A tree care sales representative, often called a sales arborist or arborist estimator, walks the property with the owner, looks at each tree and writes the proposal. They name the pruning or removal in the industry's own terms, talk honestly about risk, and make sure the person who signs owns the tree.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Median pay, landscaping and tree care companies · BLS, May 2025
As a Sales Representative in the Arborist / Tree Care industry, you will play a pivotal role in driving our company's success. Your strong knowledge of tree care will help you conduct effective tree assessments, present optimal solutions to customers, and close deals to help our business grow. You will be instrumental in expanding our customer base and contributing to the company’s short-term and long-term objectives.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Conduct careful and thorough tree assessments.
Develop and present effective solutions based on assessments.
Close deals with customers in a professional and timely manner.
Follow up on leads and convert them into profitable business relationships.
Maintain consistent communication with existing clients to ensure their satisfaction and repeat business.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Conduct regular consultations and assessments for customers.
Present detailed and accurate solutions based on assessments.
Communicate effectively with customers to close deals.
Regularly update customer database and sales tracking system.
Attend team meetings and sales trainings as scheduled.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Revenue per hour: $150
Customer Satisfaction Rating: >4.8 stars
Deal Closure Rate: >75%
Repeat Business: >30%
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
High School Diploma or equivalent.
A minimum of 2 years of sales experience.
ISA Certified Arborist or equivalent certification.
Excellent communication and negotiation skills.
Basic understanding of CRM systems.
6. Preferred Experience
Prior experience in the Arborist / Tree Care industry.
Proven track record of meeting or exceeding sales targets.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to lift up to 50 pounds.
Comfortable working outdoors in various weather conditions.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Typical work hours are Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm.
Occasional weekend work may be required.
Limited travel may be required for onsite assessments.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Salary range: $45,000 - $55,000 per year, depending on experience.
Commission on sales.
Health, Dental, and Vision Insurance.
401k plan with company match.
10. Company Culture and Overview
At [INSERT COMPANY NAME HERE], we believe in fostering an environment of growth and learning. We are dedicated to our employees' professional development and offer opportunities for advancement. Our team is passionate about delivering exceptional service to our customers and we take pride in the work we do. If you are a motivated individual looking to grow in the tree care industry, we'd love to have you join our team.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
Need help filling this role? HireBus posts the ad, Iris interviews every applicant by phone before you do, and you decide who to hire. Start hiring now
The rep is usually an arborist who sells. Owners trust them to say what a tree needs, so each proposal has to be clear enough for a crew to follow and honest enough to hold up to a second opinion.
Walk the property with the owner
The visit goes best with the owner beside the rep. The owner points out the trees that worry them, and the rep looks at the rest: dead limbs over the roof, a crack where two stems meet, roots cut by a new driveway. Along the way the rep plans the crew's day, such as where the chipper parks and what each lowered limb will land on.
Write the work in the standard's terms
TCIA, an ANSI-accredited standards developer, writes the ANSI A300 standards for tree care. TCIA says they are meant for writing specifications for the work, not to serve as specifications on their own. ISA names the main pruning types: cleaning out dead and weak branches, raising low limbs for clearance, and reduction back to side branches. A good proposal names the type, the trees, the clearance wanted and what won't be done. Source: TCIA: ANSI A300 tree care standards.
Talk about risk honestly
Owners often ask, "Is it going to fall?" The rep says what they see and how sure they are, without stretching it to close the sale. A tree with a defect isn't always a tree to remove; pruning or a cable may do. When an owner, an insurer or a town wants a formal risk report, the rep books someone the company has cleared to write one.
The person who signs must own the tree
A tree near the line may belong to the neighbor, or to both owners. In Washington, for example, cutting or injuring a tree on another person's land without lawful authority brings triple damages. Damages drop to single if the trespass was casual or involuntary, or the cutter had probable cause to believe the land belonged to the customer who hired them. So reps check markers or the plat, and get the neighbor's signature for any tree on the line. Source: Revised Code of Washington 64.12.030: Injury to or removing trees, damages.
How much tree care sales representatives make
The closest BLS group for tree care sales representatives is sales representatives of services. Sales representatives of services who work for landscaping companies earned a median of $31.17 an hour ($64,830 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s below the $69,990 median for sales representatives of services in all industries. About 20,730 of the 1,256,010 sales representatives of services in that survey work for landscaping and tree care companies.
Base salary and commission on sales come from the template. Show finalists the written commission plan, including how plant health care renewals are credited in later years.
