Summary Report for:
41-4011.00 - Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Technical and Scientific Products
Sell goods for wholesalers or manufacturers where technical or scientific knowledge is required in such areas as biology, engineering, chemistry, and electronics, normally obtained from at least 2 years of post-secondary education.
Sample of reported job titles:
Sales Representative, Account Manager, Sales Manager, Inside Sales Representative, Account Development Manager, Account Executive, Channel Sales Director, Marketing Representative, Sales Director, Distribution Sales Manager
Also see: Solar Sales Representatives and Assessors
Tasks | Tools & Technology | Knowledge | Skills | Abilities | Work Activities | Work Context | Job Zone | Education | Interests | Work Styles | Work Values | Related Occupations | Wages & Employment | Additional Information
Tasks
- Contact new and existing customers to discuss their needs, and to explain how these needs could be met by specific products and services.
- Answer customers' questions about products, prices, availability, or credit terms.
- Quote prices, credit terms, or other bid specifications.
- Emphasize product features based on analyses of customers' needs and on technical knowledge of product capabilities and limitations.
- Negotiate prices or terms of sales or service agreements.
- Maintain customer records, using automated systems.
- Identify prospective customers by using business directories, following leads from existing clients, participating in organizations and clubs, and attending trade shows and conferences.
- Prepare sales contracts for orders obtained, and submit orders for processing.
- Select the correct products or assist customers in making product selections, based on customers' needs, product specifications, and applicable regulations.
- Collaborate with colleagues to exchange information, such as selling strategies or marketing information.
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Tools & Technology
Tools used in this occupation:
Notebook computers — Laptop computers |
Personal computers |
Personal digital assistant PDAs or organizers — Personal digital assistants PDA |
Tablet computers |
Technology used in this occupation:
Customer relationship management CRM software — ActionWare; NetSuite NetCRM; Sage ACT!; Sybase iAnywhere Sales Anywhere |
Data base user interface and query software — Data entry software; Microsoft Access; Oracle DBMS |
Electronic mail software — IBM Lotus Notes; Microsoft Exchange; Microsoft Outlook |
Presentation software — Microsoft PowerPoint |
Spreadsheet software — Microsoft Excel |
Word processing software — Microsoft Word |
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Knowledge
Sales and Marketing — Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems. |
Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction. |
English Language — Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar. |
Computers and Electronics — Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming. |
Production and Processing — Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods. |
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Skills
Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively. |
Persuasion — Persuading others to change their minds or behavior. |
Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times. |
Social Perceptiveness — Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do. |
Negotiation — Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences. |
Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents. |
Service Orientation — Actively looking for ways to help people. |
Active Learning — Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making. |
Complex Problem Solving — Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions. |
Coordination — Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions. |
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Abilities
Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. |
Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences. |
Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you. |
Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person. |
Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. |
Written Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand. |
Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense. |
Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer). |
Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem. |
Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events). |
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Work Activities
Selling or Influencing Others — Convincing others to buy merchandise/goods or to otherwise change their minds or actions. |
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time. |
Communicating with Persons Outside Organization — Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail. |
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person. |
Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems. |
Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources. |
Analyzing Data or Information — Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts. |
Interacting With Computers — Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information. |
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job. |
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work. |
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Work Context
Telephone — How often do you have telephone conversations in this job? |
Contact With Others — How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it? |
Deal With External Customers — How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job? |
Duration of Typical Work Week — Number of hours typically worked in one week. |
Electronic Mail — How often do you use electronic mail in this job? |
Face-to-Face Discussions — How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job? |
Freedom to Make Decisions — How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer? |
Structured versus Unstructured Work — To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals? |
Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results — How do the decisions an employee makes impact the results of co-workers, clients or the company? |
Level of Competition — To what extent does this job require the worker to compete or to be aware of competitive pressures? |
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Job Zone
Title |
Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed |
Education |
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not. |
Related Experience |
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified. |
Job Training |
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training. |
Job Zone Examples |
Many of these occupations involve coordinating, supervising, managing, or training others. Examples include accountants, sales managers, database administrators, teachers, chemists, environmental engineers, criminal investigators, and special agents. |
SVP Range |
(7.0 to < 8.0) |
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Education
![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130315231353im_/http://www.onetonline.org/shared/image/blank.gif) Percentage of Respondents |
Education Level Required |
42 ![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130315231353im_/http://www.onetonline.org/image/pixel_blue.gif) ![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130315231353im_/http://www.onetonline.org/image/pixel_grayD.gif) |
Bachelor's degree |
22 ![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130315231353im_/http://www.onetonline.org/image/pixel_blue.gif) ![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130315231353im_/http://www.onetonline.org/image/pixel_grayD.gif) |
Associate's degree |
15 ![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130315231353im_/http://www.onetonline.org/image/pixel_blue.gif) ![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130315231353im_/http://www.onetonline.org/image/pixel_grayD.gif) |
Some college, no degree |
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Interests
Interest code: EC
Enterprising — Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business. |
Conventional — Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow. |
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Work Styles
Initiative — Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges. |
Independence — Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done. |
Achievement/Effort — Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks. |
Persistence — Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles. |
Dependability — Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations. |
Attention to Detail — Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks. |
Adaptability/Flexibility — Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace. |
Integrity — Job requires being honest and ethical. |
Stress Tolerance — Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations. |
Self Control — Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations. |
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Work Values
Independence — Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy. |
Achievement — Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement. |
Working Conditions — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions. |
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Related Occupations
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Wages & Employment Trends
National
Median wages (2011) |
$35.94 hourly, $74,750 annual |
Employment (2010) |
400,000 employees |
Projected growth (2010-2020) |
Average (10% to 19%)
|
Projected job openings (2010-2020) |
159,700 |
Top industries (2010) |
|
State & National
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2011 wage data
and 2010-2020 employment projections
.
"Projected growth" represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2010-2020). "Projected job openings" represent openings due to growth and replacement.
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Sources of Additional Information
Disclaimer:
Sources are listed to provide additional information on related jobs, specialties, and/or industries.
Links to non-DOL Internet sites are provided for your convenience and do not constitute an endorsement.
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