective customers through telephone. They typically answer phone calls and answer inquiries from customers. Their duties and responsibilities include updating database and backup data regularly, completing forms and recording logs, and following organizational standards in order to maintain quality and exceptional customer service. Qualifications required for this role may include previous work experience in sales or a related field, customer service skills, and strong attention to detail.

What does a sales representative do?

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.

Telephone sales representative vs sales representative salary

Telephone sales representatives and sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Telephone Sales Representative	Sales Representative
Average salary	$28,512	$56,591
Salary range	Between $17,000 And $47,000	Between $33,000 And $94,000
Highest paying City	Beverly, MA	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Massachusetts
Best paying company	UnitedHealth Group	Google
Best paying industry	Media	Pharmaceutical

Differences between telephone sales representative and sales representative education

There are a few differences between a telephone sales representative and a sales representative in terms of educational background:

	Telephone Sales Representative	Sales Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 32%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred

Telephone sales representative vs sales representative demographics

Here are the differences between telephone sales representatives' and sales representatives' demographics:

	Telephone Sales Representative	Sales Representative
Average age	37	47
Gender ratio	Male, 41.5% Female, 58.5%	Male, 58.1% Female, 41.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 17.8% Unknown, 3.5% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 3.9% White, 56.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	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	11%	6%

Differences between telephone sales representative and sales representative duties and responsibilities

Telephone sales representative example responsibilities.

Conduct telephone sales and interviews, compile and enter information into database, manage documents and insure customer satisfaction.
Maintain HIPAA regulations and standards.
Build, setup, troubleshoot and maintain computer hardware and software needs as necessary.
Place out bound sales calls to current DIRECTV customers and try to get them to upgrade their current channel package.
Follow governmental regulations and HIPAA guidelines.
Locate and troubleshoot items that customers have purchased

Sales representative example responsibilities.

Manage prospective leads and existing accounts through a CRM platform to accurately forecast revenue and develop long-term business partnerships.
Manage and create all content distribute via various social media outlets: Facebook, twitter, feedback blogs, etc.
Search for procurement contracts, attend trade shows, design flyers, postcards, etc.
Utilize POS sales software to maintain monetary sales information produce reports for organizational review.
Develop and maintain business relationships with businesses and policyholders using establish methods such as customer relationship management CRM.
Handle administrative and sales duties as Jr.

Telephone sales representative vs sales representative skills

Common telephone sales representative skills

Outbound Calls, 18%
Telephone Sales, 11%
Life Insurance, 11%
Product Knowledge, 7%
Customer Service, 7%
Inbound Calls, 6%

Common sales representative skills

Sales Process, 9%
Product Knowledge, 9%
Customer Service, 7%
CRM, 6%
Business Development, 6%
Sales REP, 5%

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Telephone Sales Representative
Telephone Sales Representative vs Sales Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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