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What does an automotive service writer do?

Updated January 8, 2025
7 min read

Automotive Service Writers act as a contact person between the customer and an automotive company. This person does estimations for clients and also help in drafting contracts. An Automotive Service Writer handles written orders for repairs. They receive and record request from clients and store it in a safe place. They are an essential part of the marketing department as it focuses on customer retention through constant, casual communication.

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Automotive service writer responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real automotive service writer resumes:

  • Manage the refurbishment of used vehicles, writing repair orders.
  • Recommend required service and repairs, educate customers on basic maintenance requirements for their Toyota product.
  • Provide excellent customer service to assist customers troubleshoot IOS devices for hardware and software issues.

Automotive service writer skills and personality traits

We calculated that 11% of Automotive Service Writers are proficient in Repair Orders, Service Appointments, and Phone Calls. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Computer skills, and Customer-service skills.

We break down the percentage of Automotive Service Writers that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Repair Orders, 11%

    Prepare service repair orders by interacting with customers and mechanics to meet repair requirements/requests.

  • Service Appointments, 10%

    Answer phones, schedule service appointments, greet customers, and type up detailed service requests from customers.

  • Phone Calls, 9%

    Received and screened phone calls for management.

  • Customer Service, 7%

    Consult and communicate effectively with customers, department managers and service technicians to provide for a consistently positive customer service experience.

  • ADP, 5%

    Navigated dealerships ADP software, and provided data entry explanations to both customer and manufacturer.

  • Automotive Services, 4%

    Initiated automotive services and repairs by ascertaining performance problems and services requested.

"repair orders," "service appointments," and "phone calls" are among the most common skills that automotive service writers use at work. You can find even more automotive service writer responsibilities below, including:

Communication skills. The most essential soft skill for an automotive service writer to carry out their responsibilities is communication skills. This skill is important for the role because "customer service representatives must be able to provide clear information in writing, by phone, or in person." Additionally, an automotive service writer resume shows how their duties depend on communication skills: "provide great customer service.skills usedteamwork, communication, dedication, trustworthiness, urgency, intelligence. "

Customer-service skills. automotive service writers are also known for customer-service skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to automotive service writer responsibilities, because "representatives help companies retain customers by professionally answering questions and helping to resolve complaints." An automotive service writer resume example shows how customer-service skills is used in the workplace: "greet customers at quick lube parking lot inquiring about needed services, operating cash register, and restocking mechandise. "

Interpersonal skills. For certain automotive service writer responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "interpersonal skills." The day-to-day duties of an automotive service writer rely on this skill, as "representatives should be able to create positive interactions with customers." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what automotive service writers do: "used excellent interpersonal skills to communicate with customers and other professionals effectively. "

Listening skills. Another crucial skill for an automotive service writer to carry out their responsibilities is "listening skills." A big part of what automotive service writers relies on this skill, since "representatives must listen carefully to ensure that they understand customers in order to assist them." How this skill relates to automotive service writer duties can be seen in an example from an automotive service writer resume snippet: "listened to customer's needs and wants and provided them with great customer service by going above and beyond clients requests. "

Patience. Another skill commonly found on automotive service writer job descriptions is "patience." It can come up quite often in automotive service writer duties, since "representatives should be patient and polite, especially when interacting with dissatisfied customers." Here's an example from a resume of how this skill fits into day-to-day automotive service writer responsibilities: "provide prompt, efficient, and friendly customer service by exhibiting care, concern, and patience in all customer interactions. "

Most common automotive service writer skills

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Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume
Automotive Service Writer Resume

Compare different automotive service writers

Automotive service writer vs. Service advisor

Service Advisors specialize in customer service in a car dealership or automotive shop. Acting as a front-desk representative, it is the Service Advisor's responsibility to greet clients and offer assistance, provide necessary and accurate information to customers regarding the automotive issues and needed repairs, respond to inquiries, and introduce the clients to the available mechanics. Moreover, Service Advisors must inform clients regarding the costs and warranties, keep the clients updated with the status of the repairs, coordinate with suppliers, and as well as manage the schedule of the mechanics.

