Advertising sales agents
SOC Code: 41-3011
Advertising sales agents carries a 45% AI exposure score (High automation risk), with a median annual wage of $61,460 and -6.4% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 103,700 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 45% AI exposure, Advertising sales agents sits 8 points above the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 79% of them. Most of its core tasks still require human judgment.
Career outlook score
29/100
Advertising sales agents, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage C- $61,460
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth F -6.4%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) F 45% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Advertising sales agents in the High band.
Credential × growth standing
Open entry on a declining BLS line
Typical entry is HS / some college (333/832) while growth is Declining (111/832). This is the crowded high-risk corner of the map - automation and headcount pressure compound without a degree moat.
Where Advertising sales agents sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Advertising sales agents sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
45% Higher than most higher than 79% of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Advertising sales agents vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Advertising sales agents is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Advertising sales agents's High automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score in the 40–70% range indicates meaningful automation pressure on specific task categories, but the role as a whole still requires human judgment for coordination, exception handling, or client interaction.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 41-3011) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Advertising sales agents be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Advertising sales agents. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Prepare and deliver sales presentations to new and existing customers to sell new advertising programs and to protect and increase existing advertising.
- 2. Maintain assigned account bases while developing new accounts.
- 3. Provide clients with estimates of the costs of advertising products or services.
- 4. Locate and contact potential clients to offer advertising services.
- 5. Explain to customers how specific types of advertising will help promote their products or services in the most effective way possible.
- 6. Obtain and study information about clients' products, needs, problems, advertising history, and business practices to offer effective sales presentations and appropriate product assistance.
- 7. Prepare promotional plans, sales literature, media kits, and sales contracts, using computer.
- 8. Process all correspondence and paperwork related to accounts.
- 9. Draw up contracts for advertising work, and collect payments due.
- 10. Deliver advertising or illustration proofs to customers for approval.
Key Skills Required
- Speaking
- Persuasion
- Social Perceptiveness
- Service Orientation
- Active Listening
- Negotiation
- Reading Comprehension
- Critical Thinking
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Writing
Knowledge Areas
- Sales and Marketing
- Customer and Personal Service
- English Language
- Communications and Media
- Mathematics
- Administrative
- Computers and Electronics
- Administration and Management
- Education and Training
- Production and Processing
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Advertising sales agents?
Advertising sales agents has an AI exposure score of 45%, indicating a high level of automation risk. Some tasks in this role can be augmented or partially automated by AI, but core responsibilities require human judgment.
What is the job outlook for Advertising sales agents?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Advertising sales agents is projected to decline by 6.4% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 103,700 workers.
What skills are needed for Advertising sales agents?
Key skills for Advertising sales agents include Speaking, Persuasion, Social Perceptiveness, and others. Typical entry-level education is High school diploma or equivalent.
How much do Advertising sales agents earn?
The median annual wage for Advertising sales agents is $61,460, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Advertising sales agents?
The typical entry-level education for Advertising sales agents is High school diploma or equivalent. Employers generally expect None of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves Moderate-term on-the-job training. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Advertising sales agents?
Advertising sales agents roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
High automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. A moderate share of tasks may be augmented by AI tools.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Advertising sales agents: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (45% here).
- Broadcast announcers and radio disc jockeys · AI exposure 45%
- Electrical and electronics repairers, commercial and industrial equipment · AI exposure 45%
- First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers · AI exposure 45%
- First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers · AI exposure 45%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (-6.4% here).
- Gambling change persons and booth cashiers · growth -6.4%
- Mechanical drafters · growth -6.5%
- Water and wastewater treatment plant and system operators · growth -6.5%
- Coil winders, tapers, and finishers · growth -6.3%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
Showing 6 of 12 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Advertising sales agents' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Advertising sales agents side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).