Interested in a career in tech sales? Learn about different tech sales careers, the skills needed, the various ways to learn tech sales, and the salaries for various roles in this guide.
If you’ve always wanted to learn tech sales but can’t figure out how to get started, this guide is for you. Here, you’ll learn more about the various ways to learn tech sales, free resources to take advantage of, and the types of careers that commonly use tech sales.
Tech sales is exactly that: selling technology. Technology Sales Representatives work for companies that make hardware and software or provide services like cyber security or financial services, but tech sales is focused more on solving a problem than on selling a product. Building a relationship with customers based on meeting their needs is the foundation of tech sales.
Tech sales is a business-to-business sales model, also known as “B2B.” Sales Reps spend a lot of time reaching out to potential clients through cold calling or emails. Once they’ve made a connection, Tech Sales Reps often pass the clients on to an Account Executive to complete the sale, but the Rep usually stays in contact with clients after the sale to make sure they are satisfied.
Because businesses continue to embrace technological solutions, the field of tech sales is easy to get into. There are many opportunities available, and the pay is very good. As long as technology is booming, tech sales will be a solid career.
Read more about what tech sales are and why you should learn it.
Do you have a passion for technology? Are you always reading about new devices and what they can do, but you don’t know how to code and aren’t really interested in learning? You can turn that passion into a new career in tech sales. Selling software as a product relies less on the development of the software and more on what problems it can solve. If you are outgoing and enjoy talking about what software products can do for people, you can use those skills in tech sales. This is a rapidly growing field that offers numerous opportunities for advancement and lucrative pay.
When you work in tech sales, you can find a job in different kinds of companies. Some sales reps work for firms that sell hardware products, others develop and sell software, and others sell services. If you want to change to a different type of product down the road, that won’t be a problem in the high-demand field of tech sales. It is easy to get into and jobs are plentiful. Most businesses use some type of technology product, so tech sales is likely to remain strong far into the future.
A career in tech sales can take you in several different directions, depending on your interests. You might decide to work for a large company with many departments and numerous other salespeople. Or you might prefer to sign on with a smaller firm where you will perform a wider range of tasks and have more responsibility. There are some self-employed tech consultants out there, but the bulk of the workforce is employed full-time by companies. Here are some possible jobs in tech sales. Keep in mind that salaries differ depending on region and industry.
Technology Sales Representative, Software Sales Representative, or Business Development Representative are common titles for entry-level tech sales jobs. Tech Sales Reps at this level identify new clients and sales opportunities through cold calling, networking, contacting past customers, and sending emails. When Sales Reps make a connection, they set up a meeting with an Account Executive. Sales Reps also spend time nurturing current clients by keeping in touch to see if they are satisfied or have any further needs. Tech Sales Reps also use tools to set quotas and measure sales performance. According to Indeed.com, the reported average annual salary for a Technology Sales Representative is $39,000.
Once the Tech Sales Rep sets up a meeting, it is up to the Account Executive to make the deal with the customer. After that, the Account Executive manages the customer’s account in order to support and grow the account. Most companies employ Junior and Senior Account Executives, according to their level of experience. The duties of a Junior Account Executive are similar to those of a Technology Sales Representative. A Senior Account Executive oversees sales strategy, makes sure accounts are profitable, and sales goals are met. Indeed lists an average yearly salary for Account Executives as $45,000.
Account and Sales Managers help existing customers with products and try to sell them more.
Sales Managers set quotas and train new employees, while Sales Directors oversee Managers, analyze data, report to the team, and help create plans and strategies. Managers earn around $70,000 a year.
The Vice President of Sales for a company oversees the entire sales department. They make budget decisions and presentations to key stakeholders. Tech executives at this level make $100,000 or more a year.
Learning tech sales puts you on the road to a career with excellent earnings and high demand. As a Technology Sales Representative, you will listen to customers and help them find the technology products to solve their problems. This is an exciting field in a booming industry with many opportunities for advancement. Because most businesses today are embracing hardware and software solutions, tech sales should be a good career for a long time.
If you enjoy meeting and talking with people of different backgrounds and perspectives, tech sales gives you that opportunity. If you are an open-minded person who likes to make connections, tech sales can be a chance for life-long learning. It could also be an opportunity to travel as tech sales jobs are available all over the world.
Read more about why you should learn tech sales.
Besides good communication and listening skills, Tech Sales Reps need to have business knowledge, and one way to get those skills is by taking classes. Some companies prefer to hire people who have degrees in business or marketing. It is possible to get into tech sales without a degree, although some business skills are always helpful.
You can sign up for various business and marketing classes to build your tech sales skills. One option is a live in-person class in a classroom setting. The advantage here is that class sizes are small and you can get individual attention from the instructor. This is also an opportunity to meet other students and do some networking. But what if there aren’t any in-person classes near you? Another option is a live online class. This is a hybrid of a video session and an in-person class, where there is a real-time remote instructor who can answer questions, but you log onto a video conferencing platform to attend class. No need to commute!
