Tech Sales Salary 2022

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Tech Sales Salary - The Different Levels

We want to highlight what a tech sales salary looks like. There are some years where reps can make $1M+ and there are years that they might scrape by just on base. But, you should know that this can be a very lucrative career path.

It's important to understand the hierarchy of different levels when it comes to tech sales to understand where to start. We also wanted to put general ranges of On Target Earnings (OTEs) at each level so you have a basic understanding of what kind of money you can make in this line of work.

What is Tech Sales?

Tech sales, also known as technology sales or IT sales, refers to the process of selling products or services related to technology, such as software, hardware, and other types of digital solutions. Tech sales professionals are responsible for identifying potential customers, demonstrating the benefits of the product or service, and closing deals to make sales. Tech sales jobs often require a combination of technical knowledge and sales skills, as the salesperson must be able to understand and explain the technical aspects of the product or service to potential customers. Tech sales can be conducted in various settings, including in person, over the phone, or online.

Different Tech Sales Salary Levels

Individual Contributors

An individual contributor is a term used to describe an employee who works independently and is not responsible for managing a team or supervising other employees. Individual contributors are responsible for their own job tasks and deliverables and typically do not have any direct reports. They may work on projects as part of a team, but their primary focus is on their own work and delivering results.

Individual contributors may also be referred to as "non-managerial" or "rank-and-file" employees, as they are not in a managerial or leadership position. Typically their title is some form of "Account Executive"

Entry Level (Compensation: $50k - $100k OTE)

The two common names for entry level sales reps are "Business Development Representative" (BDR) or "Sales Development Representative" (SDR). Most people in this position are just starting out in their sales career or maybe have a year or two of experience. In this role you will be learning how to talk to people over the phone or in person and understand their challenges in order to try and see if what you are selling might be a good fit. Once you do find a "qualified lead" or someone who has a need that your product might fit, you pass that conversation on to an Account Executive who will learn more and hopefully close the sale with the customer. Compensation tends to be based on the amount of "qualified leads" that the rep is able to convert on a monthly or quarterly basis and send to the Account Executive team to close the sale.

Mid Level (Compensation: $120k - $300k OTE)

"Account Executive" or "Account Manager" are the typical titles you will see in this role. You may see other variables of this like "Inside Sales Rep" or "Mid Market Account Executive" as well. Most people in this position have at least 1 year of sales experience and typically come from a BDR position when they get promoted. In this role individuals are usually doing outreach to companies, educating these companies on the product, matching customer needs to the product, and ultimately closing the sale. Compensation is usually structured 50/50 base salary to variable compensation i.e if you have an OTE of $150k then you'll make $75k of base salary and $75k of variable compensation if you hit all your sales numbers. Where reps can really make a lot of money is when they overachieve on their sales numbers and accelerators kick in so that they start earning even more money than their OTE.

Enterprise Level (Compensation: $250k+ OTE)

Usually these are listed as "Enterprise Account Executives" or "Outside Sales Rep" where reps have 10+ years of sales experience and have been working in a particular sector for a long time. Day to day is similar to the mid level account executives but you tend to only have a handful of larger "enterprise" accounts that are buying from you. The difference at this level is it is typically less but bigger transactions when you make a sale and it is usually a long relationship history with that customer.

For Management

Managers are responsible for leading and directing a team of employees to achieve the sales goals and objectives of an organization. They play a crucial role in planning, organizing, and coordinating the work of their team, as well as in providing guidance, support, and direction to team members.

The specific tasks and responsibilities of a manager can vary depending on the size and nature of the organization and the specific sales team they are managing. However, some common responsibilities of managers include:

  • Setting sales goals and objectives for their team
  • Developing and implementing plans to achieve those goals
  • Allocating resources and tasks among team members
  • Providing ongoing feedback and performance evaluations to team members
  • Mentoring and developing team members' skills and abilities
  • Resolving conflicts and issues that may arise within the team
  • Communicating with other departments and stakeholders within the organization
  • Making decisions and solving problems
  • Monitoring and tracking the progress of the team's work
  • Reporting on the team's performance and progress to upper management

In general, the role of a manager is to ensure that the team is working efficiently and effectively to achieve the organization's goals and objectives.

Entry Level (Compensation: $130k - $200k OTE)

Entry level roles typically manage the SDR team or younger AE team. In this role you will be responsible for 7-10 reps and have a quota that is likely the sum of all of your reps combined. Lots of young sales managers usually come from an AE role where they have done the job before but want to get into management and leadership. Day to day in this role is hiring/firing, coaching your team, getting through issues that your reps are having, and driving everyone to hit their sales quotas.

Mid Level (Compensation: $180k - $350k OTE)

Mid level roles in management are typically managing a Mid Market sales team or are a Director of Sales and managing a whole territory. Once you are at the Director level you are managing managers which would typically have anywhere between 30-80 people underneath you at a larger sales organization. Day to day you will be leading strategy, coaching managers, managing up to higher ups, and helping hire/fire any individuals.

Top Levels (Compensation: $250k+ OTE)

"Vice President" and up to "Chief Revenue Officer" depending on the size of the company are common titles for roles at the top of the sales organization. In this role you are managing directors. In this role you are leading direction of the oranization, setting up incentive plans, managing the budgets and growth plans, working cross functionally with the marketing team and generally making sure the business is growing. Lot's of compensation at this level will come from stock units in the company.

Conclusion

If you are looking to get into tech sales it can be a very lucrative field of business. We hope that this was a good overview of the different salary ranges you can expect at the various different levels. If you do want to learn more about how to actually land your first job we recommend you take a look at this post: How to Land a $100k+ Tech Sales Job

Happy Hunting!