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Sales Manager

Sales Manager completes 20 real tasks so you can see typical responsibilities in action and assess fit. The tasks explain priorities, communication needs and expected results. Each one shows where we found it, and comes with an AI prompt you can copy and use straight away.

20evidenced tasks
20ready prompts
7tools of the trade
11-2022.00O*NET-SOC code
637,080hold this job (US, BLS 2025)
$148,270median pay/yr (US)
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What it pays

Government survey numbers — not estimates, not ads.

Half of all Sales Managers in the U.S. earn more than $148,270 a year — the middle 80% land between $73,170 and $290,540. About 637,080 people in the U.S. do this work. Figures are for the U.S. occupation group “Sales Managers”. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics survey, published 2025.) In India, Managers earn about ₹50,473 a month on average — around ₹6.1 lakh a year (government PLFS survey via ILOSTAT, occupation-family figure).
$148,270typical pay / year
637,080people in this work
$290,540+top 10% earn
₹6.1 lakha year in India (family avg)
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The work, task by task

These are the real jobs-to-be-done, not a wish list. Each task shows where we found it, and the prompt underneath is written for that exact task.

Keeping the record1

Coordinate with marketing

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Align next quarter’s target product messaging with marketing so they deliver three tailored campaign briefs…
Align next quarter’s target product messaging with marketing so they deliver three tailored campaign briefs for North Region key accounts, review the drafts for objection-handling points and closing offers, and set a joint launch date for May 15.
The tools that do the workMarketo Marketing AutomationHubSpotjob descriptionsWikipedia
Get approval2

Build and maintain customer relationships

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Schedule quarterly check-ins with the top 12 clients, prepare personalised value reviews highlighting product…
Schedule quarterly check-ins with the top 12 clients, prepare personalised value reviews highlighting product ROI and next-step recommendations, then send the invite and one-page agenda asking for any agenda items by Wednesday.
The tools that do the workHubSpotGoogle DocsO*NETWikipedia

Manage customer relationships

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Review account health dashboards for my top 20 customers, flag any churn risks and open tasks to resolve…
Review account health dashboards for my top 20 customers, flag any churn risks and open tasks to resolve complaints within 48 hours, then send each account owner a prioritized action list and expected resolution dates.
The tools that do the workHubSpotGoogle Analyticsjob descriptionsO*NET
Convincing1

Negotiate with clients

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Prepare the concession plan and BATNA for upcoming contract talks with Baxter Manufacturing, summarise…
Prepare the concession plan and BATNA for upcoming contract talks with Baxter Manufacturing, summarise pricing levers and case studies, then request a 60-minute negotiation slot next Tuesday and attach the one-page bargaining brief.
The tools that do the workGoogle DocsHubSpotjob descriptionsWikipedia
Make1

Hire sales staff

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Hire two quota-carrying reps for enterprise: finalise the scorecard, screen the top 20 resumes, schedule five…
Hire two quota-carrying reps for enterprise: finalise the scorecard, screen the top 20 resumes, schedule five first-round interviews next Tuesday and Thursday, and prepare offer terms tied to a 120-day ramp target before Friday's hiring review.
The tools that do the workGoogle DocsHubSpotESCOjob descriptionsWikipedia
Analysing1
START

Oversee sales activities

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Run the weekly sales activity review: compile closed deals, pipeline movement, top three blockers from reps,…
Run the weekly sales activity review: compile closed deals, pipeline movement, top three blockers from reps, and marketing-sourced leads performance, then circulate a one-page brief and convene the Tuesday stand-up to assign remediation actions.
The tools that do the workGoogle DocsGoogle Analyticsjob descriptionsO*NET
The daily work14

Sales argumentation

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Draft a concise sales pitch for our enterprise security suite that opens with the customer's regulatory pain,…
Draft a concise sales pitch for our enterprise security suite that opens with the customer's regulatory pain, ties three quantified ROI examples to decision-maker KPIs, addresses predictable procurement objections, and ends with a clear next step for procurement by Friday.
The tools that do the workHubSpotESCOsee the evidence ↗

Evaluate marketing content

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Review the new campaign one-pager and two social creatives, score them against our value proposition and…
Review the new campaign one-pager and two social creatives, score them against our value proposition and buyer persona fit, list three edits to increase conversion for mid-market CIOs, and recommend whether to run A/B tests next quarter.
The tools that do the workGoogle DocsESCOsee the evidence ↗
km/h RPM

Create dashboards for sales data

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Build a set of interactive sales dashboards that show monthly bookings, pipeline by stage, win rate by rep,…
Build a set of interactive sales dashboards that show monthly bookings, pipeline by stage, win rate by rep, and product mix, with filters for region and quarter, and ensure visuals update when new CRM exports arrive.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft Accessjob descriptionsWikipedia

Confer with potential customers regarding equipment needs, and advise customers on types of equipment to purchase.

