How to Become a Customer Service Representative
Do you like listening to others' problems? Well, ok, nobody really enjoys listening to complaints, but some are better at pretending to care than others. If that's you, maybe consider a career as a customer service representative.
From customer complaints to processing orders and just being able to answer questions, customer service representative interact with customers throughout their day. The great news is that representatives are needed in almost every industry, so it shouldn't be that difficult to find a job. And as long as you're able to communicate well with others and know your way around a computer, all you need is a high school degree and some on-the-job training.
What Does a Customer Service Representative Do
Customer service representatives interact with customers to handle complaints, process orders, and provide information about an organization’s products and services.
How To Become a Customer Service Representative
Customer service representatives typically need a high school diploma and receive on-the-job training to learn the specific skills needed for the job. They should be good at communicating and interacting with people and have some experience using computers.
EducationCustomer service representatives typically need a high school diploma.
TrainingCustomer service representatives usually receive short-term on-the-job training, lasting 2 to 3 weeks. Those who work in finance and insurance may need several months of training to learn more complicated financial regulations.
General customer-service training may focus on procedures for answering questions, information about a company’s products and services, and computer and telephone use. Trainees often work under the guidance of an experienced worker for the first few weeks of employment.
In certain industries, such as finance and insurance, customer service representatives must remain current with changing regulations.
Licenses, Certifications, and RegistrationsCustomer service representatives who provide information about finance and insurance may need a state license. Although licensing requirements vary by state, they usually include passing a written exam. Some employers and organizations may provide training for these exams.
Important QualitiesCommunication skills. Customer service representatives must be able to provide information in writing, by phone, or in person so that customers can understand them.
Customer-service skills. Representatives help companies retain customers by answering their questions and complaints in a helpful and professional manner.
Interpersonal skills. Representatives should be able to create positive interactions with customers.
Listening skills. Representatives must listen carefully and understand a customer’s situation in order to assist them.
Patience. Representatives should be patient and polite, especially when interacting with dissatisfied customers.
Problem-solving skills. Representatives must determine solutions to a customer’s problem. By resolving issues effectively, representatives contribute to customer loyalty and retention.
Customer Service Representative Career Paths
As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities or notice that you've taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, a customer service representative can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as account executive, progress to a title such as sales manager and then eventually end up with the title district manager.
Average Salary for a Customer Service Representative
What Am I Worth?
Top Skills For a Customer Service Representative
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 16.3% of customer service representatives listed communication on their resume, but soft skills such as communication skills and computer skills are important as well.
Choose From 10+ Customizable Customer Service Representative Resume templates
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Customer Service Representative templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Customer Service Representative resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
Customer Service Representative Demographics
Customer Service Representative Gender Distribution
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
- Among customer service representatives, 69.5% of them are women, while 30.5% are men.
- The most common race/ethnicity among customer service representatives is White, which makes up 59.9% of all customer service representatives.
- The most common foreign language among customer service representatives is Spanish at 74.2%.
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Best States For a Customer Service Representative
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a customer service representative. The best states for people in this position are Washington, Minnesota, Massachusetts, and New York. Customer service representatives make the most in Washington with an average salary of $34,905. Whereas in Minnesota and Massachusetts, they would average $34,294 and $34,170, respectively. While customer service representatives would only make an average of $34,141 in New York, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Wisconsin
$32,612
Avg. Salary
2. Minnesota
$34,294
Avg. Salary
3. North Dakota
$30,745
Avg. Salary
How Do Customer Service Representative Rate Their Jobs?
5.0
5.0
Customer service rep • August 2019What do you like the most about working as Customer Service Representative?
I like building relations with other companies, keeping customers satisfied and growing in all areas,3.0
3.0
Meea • July 2019What do you like the most about working as Customer Service Representative?
The challenge, helping people, Show MoreWhat do you NOT like?
Non caring employer's , standing on my feet all day, working weekends, low pay Show MoreTop Customer Service Representative Employers
We've made finding a great employer to work for easy by doing the hard work for you. We looked into employers that employ customer service representatives and discovered their number of customer service representative opportunities and average salary. Through our research, we concluded that Alorica was the best, especially with an average salary of $27,173. AT&T; follows up with an average salary of $35,394, and then comes Xerox with an average of $28,667. In addition, we know most people would rather work from home. So instead of having to change careers, we identified the best employers for remote work as a customer service representative. The employers include CVS Health, Fidelity Investments, and SITEL
Most Common Employers For Customer Service Representative
| Rank | Company | Average Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AT&T | $35,394 | $17.02 | 17,797 |
| 2 | Bank of America | $32,976 | $15.85 | 6,760 |
| 3 | Wells Fargo | $32,931 | $15.83 | 7,779 |
| 4 | Citi | $32,411 | $15.58 | 5,212 |
| 5 | T-Mobile | $31,886 | $15.33 | 14,639 |
| 6 | JCPenney | $31,326 | $15.06 | 6,262 |
| 7 | Walmart | $30,752 | $14.78 | 14,748 |
| 8 | Lowe's Companies | $30,721 | $14.77 | 6,753 |
| 9 | Pizza Hut | $30,264 | $14.55 | 9,195 |
| 10 | Circle K | $30,264 | $14.55 | 7,820 |
Becoming a Customer Service Representative FAQs
How long does it take to become a Customer Service Representative?
It takes 3 years of professional experience to become a customer service representative. That is the time it takes to learn specific customer service representative skills, but does not account for time spent in formal education.
How can I be a good customer service representative?
To be a good customer service representative, you must be able to solve problems while providing positive customer experiences.
If you are in a customer service representative role in a fast-food industry or restaurant, a large part of success is related to your ability to provide customers with positive experiences. To be a successful customer service representative requires the following:
How do I get a job as a customer service representative?
To get a job as a customer service representative, apply for customer service jobs with a resume and cover letter that describe your accomplishments working with customers in the past. Working as a customer service representative involves talking face-to-face with customers, solving problems, and helping others, so these are the most important elements to focus on during the application process.
Is a customer service representative a hard job?
No, being a customer service representative is not a hard job. It's not the easiest job either. Lots of customer service representatives must work long hours, deal with angry customers and low wages. The term customer service representative is a catch-all job title for many different roles in customer service.
What are the duties and responsibilities of a customer service representative?
The duties and responsibilities of a customer service representative are focused on providing customer support. A customer service representative serves as the liaison between the company and the customer base. Customer support can come in the form of phone, email, live chat, social media, or some combination of those things.
What are the top three priorities for a customer service representative?
The top three priorities for a customer service representative are the 'Three Ps' professionalism, patience, and a "people-first" attitude. Although customer service varies from customer or company, the 'Three Ps' will work in almost any customer service representative job.
What qualifications do you need for customer service?
The only qualification to become a customer service representative is a high school diploma. However, having an associate degree or even a bachelor's can open up new doors to better positions at more notable companies with more competitive salaries. An associate's degree in business or arts is highly desirable.