The Average Salary of a Customer Service Rep
Customer service representatives, also known as CSRs, provide product information to potential customers and help existing ones with any product problems. A high school diploma is the minimum requirement, though most companies provide on-the-job training before employees are allowed to interact with customers. The position is a traditional stepping stone into a company or industry and provides advancement to supervisory or management positions.
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Conditions
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Customer service representatives generally work in comfortable offices and interact with customers face-to-face, by phone or through the Internet. Because they interact mostly with those who have complaints or problems, the job can be stressful. Many work a standard 40-hour week to earn a median salary of $30,290 annually with a range of $19,410 to $49,020. Some reps work different shifts, weekends, holidays or part-time, and earn hourly pay of $14.56 per hour with a range of $9.33 to $23.57. This information is from the Bureau of Labor Statistics as of May 2009.
Experience
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The PayScale Report reveals that greater experience equals higher salaries as customer service representatives develop greater skill in finding solutions and leaving customers satisfied. New employees earn $24,977 to $34,044, while those with one to four years of work make $26,567 to $35,731. At five to nine years, they receive $28,350 to $38,958 and at 10 to 19 years, they get $30,430 to $41,965. Finally, those with 20 years or more under their belts are paid $31,629 to $47,057.
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Skills
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PayScale also shows how salaries can differ depending on the skills of the customer service representative. The most lucrative of these is customer relationship management, which validates expertise in cultivating customer loyalty and problem-solving. It pays $29,119 to $40,986. Because resolution information is often stored and calculated through electronic spreadsheets, knowledge of Microsoft Excel is a lucrative skill, paying $27,441 to $40,857. Finally, inside sales increases company profitability and grants pay of $27,921 to $40,498.
Employers
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The BLS reports that the employers that hire the most customer service representatives are business support services, who contract out CSRs on a consulting or temporary basis. They employ over 8 percent of the total 2.1 million CSRs, but pay $12.55 or $26,090, which is under the median due to the large supply of positions. The best-paying work is with the postal service, with compensation at $28.61 or $59,510. However, with only 310 jobs, this particular business is difficult to break into.
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References
- Photo Credit customer service 2 image by Petro Feketa from Fotolia.com
