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What is a customer service associate and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
Quoted Expert
Meegan Feori Ph.D.
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A customer service associate provides assistance and support to customers before, during, and after a purchase. They work in retail, hospitality, and telecommunications. Their main responsibilities include answering customer inquiries, resolving complaints, processing orders and returns, and providing product/service recommendations. They use communication skills, patience, problem-solving abilities, and the ability to multitask. A customer service associate aims to ensure customer satisfaction by providing superior service and building strong relationships.

What general advice would you give to a Customer Service Associate?

Meegan Feori Ph.D.Meegan Feori Ph.D. LinkedIn Profile

Associate Professor, San Diego Mesa College

Consider your career in terms of what you are willing to do right now to support yourself and be self-sufficient. During the last recession, I was underemployed, working as a part-time pool lifeguard and making funnel cakes at a local amusement park. Not ideal, but with my funds running low, it was necessary. A third part-time position I had, updating apparel tech packs, did pave my way to a full-time job in the fashion industry. So hustle and be flexible. Also, take time to consider what you can do to create opportunities for yourself. This could include an internship, volunteering, taking a warehouse position at a fashion brand, or completing a class that interests you. The best advice I was ever given was to keep pursuing your goals and accept that what you will be doing in ten years will be better than you ever imagined. The advice came true for me, and I think it will be true for you as well.
ScoreCustomer Service AssociateUS Average
Salary
2.5

Avg. Salary $31,709

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level
5.9

Growth Rate -4%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity
9.7
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.74%

Asian 6.60%

Black or African American 11.80%

Hispanic or Latino 19.51%

Unknown 5.43%

White 55.93%

Gender

female 61.65%

male 38.35%

Age - 39
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39
Stress Level
5.9

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity Level
6.6

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance
6.5

Work Life balance is good

6.4 - fair

What are the pros and cons of being a Customer Service Associate?

Pros

  • Possibility of flexible schedules

  • May receive employee discounts or other perks

  • Often a steady, reliable source of income

  • Opportunity to work remotely from home

  • May provide opportunities for public speaking or training others

Cons

  • May have to work long or irregular hours, including evenings and weekends

  • Can be repetitive and monotonous work

  • Pay may be lower than other industries, especially for entry-level positions

  • Limited opportunities for creativity or autonomy in the role

  • High turnover rates can lead to constant training of new employees

Customer Service Associate career paths

Key steps to become a customer service associate

  1. Explore customer service associate education requirements

    Most common customer service associate degrees

    Bachelor's

    35.0 %

    High School Diploma

    30.0 %

    Associate

    21.7 %
  2. Start to develop specific customer service associate skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Patients40.88%
    Sales Floor11.65%
    Plumbing10.19%
    Quality Customer Service6.47%
    Front End3.19%
  3. Complete relevant customer service associate training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New customer service associates learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a customer service associate based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real customer service associate resumes.
  4. Research customer service associate duties and responsibilities

    • Manage and calculate daily cash deposits and prepare daily payroll ledgers.
    • Manage cash balances and inventory stock accurately; ensure cleanliness of all work stations and guarantee excellent customer service.
    • Use excellent phone and customer service etiquette while navigating through multiple windows simultaneously.
    • Provide excellent customer service to hundreds of satisfy customers, bag groceries with speed and efficiency
  5. Prepare your customer service associate resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your customer service associate resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a customer service associate resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose From 10+ Customizable Customer Service Associate Resume templates

    Build a professional Customer Service Associate resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Customer Service Associate resume.
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    Customer Service Associate Resume
  6. Apply for customer service associate jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a customer service associate job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How Did You Land Your First Customer Service Associate Job

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Average customer service associate salary

The average Customer Service Associate salary in the United States is $31,709 per year or $15 per hour. Customer service associate salaries range between $24,000 and $40,000 per year.

Average Customer Service Associate Salary
$31,709 Yearly
$15.24 hourly

What Am I Worth?

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How do customer service associates rate their job?

5/5

Based On 1 Ratings

5 Stars

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3 Stars

2 Stars

1 Star

Customer Service Associate reviews

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5.0
A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2022
Pros

I got to do a variety of tasks daily. Got treated with respect from management and other coworkers.

Cons

Sometimes I had to finish up job tasks that were assigned to others that were not completed.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Sep 2021
Pros

Learn usefully ways to improve health with food viewed as medicine.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Jun 2021
Pros

I like mostly that I work with team oriented people. Some people that care and will help and that help others whether it's work related or not. That have good employee morale amongst each other not necessarily management but amongst each other.

Cons

Double standards extra work extra tasks that aren't in the job description you're doing assumptions that you know everything you're doing and you know the right way of everything that you're doing even though no one's ever trained you to do what you're doing and what you're doing isn't necessarily in the jobs description for the title for lack of a better word that you actually have


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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