| Detail | For this role |
|---|---|
| Department | Sales and Business Development |
| Level | Mid level |
| Reports to | Sales Manager |
| Direct reports | None |
| Experience | 3 to 6 years in sales or solution consulting |
Solution Sales Specialist job description template
Copy this job description, replace the text in square brackets and post it on your careers page or a job portal.
Job title: Solution Sales Specialist
Department: Sales and Business Development
Reports to: Sales Manager
Location: [City], [office, branch or site]
About the role
A Solution Sales Specialist sells a specific solution or product category with deep expertise, working alongside the wider sales team to win complex deals in that area. They bring product depth, shape the solution to the customer's problem and drive the specialist part of the sale. A good solution sales specialist raises win rates in their category, becomes the trusted expert and grows that solution's revenue. The role reports to a sales or category head and partners with account managers and pre-sales on opportunities.
Key responsibilities
- Own the sales of a specific solution or product category as the expert.
- Partner with account managers to find and qualify opportunities in the category.
- Understand the customer problem deeply and shape the right solution.
- Present the solution's value and differentiators to customers and evaluators.
- Handle detailed product and solution questions during the sale.
- Build business cases and proposals specific to the solution.
- Support proof of concepts and evaluations with pre-sales and product teams.
- Stay ahead on the solution, competitors and customer use cases.
- Drive the category revenue target across the accounts you support.
- Report category pipeline, wins and feedback to the reporting manager.
Requirements
- Graduate in business, engineering or a relevant field
- Deep knowledge of the solution or category sold
- An MBA or technical certification is an advantage
- 3 to 6 years in sales or solution consulting
KRAs and KPIs for a Solution Sales Specialist
Key result areas for the appraisal form, each with a KPI you can measure every month or quarter.
| Key result area | How to measure it |
|---|---|
| Category revenue | Solution or category revenue meets the assigned target |
| Win rate | Win rate on category opportunities kept above the target |
| Opportunity creation | New category opportunities created with account teams as planned |
| Solution fit | Proposed solutions match customer needs with few reworks |
| Expertise | Product and competitor knowledge kept current and demonstrated |
| Enablement | Account teams enabled on the solution as agreed |
Skills and tools
Tools used day to day: CRM platform, Demo environments, Proposal tools, MS Excel, Presentation tools.
Reporting line and career path
Next roles: Senior Solution Specialist, Solution Sales Manager, Pre-Sales Manager
Interview questions for a Solution Sales Specialist
- How do you shape a solution around a customer's real problem?
- How do you work with an account manager on a category deal?
- How do you present the value of your solution over a competitor?
- How do you handle a deep technical question in a sale?
- How do you keep your product and competitor knowledge current?
- Tell me about a complex solution deal you helped win.
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What does a solution sales specialist do?
A solution sales specialist sells a specific solution or product category with deep expertise, working alongside the wider sales team. They bring product depth, shape the solution to the customer's problem, present its value and handle detailed questions. They partner with account managers and pre-sales to win complex deals and grow that solution's revenue.
What is the difference between a solution specialist and a sales engineer?
A sales engineer usually sells technical or engineered products across a portfolio, matching specifications to needs. A solution sales specialist owns one solution or category deeply and drives its sales across accounts, often partnering with generalist account managers. The specialist focuses on a category's revenue and expertise, while the sales engineer focuses on technical fit across products.
What skills does a solution sales specialist need?
They need deep expertise in their solution, the ability to understand a customer's problem and shape a fitting solution, and value based selling skills. Building business cases, positioning against competitors and collaborating with account and pre-sales teams matter. Staying current on the product, market and use cases keeps them the trusted expert who wins complex deals.