Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products

Contact regular and prospective customers to demonstrate products, explain product features, and solicit orders.

AI: Fully automatable - AI-driven outreach tools and virtual assistants can contact prospects, present product features, demonstrate usage digitally, and solicit orders at scale.

Recommend products to customers, based on customers' needs and interests.

AI: Fully automatable - Recommendation systems and conversational AI can accurately match products to customer needs and preferences using available data.

Answer customers' questions about products, prices, availability, product uses, and credit terms.

AI: Fully automatable - AI can answer product, pricing, availability, usage, and credit-term questions in real time when integrated with product and backend databases.

Estimate or quote prices, credit or contract terms, warranties, and delivery dates.

AI: Fully automatable - Automated quoting engines driven by AI can compute prices, delivery estimates, warranties, and contract terms when tied to inventory and finance systems.

Prepare sales contracts and order forms.

AI: Fully automatable - AI can populate contract templates and order forms from deal data and legal clause libraries, producing ready-to-review documents automatically.

Identify prospective customers by using business directories, following leads from existing clients, participating in organizations and clubs, and attending trade shows and conferences.

AI: Fully automatable - AI systems can aggregate and analyze business directories, CRM leads, event attendee lists, and public data to identify and prioritize prospective customers automatically.

Monitor market conditions, product innovations, and competitors' products, prices, and sales.

AI: Fully automatable - Automated monitoring tools and ML models can continuously track market conditions, product innovations, competitor pricing, and sales signals from public and proprietary sources.

Forward orders to manufacturers.

AI: Fully automatable - Forwarding orders to manufacturers is a routinizable workflow that can be fully automated via integrated order management and supply-chain systems.

Perform administrative duties, such as preparing sales budgets and reports, keeping sales records, and filing expense account reports.

AI: Fully automatable - Administrative tasks like budgets, reports, sales records, and expense filing can be largely automated via AI+RPA integrated with accounting and CRM systems.

Check stock levels and reorder merchandise as necessary.

AI: Fully automatable - AI systems can fully monitor inventory levels and automatically trigger reorders when integrated with inventory and procurement systems.

Arrange and direct delivery and installation of products and equipment.

AI: Fully automatable - AI can arrange, schedule, and direct delivery and installation logistics end-to-end through bookings, routing, and coordination tools when integrated with service providers.

Obtain credit information about prospective customers.

AI: Fully automatable - Where authorized and integrated with credit bureaus and data providers, AI can automatically retrieve, aggregate, and summarize prospective customers' credit information, subject to compliance controls.

Train customers' employees to operate and maintain new equipment.

AI: Partial - AI can create training content, run virtual/AR instruction, and provide remote troubleshooting, but hands-on, site-specific equipment training and safety oversight often require human trainers.

Consult with clients after sales or contract signings to resolve problems and to provide ongoing support.

AI: Partial - AI can handle routine post-sale support and triage issues, but complex resolutions and on-site remediation still require human technicians or account managers.

Provide customers with product samples and catalogs.

AI: Partial - AI can generate and distribute digital catalogs and virtual samples easily, but cannot physically provide or ship tangible product samples without logistical systems and human coordination.

Prepare drawings, estimates, and bids that meet specific customer needs.

AI: Partial - AI can generate estimates, standardized drawings, and draft bids from specifications, but producing fully accurate, bespoke technical drawings and risk-aware final bids typically requires human oversight.

Negotiate details of contracts and payments.

AI: Partial - AI can conduct automated, parameter-bounded negotiations (pricing, terms) and provide negotiation guidance, but complex, relationship-driven contract negotiations typically need human judgment.

Negotiate with retail merchants to improve product exposure, such as shelf positioning and advertising.

AI: Partial - AI can analyze retail data and recommend merchandising strategies and even automate outreach, but negotiating shelf placement and advertising often depends on human relationship-building and in-person retailer interactions.

Plan, assemble, and stock product displays in retail stores, or make recommendations to retailers regarding product displays, promotional programs, and advertising.

AI: Partial - AI can generate recommendations and plans for displays and promotions but cannot physically assemble or stock retail displays without robotics and on-site personnel.

Buy products from manufacturers or brokerage firms and distribute them to wholesale and retail clients.

AI: Partial - AI can assist with sourcing, pricing, and logistics but cannot fully replace human negotiation, contract execution, and relationship management in procurement and distribution.