Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Internet Sales Manager

🎯 Role Definition

The Internet Sales Manager is responsible for defining and executing the online sales strategy to grow digital revenue, increase conversion rates and customer lifetime value across owned websites and third-party marketplaces. This role combines sales leadership, digital channel optimization, data-driven decision making and cross-functional coordination with marketing, product, operations and customer service. The Internet Sales Manager sets KPIs, coaches a high-performing online sales team, manages key partner relationships (marketplaces, agencies), and continuously tests and optimizes the online funnel to maximize performance and ROI.

Key SEO / LLM keywords: Internet Sales Manager, online sales, e-commerce, digital channels, conversion rate optimization, marketplace management, CRM, Google Analytics, sales forecasting, digital marketing.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Online Sales Specialist / E‑commerce Specialist
Digital Account Manager / Sales Representative
Marketplace Coordinator / E‑commerce Coordinator

Advancement To:

Director of E‑commerce / Director of Internet Sales
Head of Digital Sales / Head of E‑commerce
Vice President of Sales / VP of Digital Commerce

Lateral Moves:

Digital Marketing Manager
Product Manager (Digital Products)
Customer Success / Account Management Lead

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Develop, document and execute a comprehensive online sales strategy across owned web channels, third‑party marketplaces (Amazon, eBay, Walmart, etc.) and affiliate/partner networks to achieve quarterly and annual revenue targets and margin goals.
Own monthly and quarterly sales forecasting and pipeline management for all internet channels; translate forecasts into staffing, inventory and marketing spend plans in collaboration with finance and operations.
Lead and manage the online sales team (inbound/outbound representatives, marketplace specialists, account managers), including hiring, onboarding, goal setting, career development and performance reviews.
Create, monitor and optimize KPIs and dashboards (conversion rate, AOV, CAC, LTV, churn, ROAS, margin) using Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics, CRM reports and BI tools to make data-driven decisions and identify growth opportunities.
Design and run conversion rate optimization (CRO) experiments and A/B tests on product pages, checkout flows, promotions and site search to systematically improve site revenue and reduce cart abandonment.
Manage product catalog strategy for online channels: ensure accurate product content, SEO‑optimized titles/descriptions, high-quality images, attributes and inventory sync with OMS/ERP systems to minimize out-of-stocks and returns.
Develop and execute marketplace strategies, including pricing, promotions, buy box management, fulfillment channel strategy (FBA, 3PL, direct) and channel-specific advertising to maximize share of wallet.
Collaborate with digital marketing (SEO, SEM, email, social) to align acquisition and retention campaigns with sales goals; manage budgets and measure campaign ROI for PPC, display, retargeting and paid social.
Own CRM and lead‑management strategy for online inquiries and demo requests: implement lead scoring, nurture flows, automated responses and SLA for hand-off to sales or customer success.
Negotiate and manage strategic partnerships and agency relationships (marketplace agencies, media partners, affiliate networks), including scope, SLAs, performance targets and billing.
Implement and maintain sales enablement tools and technologies (CRM, CMS, analytics, marketing automation) to improve seller productivity and customer engagement.
Lead pricing and promotion strategy for online channels, balancing competitive positioning, margin preservation and promotional cadence to drive both top-line and profit targets.
Partner with product and merchandising teams to prioritize assortment, bundling and new product launches that drive online adoption and sales velocity.
Oversee online customer experience and post‑purchase journey, working with CX and logistics to minimize returns and escalations and improve NPS and repeat purchase rates.
Prepare and present regular executive-level reports and insights on channel performance, trends, competitor activity and recommended strategic initiatives.
Establish and enforce governance, compliance and marketplace policy adherence (brand registry, MAP, product safety) to protect brand integrity and reduce marketplace risk.
Build and manage the online sales budget, including advertising spend, agency fees, marketplace commissions and promotional allowances; track actuals vs. plan and recommend adjustments.
Identify and scale international online sales opportunities, coordinating localization, regulatory compliance and cross-border logistics where appropriate.
Run competitor and market research to stay ahead of pricing, assortment, promotions and channel innovations; proactively recommend strategic responses.
Drive continuous improvement through post-mortems, root-cause analysis and playbook creation for launches, promotions and sales campaigns.
Coach and mentor the team on consultative selling techniques for online leads and high-value buyers; implement incentive plans, quotas and commission structures aligned to business objectives.
Coordinate with IT and engineering to prioritize site performance, checkout reliability, mobile optimization and analytics instrumentation that directly impact conversion and revenue.
Manage demand-generation programs for key verticals or enterprise customers acquired via online channels, including demos, trials and virtual sales events.

