If you are fascinated by figuring out what motivates people to take action, and you’re great at talking to just about anybody, a career in marketing or sales might be right for you. Jobs in these sectors are usually best suited for talkative, friendly, outgoing types of people who can learn to sell a product well. 

While there are plenty of job opportunities in these fields that do not require a college education, there are higher paying, more advanced jobs for those who have earned undergraduate or graduate degrees. Here, find a few examples of top paying jobs in the sales and marketing fields.

Advertising, Promotions, and Marketing Managers

Every company needs to get the word out and sell its products and services, and that is where sales and marketing professionals come in. Marketing managers handle marketing strategy and oversee all types of prospect and customer communication, including advertising, promotions, digital and overall branding. 

Advertising managers and promotion managers specialize in just one area. BLS predicts that the demand for these types of professionals will increase 8% from 2018 to 2028.

Nearly every business does some kind of marketing, although not every business does their marketing in-house. Some outsource to advertising agencies, promotion companies or marketing firms, all of which hire people in these fields.  

Most people in these jobs have majors in marketing, public relations, communications or business. 

The average salary for marketing managers is $66,317 per year and entry level positions start at an average of $48,000.

Sales Manager

Sales managers manage and motivate salespeople. They set sales territories, train and mentor new sales reps, set sales goals and help sales reps improve their performance. 

Ideally, sales managers should have sales experience themselves so they know what it is like in the field and have strategies they can pass along to their team. They should know how to motivate others and have good interpersonal skills.

Employers look for those who majored in marketing or general business administration for these positions. If the candidate has taken courses in a subject related to the company’s industry (like finance classes for a financial services firm), this will confer an advantage in the hiring process.

The average regional sales manager’s salary is $82,763 annually, but this can be increased by bonuses and override commissions on the sales team’s total sales. Starting salary for sales managers averages $56,000.