How to hire a territory sales manager

How to hire a territory sales manager, step by step

Here's a step-by-step territory sales manager hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a territory sales manager job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new territory sales manager
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a territory sales manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your territory sales manager job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a territory sales manager for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A territory sales manager's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, territory sales managers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents territory sales manager salaries for various positions.

   Type of Territory Sales Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Territory Sales Manager	Sales managers direct organizations' sales teams. They set sales goals, analyze data, and develop training programs for organizations’ sales representatives.	$23-54
   Product Manager/Sales	A sales product manager is responsible for monitoring the sales performance of a specific product and ensuring that the marketing strategies adhere to market standards and client requirements. Sales product managers work closely with the marketing and public relations team to enhance the product's brand image on various market platforms to reach the target audience... Show more	$36-75
   Business Development Sales Manager	A business development sales manager is in charge of securing sales by reaching out to clients through calls, correspondence, or appointments. Their responsibilities often revolve around performing research and analysis to identify new leads and sales opportunities, offering different products and services, and creating proposals and price quotes for potential clients... Show more	$32-86

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Territory Sales
   • Customer Service
   • Healthcare
   • CRM
   • Patients
   • Work Ethic
   • Product Knowledge
   • Customer Satisfaction
   • Sales Training
   • Branch Management
   • Trade Shows
   • Strong Presentation
   • Account Management
   • Distributors

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage all the Costco Midwest regional activity.
   • Manage annual marketing budget of $1.0 MM.
   • Manage accounts and territory with CRM software to optimize production
   • Manage process and documentation flow from initial contact through program execution, including timely CRM management.
   • Accomplish this by actively prospecting new business, maintaining accountability on all sales efforts, and actualizing attentiveness to detail.
   • Promote excellent customer satisfaction by focusing efforts on ethics, integrity and dependability.

   More territory sales manager duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your territory sales manager job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A territory sales manager salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a territory sales manager in Virginia may be lower than in Hawaii, and an entry-level territory sales manager usually earns less than a senior-level territory sales manager. Additionally, a territory sales manager with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average territory sales manager salary

   $74,356yearly

   $35.75 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level territory sales manager salary

   $48,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 20, 2025

   Average territory sales manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Washington	$95,161	$46
   2	California	$90,820	$44
   3	Maryland	$87,532	$42
   4	Massachusetts	$87,053	$42
   5	Maine	$86,431	$42
   6	South Carolina	$84,846	$41
   7	Tennessee	$83,548	$40
   8	Kansas	$81,178	$39
   9	New York	$80,939	$39
   10	District of Columbia	$80,005	$38
   11	Pennsylvania	$79,998	$38
   12	Oregon	$79,315	$38
   13	Arizona	$78,653	$38
   14	Georgia	$77,368	$37
   15	West Virginia	$77,329	$37
   16	Minnesota	$76,741	$37
   17	Utah	$75,944	$37
   18	Delaware	$74,189	$36
   19	North Carolina	$73,384	$35
   20	Wisconsin	$71,588	$34

   Average territory sales manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Palo Alto Networks	$114,848	$55.22	127
   2	Riverbed Holdings, Inc.	$106,440	$51.17	1
   3	Sierra Pacific Industries	$106,350	$51.13	18
   4	Trupanion	$102,103	$49.09	4
   5	Merck	$102,079	$49.08	154
   6	Motion Industries	$99,679	$47.92
   7	Siemens	$99,620	$47.89	42
   8	John Deere	$99,581	$47.88
   9	Colfax Corporation	$98,656	$47.43	12
   10	Systemax	$98,469	$47.34
   11	Solenis	$98,249	$47.24	19
   12	Metro Brokers	$97,657	$46.95
   13	NCR	$97,608	$46.93
   14	Gardner Denver	$96,829	$46.55	64
   15	Standard Motor Products	$96,329	$46.31	1
   16	VF	$94,839	$45.60	3
   17	Rockwell Automation	$93,922	$45.15	22
   18	Boston Scientific	$93,708	$45.05	52
   19	Globe Life	$93,270	$44.84	4
   20	GOJO Industries	$92,647	$44.54

4. Writing a territory sales manager job description

   A job description for a territory sales manager role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a territory sales manager job description:

   Territory sales manager job description example

   Your career begins at Cone Drive Operations, a Timken company! Cone Drive is located in beautiful Traverse City, Michigan and boasts nearly 100 years of success in the gearing industry. If you're ready for a challenging career that provides you with the ability to advance personally and professionally, look to Cone Drive. Our associates make the world more productive by improving the efficiency and reliability of the machinery that keeps industry in motion.This role will work remotely and is responsible for the Northeastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania regions. The Territory Sales Manager's top priorities are to develop new applications and new Cone Drive business at profiled OEM target accounts and to maintain and grow the Cone business at their assigned existing accounts.
   Profile
   - Territory Sales Managers ("TSM's") are the first line contact with our major Cone OEM accounts
   - The TSM's top priorities are to develop new applications and new Cone Drive business at profiled OEM target accounts and to maintain and grow the Cone business at their assigned existing accounts
   - In addition a TSM provides support for ASP's, the top Cone distribution locations in their territory
   - The TSM is also responsible for executing Cone Drive strategies and initiatives
   
   Requirements:
   - Bachelors Degree in Business Administration, Engineering or related; or equivalent combination of education and experience
   - 5 years related sales experience in industrial equipment or products
   - Ability to call on and maintain existing Cone Drive accounts and develop new accounts and applications for the Cone Drive product offering
   - Ability to gain working knowledge of our products and their applications, as well as the understanding of the customer base in the given region
   - Ability to foster long-term relationships with the All qualified applicants shall be treated equally according to their individual qualifications, abilities, experiences and other employment standards. There will be no discrimination due to gender or gender identity, race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, sexual orientation, veteran/military status or any other basis protected by applicable law.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find territory sales managers for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your territory sales manager job on Zippia to find and recruit territory sales manager candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit territory sales managers, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new territory sales manager

   Once you've found the territory sales manager candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new territory sales manager first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a territory sales manager?