We looked at the average automotive service writer salary and compared it with the wages of a service advisor. Generally speaking, service advisors are paid $571 lower than automotive service writers per year.While their salaries may differ, the common ground between automotive service writers and service advisors are a few of the skills required in each roleacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities. In both careers, employee duties involve skills like repair orders, customer service, and adp.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, automotive service writer responsibilities require skills like "service appointments," "phone calls," "ase," and "mechanical problems." Meanwhile a typical service advisor has skills in areas such as "basic math," "commercial vehicles," "work ethic," and "warranty claims." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

Service advisors really shine in the finance industry with an average salary of $68,364. Comparatively, automotive service writers tend to make the most money in the automotive industry with an average salary of $42,867.On average, service advisors reach similar levels of education than automotive service writers. Service advisors are 2.4% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Automotive service writer vs. Service agent

A service agent is an individual whose primary function is to provide a friendly service to internal and external customers about the organization's products and services. An agent should be people-oriented, highly motivated with a positive and friendly attitude. Although an agent usually works in a call center, an agent can communicate in various ways, such as the telephone or often face to face. The minimum educational requirement of being a service agent is a high school diploma; however, the customer service experience is a plus.

A career as a service agent brings a lower average salary when compared to the average annual salary of an automotive service writer. In fact, service agents salary is $17,110 lower than the salary of automotive service writers per year.A few skills overlap for automotive service writers and service agents. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "customer service," "oil changes," and "customer complaints. "

While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that automotive service writer responsibilities requires skills like "repair orders," "service appointments," "phone calls," and "adp." But a service agent might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "regular maintenance," "credit card," "quality standards," and "pet."

Service agents may earn a lower salary than automotive service writers, but service agents earn the most pay in the technology industry with an average salary of $30,711. On the other hand, automotive service writers receive higher pay in the automotive industry, where they earn an average salary of $42,867.In general, service agents achieve similar levels of education than automotive service writers. They're 1.7% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Automotive service writer vs. Receptionist/customer service

Receptionists or customer service professionals are considered as the first contact point of the clients. They usually greet and welcome guests visiting an office or organization. These are employees who serve as administrative or office support. They take responsibility for digital communication. It is their job to coordinate the front desk activities such as redirecting phone calls and distributing correspondence. They should be equipped with skills like attention to detail, dependability, and communication skills.

On average, receptionist/customer services earn lower salaries than automotive service writers, with a $16,275 difference per year.By looking over several automotive service writers and receptionist/customer services resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "repair orders," "service appointments," and "phone calls." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an automotive service writer is likely to be skilled in "adp," "automotive services," "organization reputation," and "corrective action," while a typical receptionist/customer service is skilled in "data entry," "telephone calls," "front desk," and "scheduling appointments."

Receptionist/customer services earn the best pay in the manufacturing industry, where they command an average salary of $30,365. Automotive service writers earn the highest pay from the automotive industry, with an average salary of $42,867.When it comes to education, receptionist/customer services tend to earn similar degree levels compared to automotive service writers. In fact, they're 1.0% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Automotive service writer vs. Service associate

A service associate's role is to assist customers either through phone or in person. One of the service associate's primary responsibilities is to attain customer satisfaction by answering queries, performing troubleshooting methods, assisting in navigating through difficult tasks, handling complaints, resolving issues, and even processing payments. Furthermore, a service associate needs to be equipped with good communication skills to build rapport with clients as there are instances where they have to sell products and services.

Service associates tend to earn a lower pay than automotive service writers by an average of $8,167 per year.According to resumes from automotive service writers and service associates, some of the skills necessary to complete the responsibilities of each role are similar. These skills include "customer service," "strong customer service," and "product knowledge. "Each job also requires different skills to carry out their responsibilities. An automotive service writer uses "repair orders," "service appointments," "phone calls," and "adp." Service associates are more likely to have duties that require skills in "patients," "quality customer service," "basic math," and "loan payments. "In general, service associates hold higher degree levels compared to automotive service writers. Service associates are 5.1% more likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.4% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of automotive service writer

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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