Landscaping and tree care companies
$64,830$64,830 median Middle half $46,650–$79,380 10th–90th $38,590–$99,180
All industries
$69,990$69,990 median Middle half $47,670–$100,480 10th–90th $37,980–$148,840
$25k$50k$75k$100k$125k$150k$175k
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Landscaping and tree care companies
$38,590
$46,650
$64,830
$79,380
$99,180
All industries
$37,980
$47,670
$69,990
$100,480
$148,840
BLS doesn’t publish pay for tree care companies on their own. These figures cover landscaping services, which include them. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
Holds ISA Certified Arborist status, or the equivalent the template accepts
Spots decay, weak unions and root damage, and says plainly what they mean
Writes proposals that tell the crew which trees, which limbs and what stays
Plans how a job gets done: rigging, machines and landing zones
Asks for the decision and follows up on the date promised
Teach these on the job
Your job pricing rules
Writing specifications in ANSI A300 terms
Your estimating software and mapping tools
Which permits and approvals the office handles, and what they need from the rep
Which plant health care program fits which problem
Reps work from the estimating app in your tree care software, such as ArboStar or SingleOps, with a diameter tape, a clinometer or rangefinder for height, binoculars for the upper crown and a phone camera. Aerial maps help them check lot lines and where a crane could set up before they arrive.
Tree care sales representative interview questions
Two of the 6 questions we'd ask, and what a strong answer sounds like. Ask every candidate the same questions, and rate each answer on your own before you compare notes.
Situational · Healthy tree removals
A homeowner wants a healthy tree removed because of leaves in the gutters. What do you do?
A strong answer: Explains other options, respects the customer's choice and checks local permit rules for removals.
Behavioral · Recommending proper pruning
Tell me about a time a customer asked you to top a tree or cut back far more than it could handle, and you offered a better option.
A strong answer: Explained that topping causes weak regrowth and decay, offered crown reduction with proper cuts or thinning per ANSI A300, and says how the customer responded.
Hold each rep to their own past seasons and keep storm estimates on a separate line. Those records beat the template's figures as targets.
Revenue per hour
Check the crew hours this rep planned against the hours crews actually logged. If the rep's jobs keep running long, the estimates are light and the rate looks better than it is.
Customer Satisfaction Rating
Scores from customers this rep sold, collected after the work. Comments about cleanup, stump height or wood left behind usually point to something the proposal didn't spell out.
Deal Closure Rate
Proposals the owner signed, out of all the rep presented, split by removal, pruning and plant health care work. Leave out trees no customer could sign for, such as town trees.
Repeat Business
The rep's customers who buy again within a year or two, counting plant health care renewals and the next pruning cycle, divided by all of the rep's customers.
A customer wants a tree topped. What does the rep offer?
Say no, and offer reduction instead. ISA describes reduction as cutting leaders and branch ends back to side branches large enough to take over, at least one-third the size of the cut stem. Compared with topping, it keeps the tree's form and structure. Put the reduction in the proposal with the clearance the customer wants, so they can see what they're getting.
How much does a tree care sales representative make?
Sales representatives of services who work for landscaping companies earned a median of $31.17 an hour ($64,830 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $46,650 and $79,380 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and overtime.
Who can sign for tree work at a rental home or an HOA?
Get the signature of the owner or someone with the owner's written authority. A tenant can show you the tree, but have the landlord or the property manager sign for a removal. For trees on an HOA's common ground, get the board's or its manager's signature, not that of the homeowner who called. Note on the proposal who signed and in what role.
Should a sales arborist come back after the job?
On large jobs, yes. A short walk after the crew leaves catches anything the owner isn't happy with before it becomes a review. It is also the natural time to show the trees that need care next and to offer a plant health care program. Many repeat customers come from that visit.
Should reps offer plant health care on removal visits?
When they see a reason. A removal visit often turns up other trees with thin crowns, insects or compacted soil. The rep notes them as a separate option on the proposal, with what they saw, so the owner can decide on each one apart from the removal. Pushing a program on every visit makes owners doubt the rest of the proposal.
Can I give a sales arborist candidate a field test?
Yes, if the test uses the job's real tasks and every finalist takes the same one. Behind the template's fifty-pound lifting line and its outdoor weather line sit tasks like walking a sloped, overgrown lot, carrying a ladder in, and checking the base of a tree at ground level. EEOC guidance says a physical agility test of that kind isn't a medical exam. Keep health questions for after an offer.
