How to Become a Sales Engineer (And What That Is)

The Sales Engineer Career Path Guidebook

Sales engineering is a technical career path with a promising future.

Do you have what it takes to be both a sales representative and an engineer?

In this article, we’ll go over what the role entails, how much you can earn, and 5 ways to become a sales engineer.

What is a sales engineer?

Sales engineers are sales representatives who find ways to improve the organization’s sales processes for complex, scientific, and/or technologically advanced products. Their expertise in both sales and engineering allows them to communicate technical information more easily.

Sales engineers can work across a wide variety of industries because of their versatility and extensive education.

However, sales engineers don’t usually work in business-to-consumer environments and are typically best suited for business-to-business sales.

What do sales engineers actually do?

Sales engineers provide technical support to customers, working with clients to create solutions that meet their unique needs. They also work hand-in-hand with product teams to ensure that products meet manufacturing standards and customer expectations.

Sales engineers' daily work might resemble that of a standard sales representative, with added responsibilities. The sales engineer will meet with clients, negotiate terms, and build processes to improve sales performance. Ultimately, sales engineers and representatives have the same objective: meeting quotas.

Here are some of the tasks that a sales engineer might be responsible for:

Creating technical presentations or proposals about a product for potential clients
Developing deep relationships with potential clients
Providing technical solutions that meet client needs
Troubleshooting any technical problems in the sales process
Getting client feedback to identify market trends and find new sales strategies for future sales

How much does a sales engineer earn?

Sales engineers are usually well-compensated because they sell products that require specialized expertise, like medical devices, scientific equipment, or software. You can earn more than the average sales representative if you land a sales engineering position.

According to Glassdoor, the average total annual salary for a sales engineer is $129,117. Employers usually offer a combination of monthly salary and sales commissions, as well as other bonuses based on performance.

How to Become a Sales Engineer in 5 Stages

Sales engineers don’t need to follow any specific educational path to enter the workplace, but it does become easier to get hired if you have a bachelor’s degree and an industry specialization.

Following the 5 stages outlined below will give you an edge over your peers, allowing you to get hired without a strenuous job hunt.

Get a Specialized Education

As a baseline, you’ll need at least a bachelor’s degree in a technical field if you want to become a sales engineer. It’s most common to get a degree in engineering, with a specialty related to the industry they want to specialize in. For example, a biomedical engineering degree would be helpful if you wanted to work for a medical device company.

Science-related and engineering degrees are your best bet for becoming a sales engineer.

When it comes to picking a specialty, here are a few industries you can consider:

Automobile manufacturing
Cybersecurity
Enterprise-level software
Telecommunications

Get Real-World Sales Experience

Sales engineers do equal amounts of work in technical fields and actual sales. We recommend working as a sales representative for as long as possible while earning your degree, as building up experience in sales is crucial for success in the role. Working as a part-time sales representative helps you get a leg up from your peers, as many begin sales training after graduation.

Without proper sales experience, engineers have to rely on others before they can work independently. Depending on the size of your company, this could be a recipe for disaster. Smaller teams can’t perform as strongly with sales engineers who aren’t well-equipped to produce sales on their own.

Continued Education and Specialized Training

Technical fields are constantly evolving, so your education and training need to be constant. Technologies, processes, and market conditions change frequently; sales engineers must be on their toes and adapt to change.

At the very least, you should further your sales skills through training, coaching, and studying upcoming trends.

Apply to Jobs That Match Your Skill Set

Choosing a specialty or specific industry isn’t enough to succeed as a sales engineer. Since you’ll be selling highly technical products, you must play to your strengths and apply for jobs that match your current skills, interests, and passions. Sales engineer job titles vary quite a bit—here are a few you should consider applying for (if they suit you on a personal and professional level):

Sales Application Engineer: Application managers are responsible for the full sales funnel for customers, including retention, by guiding them through implementation within their business.
Technical Account Manager: Technical account managers (TAMs) manage relationships between IT vendors and customers. Their role is to ensure both parties are satisfied and may include tasks such as product installation, implementation, maintenance, staff training, and technical support.
Pre-Sales Engineer: Pre-sales engineers identify potential customers in the market, research them, and help determine whether the organization can meet their needs.
Post-Sales Engineer: Post-sales engineers build on top of the work done by pre-sales managers, ensuring clients are using products with success. In essence, this role combines customer success representative and sales manager.
Solutions Consultant: This is a solutions-oriented role that requires the utmost expertise in the products sold so that customers can be aided in problem-solving. If you’re a people person, this job is for you because it’s client-focused.

Build a Powerful Network

It’s not uncommon for jobs to be posted and immediately filled between internal hiring and a competitive hiring landscape.

That’s why building a network of peers within your specialty is crucial. Your network of contacts will be a valuable asset for landing new jobs and opening up new opportunities.

At its most basic level, a strong network will allow you to generate new leads in your role as a sales engineer. Beyond that, networking can help you build relationships with employers and peers that can act as a support system for you.

Key Takeaways

Sales engineering is a profession that helps both the sales organization and clients by meeting their needs through tailored solutions. As its name suggests, sales engineers work in both sales and engineering roles, often split evenly between the two.

Becoming a sales engineer might be right for those looking for a stable, long-term career and are passionate about flexing technical prowess.

To enter the field, it’s important to remember these 5 aspects:

Work towards a bachelor’s degree (or further) and choose an industry specialization
Earn real-world sales experience working from the bottom up
Continuously learn about your industry, new technology and hone your skills
Only apply to positions that tightly match your current repertoire
Network, network, network. It not only opens doors but acts as a support system.

If you’re looking for a way to get ahead of your peers, you might want to consider getting hands-on experience with a sales CRM like Instantly.