Secondary Functions

Support ad‑hoc business intelligence and exploratory analysis requests to uncover revenue opportunities and operational constraints.
Serve as the internal champion for e‑commerce best practices, driving training sessions and developing sales playbooks and SOPs for new campaigns and marketplaces.
Collaborate with legal and compliance to review channel contracts, terms of service and vendor agreements related to online sales.
Assist product and merchandising teams in creating compelling cross‑sell and upsell strategies for online buyers, including subscription and bundle models.
Represent the company at industry conferences, marketplace seller events and trade shows to build partnerships and gather market intelligence.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Strong experience with e‑commerce platforms (Shopify Plus, Magento/Adobe Commerce, BigCommerce) and marketplace seller consoles (Amazon Seller Central, Vendor Central, Walmart Marketplace).
CRM proficiency (Salesforce, HubSpot or similar) for pipeline management, lead routing and sales automation.
Web analytics and tracking: Google Analytics 4, Adobe Analytics, GTM, and familiarity with event tracking and attribution models.
Paid media and acquisition experience: Google Ads, Microsoft Advertising, Facebook/Instagram Ads, and marketplace advertising platforms.
SEO knowledge for product pages, category pages and technical on‑site SEO optimizations to drive organic traffic.
A/B testing and CRO tools: Optimizely, VWO, Google Optimize or equivalent.
Data analysis and reporting: advanced Excel (pivot tables, VLOOKUP), data visualization (Looker, Tableau, Power BI) and basic SQL for ad‑hoc queries.
Experience with email marketing and marketing automation platforms (Klaviyo, Braze, Mailchimp) to manage retention and lifecycle programs.
Understanding of inventory management, fulfillment models (FBA, 3PL, dropship) and integration with OMS/ERP systems.
Familiarity with pricing tools, repricers and competitive intelligence platforms.
Knowledge of UX best practices for mobile and desktop checkout optimization.
Experience implementing or managing affiliate and partner programs.

Soft Skills

Strategic thinker with a strong bias for measurable, ROI-driven decisions.
Leadership and people management: ability to recruit, develop and motivate a high-performing team.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills for stakeholder management and executive reporting.
Strong analytical and problem-solving aptitude; comfortable translating data into actionable sales initiatives.
Customer-centric mindset with an emphasis on improving buyer journeys and retention.
Negotiation and influencing skills for vendor, agency and partner management.
Project management and prioritization skills to manage multiple campaigns and technical dependencies.
Adaptability and comfort with rapid change in a fast-paced digital commerce environment.
Collaboration and cross-functional facilitation across marketing, operations, product and finance.
Attention to detail and commitment to process and documentation.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, E‑commerce, Communications, or a related field.

Preferred Education:

MBA or Master’s in Marketing, Digital Commerce or related discipline; certifications in Google Analytics, A/B testing, or e‑commerce platform certifications are a plus.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Business Administration
Marketing / Digital Marketing
E‑commerce / Retail Management
Data Analytics / Statistics
Communications

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 4–8 years of progressive experience in online sales, e‑commerce or digital account management, with at least 2 years in a people management or team lead role.

Preferred: 5+ years driving multi-channel online revenue, hands-on experience managing marketplaces (Amazon, Walmart, etc.), demonstrated track record of improving conversion and ROI, and experience integrating CRM and analytics into sales workflows.