How to hire a collections, customer service

How to hire a collections, customer service, step by step

Here's a step-by-step collections, customer service hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a collections, customer service job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new collections, customer service
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a collections, customer service do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your collections, customer service job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a collections, customer service for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A collections, customer service's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, collectionss, customer service from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   Here's a comparison of collections, customer service salaries for various roles:

   Type of Collections, Customer Service	Description	Hourly rate
   Collections, Customer Service	Bill and account collectors, sometimes called collectors, try to recover payment on overdue bills. They negotiate repayment plans with debtors and help them find solutions to make paying their overdue bills easier.	$12-18
   Collections/Accounts Receivable	An officer for collections/accounts receivable is in charge of a company's financial activities, ensuring that they receive payment from clients. They primarily focus on overseeing all billing and invoices, processing and verifying all receipts and rendered services, maintaining an accurate record of all transactions, producing reports and presentations, reviewing account and payment histories, and ensuring the accuracy of all processes involving the matter... Show more	$14-23
   Customer Service Representative	Customer service representatives are the first point of contact of the customers, acting as the frontiers of the company and help in driving customer loyalty and retention by leaving a great impression and resolving all of their concerns. They accommodate customer queries by providing useful and comprehensive information about any products or services... Show more	$12-19

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Strong Customer Service
   • Customer Service
   • Payment Arrangements
   • Credit Card Payments
   • Delinquent Accounts
   • Past Due Accounts
   • Student Loans
   • Debt Repayment
   • Collections
   • FDCPA
   • Customer Accounts
   • Inbound Calls
   • Outbound Calls
   • Outbound Collection Calls

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Monitor all assign accounts by reviewing the client's aging, manage all potential bad debit, DSO, aging.
   • Provide excellent verbal, written, oral communication skills, attend ongoing training of collections and FDCPA regulations and guidelines.
   • Provide excellent interpersonal, negotiation, and customer service skills via telephone.
   • Research accounts to verify credits and debits make are accurately post against supporting documents showing timely reflect within the FDCPA guidelines.
   • Prevent impending loss and increase profitability through negotiation and enforcement of schedule collection campaigns.
   • Submit additional information request by insurance companies such as medical records, primary/secondary insurance explanation of benefits (EOB).

   More collections, customer service duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your collections, customer service job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A collections, customer service salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a collections, customer service in Ohio may be lower than in Virginia, and an entry-level collections, customer service usually earns less than a senior-level collections, customer service. Additionally, a collections, customer service with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average collections, customer service salary

   $15.80hourly

   $32,870 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level collections, customer service salary

   $27,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 14, 2025

   Average collections, customer service salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Massachusetts	$37,542	$18
   2	California	$36,450	$18
   3	Illinois	$33,716	$16
   4	New York	$33,531	$16
   5	Minnesota	$33,153	$16
   6	Missouri	$31,950	$15
   7	Georgia	$31,837	$15
   8	Oregon	$31,740	$15
   9	Michigan	$31,568	$15
   10	Texas	$31,169	$15
   11	Wisconsin	$30,984	$15
   12	New Hampshire	$30,649	$15
   13	Iowa	$30,178	$15
   14	Tennessee	$29,802	$14
   15	Maine	$29,731	$14
   16	Indiana	$28,811	$14
   17	North Carolina	$27,513	$13
   18	Kansas	$27,426	$13
   19	Oklahoma	$26,814	$13
   20	Ohio	$26,623	$13

   Average collections, customer service salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	University of California	$39,114	$18.80	2
   2	Chubb	$37,893	$18.22	39
   3	Uline	$37,687	$18.12	6
   4	ALLIANCE DOOR PRODUCTS	$36,613	$17.60	1
   5	Allstate	$36,456	$17.53	48
   6	Smiths Group	$36,225	$17.42
   7	CarMax	$35,839	$17.23
   8	Sharp HealthCare	$34,976	$16.82	3
   9	Inovalon	$34,695	$16.68
   10	Farm Bureau Financial Services	$34,514	$16.59	2
   11	Quest Diagnostics	$34,411	$16.54	31
   12	ADA-ES	$34,386	$16.53
   13	Washington Hospital Healthcare System	$34,040	$16.37
   14	Covington, Virginia	$33,937	$16.32
   15	Biolife Plasma Services	$33,909	$16.30	12
   16	Grainger	$33,882	$16.29	34
   17	Hy-Vee	$33,872	$16.28	9
   18	paragon Co.	$33,856	$16.28
   19	Microf	$33,847	$16.27
   20	Peloton Group	$33,847	$16.27

4. Writing a collections, customer service job description

   A good collections, customer service job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a collections, customer service job description:

   Collections, customer service job description example

   This position earns base plus commission in pay and no experience is necessary! We also offer great benefits, including health, dental, vision, and a 401(k) plan with company match. If this sounds like the right opportunity for you, apply today!

   
   

   ABOUT PATENAUDE & FELIX, APC

   Since 1991, our civil litigation law firm has grown and expanded to maintain offices in Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Washington. We serve all seven states by litigating for our Fortune 500 clients. Our firm is proud to have been recognized by numerous financial institutions and Fortune 500 Companies, for our professional and ethical representation.

   We value our incredible team of hardworking legal professionals and are committed to rewarding their efforts and investing in their futures. Our employees enjoy a comprehensive benefits package as well as our friendly and engaging team environment.

   Essential Responsibilities :

   • Collect, negotiate and recommend solutions to consumers via phone.
   • Set up payment or settlement arrangements in the database.
   • Identify accounts that require legal processing.

   Qualifications:

   • No experience necessary, training provided.
   • Customer service experience, preferred.
   • Good communication skills.
   • Bi-lingual in Spanish, a plus.
   • Must be 18 years of age or older.
   • Ability to pass a background and drug test

   WORK SCHEDULE

   This full-time position typically works Monday - Friday.

   
   

   READY TO JOIN OUR LEGAL TEAM?

   We understand your time is valuable, so we have a very quick and easy application process. If you feel that you would be right for this job, please fill out our initial 3-minute, mobile-friendly application. We look forward to meeting you!

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right collections, customer service for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your collections, customer service job on Zippia to find and recruit collections, customer service candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as efinancialcareers, financialjobsweb.com, careerbank, financial job bank.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit collectionss, customer service, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new collections, customer service

   Once you've selected the best collections, customer service candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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