On-demand classes are also a possibility for learning business and marketing skills. This type of class tends to be less expensive than in-person or live online sessions, and on-demand videos are convenient. You can watch the videos from your home or office whenever you want. The downside is that you don’t have an instructor available to answer questions or give advice.
You can also find free resources to help you gain the skills you need to get a job in tech sales. Noble Desktop has several free seminars that could help you in a business setting. Top 10 Beginner Excel Tricks You Need to Know can save you time at work, and PowerPoint Presentation Design can teach you what you need to know to put together sales presentations. Videos like Intro to Google Analytics can get you up to speed on collecting and using data. There are also blogs to teach you business and marketing skills.
Read the full guide on how to learn tech sales.
If you’re not sure if you are ready to tackle tech sales classes, there are free seminars you can watch to get an idea if the subject is for you. Noble Desktop has a number of free video introductions to topics like Excel, Python, and PowerPoint. HubSpot Academy also offers free training courses. You can choose from Sales Rep Training, Sales Enablement Training, and Sales Software Training. Udemy has free courses on sales including How to Sell Anything in 3 Simple Steps and Starting Your Sales Career. Coursera offers a free introductory tech sales course.
Read about more free tech sales videos and online tutorials.
Once you’ve made the decision to learn tech sales, you may be wondering how difficult it is to learn, if there are any prerequisites, and how much it will cost. In terms of difficulty, that will depend upon how easily you pick up new skills and how much time you have to study. The most difficult part about learning tech sales is mastering the data analytics tools, and if you have an interest in technology already, that probably won’t be that hard.
While there are no formal prerequisites that you have to have before learning tech sales, acquiring some skills beforehand can be helpful. If you have experience or training in business and marketing, data analytics, project management, or web development, learning tech sales will be easier for you.
You can learn tech sales for free from seminars and tutorials, although many people prefer to take a class. In-person or live online classes can run hundreds to thousands of dollars, while a subscription to an on-demand platform service runs around $30-$40 a month.
Read about how difficult it is to learn tech sales.
While there are challenges to learning tech sales, the field has a low barrier to entry, and taking a class is a good way to make learning easier. In terms of difficulty, learning tech sales is similar to learning other fields like digital marketing, web development, or project management.
Digital marketing shares some aspects with tech sales, such as interacting with customers, using technology, and sales, but digital marketing is more about building a community, while tech sales focus on creating one-on-one relationships with customers. One difficulty that they share is learning to use the complicated data analytics tools that both fields rely on. Fortunately, taking a class can help you overcome that challenge.
Web development also relies on technology, but of a different kind. Web Developers learn to code in order in languages like HTML, CSS, Javascript, and Python to build websites and apps. Coding can be difficult to learn, depending on how comfortable you are with complex information. If you get frustrated easily, coding can be a big challenge. Tech sales careers don’t usually involve coding, but the product you are selling does, so familiarizing yourself with the process can make learning tech sales go more smoothly.
Project management can involve technology, but it doesn’t necessarily have to. Essentially, project management is about seeing a product through the creation process. Project Managers need to be organized and good at following schedules and budgets. These are also qualities important for tech sales. Developing a sense of what should come next and problem-solving can take time, but training and experience can help you get a handle on the process.
It’s up to you how you want to learn tech sales. Choose the learning method you prefer. You can take an in-person class, a live online course, or on-demand training. You can also choose classes that fit your schedule. Some classes meet on weekdays, some on weekends, or others in the evening. The most important factor is where you feel comfortable starting.
If you are a complete beginner in tech sales, you may want to find an overview of how sales and marketing work. Noble Desktop’s Pillars of Digital Marketing gives you an introduction to sales through digital marketing. There are many tutorials on YouTube, and HubSpot Academy also offers free training courses.
Once you have an idea of how tech sales works, you might want to sign up for a more in-depth training course to get a more detailed view. These courses meet in person or live online, or you can choose an asynchronous on-demand video class. If you like the human interaction aspect of learning a new skill, choose in-person or live online. If cost and convenience are more important to you, go with the on-demand classes.
Once you are comfortable with tech sales, you can learn more about related topics by signing up for a Digital Marketing Certificate course or a Project Management Bootcamp. Web development courses are also helpful when you are building a career in tech sales.
You can learn project management and digital marketing through Noble Desktop. Noble’s Project Management Bootcamp covers methods for running projects effectively and managing scope, time, and resources. Noble’s Digital Marketing Certificate covers creating internet marketing campaigns, including SEO, social media marketing, paid and unpaid search, and analytics. Noble also offers classes in Excel, Python, and SQL if you want to take your business practices further.
Classes are taught by industry professionals who have real-world experience in their subjects. Class sizes are small, and you can choose between in-person training and live online sessions. Each class offers a free retake option within a year, and upon completion, you will receive a digital certificate that you can attach to your resume or LinkedIn profile.