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Call the shortlisted customer contacts to discuss current equipment challenges, assess their production needs…
Call the shortlisted customer contacts to discuss current equipment challenges, assess their production needs and budget, recommend two equipment options with pros/cons and expected ROI, then schedule a demo or on-site evaluation.
The tools that do the workHubSpotO*NET

Direct, coordinate, and review sales and service accounting and record-keeping, as well as receiving and shipping.

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Compile and reconcile sales invoicing, shipments, returns, and service credits for the month, flag…
Compile and reconcile sales invoicing, shipments, returns, and service credits for the month, flag discrepancies for the warehouse and finance teams, and produce a one-page accounting summary for the operations meeting.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft AccessO*NET

Determine price schedules and discount rates.

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Review recent cost inputs and competitor pricing, propose updated price schedules and tiered discount rates…
Review recent cost inputs and competitor pricing, propose updated price schedules and tiered discount rates for volumes above 100, 500 and 1,000 units, and prepare a one-page rationale for approval by Friday.
The tools that do the workIBM SPSS StatisticsO*NET

Prepare budgets and approve budget expenditures.

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Draft next quarter’s sales budget with line items for headcount, travel, promotions and dealer incentives,…
Draft next quarter’s sales budget with line items for headcount, travel, promotions and dealer incentives, mark any non-recurring spends, and send it to finance with my approval notes for their review by Wednesday.
The tools that do the workGoogle DocsO*NET

Visit franchised dealers to stimulate interest in establishment or expansion of leasing programs.

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Plan and visit three franchised dealers next month to present a leasing program proposal, assess dealer…
Plan and visit three franchised dealers next month to present a leasing program proposal, assess dealer throughput and showroom capacity, secure verbal interest, and obtain commitment to run a pilot program.
The tools that do the workFacebookO*NET

Represent company at trade association meetings to promote products.

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Represent the company at the Manufacturers Association meeting next Wednesday, promote the new product line…
Represent the company at the Manufacturers Association meeting next Wednesday, promote the new product line during the networking session, secure three distributor introductions, gather contact cards, and brief the sales team on follow-ups by Friday noon.
The tools that do the workHubSpotO*NET

Direct clerical staff to keep records of export correspondence, bid requests, and credit collections, and to maintain current information on tariffs, licenses, and restrictions.

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Tell Maria and James to keep an export correspondence log, file every bid request and credit-collection email…
Tell Maria and James to keep an export correspondence log, file every bid request and credit-collection email in the shared records, and update the tariff, license and restriction spreadsheet weekly so I can review on Mondays.
The tools that do the workGoogle DocsMicrosoft AccessO*NET

Assess marketing potential of new and existing store locations, considering statistics and expenditures.

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Assess the marketing potential for the two proposed store locations by calculating catchment demographics,…
Assess the marketing potential for the two proposed store locations by calculating catchment demographics, projecting marketing spend versus expected footfall, and recommend go/no-go with numbers and risks in a one-page memo by Thursday.
The tools that do the workIBM SPSS StatisticsO*NET

Direct foreign sales and service outlets of an organization.

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Oversee our foreign sales outlets: review last quarter’s sales and service KPIs from each country, identify…
Oversee our foreign sales outlets: review last quarter’s sales and service KPIs from each country, identify two underperforming offices, set corrective actions and owners, and circulate the action plan to regional managers by Tuesday afternoon.
The tools that do the workGoogle DocsO*NET

Conduct market research

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Run market research on the new segment: collect competitor pricing, customer feedback samples, and five…
Run market research on the new segment: collect competitor pricing, customer feedback samples, and five relevant industry stats, synthesise findings into a two-page brief with implications for pricing and channels by next Monday.
The tools that do the workGoogle Analyticsjob descriptions

Prioritise and follow up on critical leads

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Prioritise and follow up critical leads: sort this week’s inbound leads by deal size and close probability,…
Prioritise and follow up critical leads: sort this week’s inbound leads by deal size and close probability, call the top ten today, assign next steps in the CRM, and report progress at tomorrow’s stand-up.
The tools that do the workHubSpotESCO

Says who?

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The logs, files & records this job keeps

Shared with other careers — the same record means something different in each.

Related careers

Same family of work — each with its own tasks and prompts.

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Built on public evidence: O*NET®, ESCO, Wikipedia, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, ILOSTAT. All sources & licenses