How to hire sales engineers
A job description you can copy, interview questions tied to the real work, and what to pay. Free.
Job description template
Copy it, fill in the brackets, and remove anything that does not fit your job. Keep only must-haves you would really turn someone away for.
[Job title] at [Company name] [City, State] · [Full-time / Part-time] · [Pay range] About the role [Two or three sentences about your team, the work and why it matters.] What you will do • Collaborate with sales teams to understand customer requirements, to promote the sale of company products, and to provide sales support. • Confer with customers and engineers to assess equipment needs and to determine system requirements. • Create sales or service contracts for products or services. • Develop, present, or respond to proposals for specific customer requirements, including request for proposal responses and industry-specific solutions. • Identify resale opportunities and support them to achieve sales plans. • Keep informed on industry news and trends, products, services, competitors, relevant information about legacy, existing, and emerging technologies, and the latest product-line developments. • Plan and modify product configurations to meet customer needs. • Visit prospective buyers at commercial, industrial, or other establishments to show samples or catalogs, and to inform them about product pricing, availability, and advantages. What you bring • [Required license, certification or years of experience, if any] • [Education, only if you truly need it. Typical to start in this job: Bachelor's degree] • Strong speaking, active listening, critical thinking, reading comprehension, active learning and writing skills • Working knowledge of customer and personal service, sales and marketing, engineering and technology and English Language • [Anything else you would really turn someone away for] Pay and benefits [Pay range]. For reference, the U.S. median for this job is $60.05 an hour ($124,900 a year). [Benefits, schedule and anything else candidates should know.] How to apply [Apply on JAI Bot. Every applicant hears back.]
Interview questions for sales engineers
Ask every candidate the same questions, in the same order, and write down what they say. Questions about past work show what someone has actually done.
- Tell me about a time you had to collaborate with sales teams to understand customer requirements, to promote the sale of company products, and to provide sales support. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to confer with customers and engineers to assess equipment needs and to determine system requirements. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to create sales or service contracts for products or services. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to develop, present, or respond to proposals for specific customer requirements, including request for proposal responses and industry-specific solutions. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Explain something technical from your last job as you would to a new coworker.
- Tell me about a time you had to understand a request or problem that was explained poorly. How did you make sure you got it right?
- Describe a decision at work where the obvious answer was wrong. How did you work out the better choice?
- Why this job, and why now? What would make you stay here for the long term?
Good answers name a real situation, what the person did themselves and what happened. Avoid questions about age, family plans, religion, health, national origin or anything else unrelated to the job.
What sales engineers do
- Collaborate with sales teams to understand customer requirements, to promote the sale of company products, and to provide sales support.
- Confer with customers and engineers to assess equipment needs and to determine system requirements.
- Create sales or service contracts for products or services.
- Develop, present, or respond to proposals for specific customer requirements, including request for proposal responses and industry-specific solutions.
- Identify resale opportunities and support them to achieve sales plans.
- Keep informed on industry news and trends, products, services, competitors, relevant information about legacy, existing, and emerging technologies, and the latest product-line developments.
- Plan and modify product configurations to meet customer needs.
- Visit prospective buyers at commercial, industrial, or other establishments to show samples or catalogs, and to inform them about product pricing, availability, and advantages.
Skills that matter most
Education, experience and outlook for sales engineers
- Typical education to start: Bachelor's degree (BLS)
- Related work experience most have: 4 to 6 years (O*NET)
- Training on the job: Moderate-term on-the-job training (BLS)
- Job outlook: +2.8% over ten years, about as fast as average · about 3,800 openings a year (BLS)
What to pay sales engineers
Pay depends a lot on where the job is. Highest and lowest median yearly pay by state:
| State | Median yearly pay |
|---|---|
| Maryland | $153,410 |
| Washington | $147,620 |
| Colorado | $139,990 |
| California | $139,160 |
| New Jersey | $139,010 |
| Ohio | $97,420 |
| Missouri | $90,960 |
| Indiana | $74,960 |
See sales engineers pay in every state
Related hiring guides
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Technical and Scientific Products
- Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel
- Architectural and Engineering Managers
- Logisticians
- Industrial Engineers
- Electronics Engineers, Except Computer
- Computer Systems Analysts
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products
- Mechanical Engineering Technologists and Technicians
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technologists and Technicians
Post this job on JAI Bot. Free to start: JAI Bot reads every applicant against your must-haves, shows the resume evidence behind each one, and helps you reply to everyone. People make every decision.
Post a job freePay by areaJob duties and skills: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license; O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. JAI Bot has modified this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Pay: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025. Interview questions and the job description template: JAI Bot, based on the duties and skills above.