What Does an Outside Sales Associate Do?
Outside sales associates sell products and services to customers outside the company’s physical location, usually in the field or at customer locations. Additionally, they may be responsible for developing leads, establishing relationships with potential clients, and negotiating sales.
It is essential that an outside sales associate has excellent communication and interpersonal skills, as well as the ability to build and maintain strong relationships with customers. They must be self-motivated, goal-oriented, capable of working independently, and able to manage their time effectively. Furthermore, these professionals should be able to provide customers with detailed information about the products or services they are selling and answer any questions they may have.
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National Average Salary
Outside sales associate salaries vary by experience, industry, organization size, and geography. To explore salary ranges by local market, please visit our sister site zengig.com.
The average U.S. salary for a Outside Sales Associate is:
$62,080
Outside Sales Associate Job Descriptions
Crafting the perfect job description may be the key to finding an exceptional outside sales associate. To help you with your recruiting search, our team has put together some examples from past openings.
Example 1
At [Your Company Name], we’re thrilled to be looking for a new addition to our employee family. We are searching high and low for an extremely driven and motivated outside sales associate. All initial and continuing training will be provided as we make sure you have all of the tools possible to be successful. A positive attitude is paramount as outside sales can be tough and exhausting, but is extremely rewarding as well. At [Your Company Name] an outside sales associate will be tasked with maintaining proper sales paperwork, nurturing current relationships, and implementing sales strategies to close new deals. You will be largely independent with your time, leads, and daily sales activity. Some warm leads are provided, but the ideal candidate will always strive to find new potential clients.
Typical duties and responsibilities
- Manage sales paperwork and CRM entries
- Create new leads
- Close current leads
- Nurture current customer relationships
- Obtain upsells with existing customers
- Continue sales training and education
- Collaborate with other sales reps to improve sales strategies
- Assist in customer service issues with current customers to maintain a healthy relationship
- Track closing percentages
- Send email and/or text campaigns in an effort to obtain more leads
- Report to sales manager for any other tasks needed
Education and experience
- High school diploma or equivalent (G.E.D)
- A year or more of sales-related experience
Required skills and qualifications
- Outside sales experience
- Business-to-business sales experience preferred
- Entry-level computer experience for CRM management
- Self-motivation
- Time management skills
- Self-starter attitude
- Great communication skills
- Client relationship management
- Experienced at finding new clients
- Able to manage multiple accounts
- Excellent negotiation skills
- Ability to work well under pressure
- Great track record of consistent sales numbers
- Understanding of the market and competitors
Preferred qualifications
- 3-5 years of outside sales experience
- Bilingual
Example 2
Preferred qualifications
- Post-secondary education equivalent to a Diploma in Business Management or equivalent
- Outside Sales experience in either an industrial equipment rental or a welding equipment sales or rental environment (ideally construction, fabrication, and/or manufacturing sectors)
- Working knowledge of positioning equipment, welding applications, and equipment
- Must be performance driven and show a high level of accountability
- Forward thinking, proactive, detailed and results oriented, positive attitude, and self-motivated
- Ability to travel and be away from home 25-50% of the time
- Must have a valid Driver’s License
Essential duties
- Ensures a safe work environment by following health and safety guidelines
- Develops and increases end user customer base by effective communication, assessment of needs, and recommendations of solutions
- Performs onsite equipment demonstrations
- Makes application recommendations of welding and positioning equipment
- Develops long-term supply relationships through contracts and/or agreements
- Meets or exceeds rental and sales goals specified in the market area
- Represents the company at trade association meetings and Trade Shows to promote products
- Compiles lists of prospective customers for sales leads based on information from newspapers, business directories, trade journals, and/or other sources
- Maintains accurate and timely submission of sales call reports and expenses.
- Travel within designated territory up to 25-50% of the time, including some overnight travel
Required knowledge and skills
- Ability to develop and execute market/business plans
- Proven ability to develop new accounts and new business opportunities
- Requires high-quality presentation and negotiating skills
- Ability to work with a wide variety of people with different personalities and backgrounds
- Computer skills to produce effective spreadsheets, reports, documents, and presentations, as required. Knowledge of MS Office and Microsoft Dynamics CRM applications
Example 3
The Outside Sales Associate will also build relationships with key vendors and suppliers while making joint sales calls. Large and profitable territories available with commissions that far exceed industry standards.
Expectations
- Develop, maintain, and nurture relationships with key contacts at existing accounts
- Research and prospect for new accounts and opportunities
- Identify key contacts, corporate purchasing procedures
- Develop, build, and maintain long-term relationships
- Increase and build sales
Qualifications
- Strong work ethic
- Comfortable working with people and building the sales relationship
- Strong organizational, communication, and interpersonal skills
- Ability to work independently as well as a team member
- Reliable transportation
Example 4
The ideal candidate will be sales driven, express the desire to grow professionally and possess an interest in establishing a career in construction equipment outside sales. A successful candidate must be people-oriented, aggressive, sales driven, and a team player.
Requirements
- Express an aggressive, dynamic personality, and excellent customer service skills
- Demonstrates professional business appearance at all times
- Maintains the qualities of a people-oriented, sales driven, self-directed, self-motivated, and determined individual with an entrepreneurial spirit
- Cold-calling and jobsite calls are required
- Proficient computer skills including MS Office Suite, smartphones, and tablets
- Must be able to identify and build prospects and business relationships in designated territory
- Possess reliable transportation and a valid Driver’s License
- Willing to accept on the job and formal training
Preferred qualifications
- Bachelor’s Degree
- Excellent communication and presentation skills
- Prior sales experience
- Strong business acumen with ability to generate solutions to customer issues and requests
Candidate Certifications to Look For
- Certified Sales Professional (CSP). This certification helps candidates with a better understanding of sales. It also leaves them with familiarity with business management and time management. To be eligible, candidates must have a college degree and 35 hours of pre-approved coursework. Renewal of this certification is required every three years.
- Certified Sales Executive (CSE). With this certification, candidates will be able to explain the sales management process and know the ins and outs of sales. There are no prerequisites to this certification, but they will need to pass the exam with a 75% passing rate or higher and pay the fee.
- Certified Sales Leadership Professional (CSLP). This shows employers that candidates have the skill sets needed to succeed in sales, especially if they want to be in a leadership position one day. They will need to pass the exam at the end of the course.
- The Art of Sales: Mastering the Selling Process Specialization. This certification improves the skills needed to close deals faster. This will also teach candidates how to keep new clients, and how to find them as well.
Sample Interview Questions
- What is your experience working as an outside sales associate, and how do you approach building relationships with your customers?
- When working outside of the company’s physical location, how do you prioritize your workload and stay organized?
- How do you manage customer interactions and data when you use customer relationship management (CRM) software or other sales tools?
- When it comes to data privacy and sales interactions, how do you ensure that you follow all company policies and procedures?
- When you had to work collaboratively with other team members to resolve complex sales issues, how did you approach and resolve any challenges that arose?
- In order to measure your success in this position, how do you ensure that you consistently provide high-quality customer service?
- Tell me about a time when you had to overcome objections or challenges during the sales process, and how you handled them.
- Do you have any strategies for measuring and tracking your sales performance to ensure you are meeting or exceeding your targets and goals?
- How did you generate leads or close a sale when you had to think creatively or outside the box? How did you ensure a positive outcome?
- What strategies do you use to keep up with the latest trends, developments, and competition in your industry?
