How to hire a customer advisor

How to hire a customer advisor, step by step

Here's a step-by-step customer advisor hiring guide:

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

What does a customer advisor do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a customer advisor, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect customer advisor also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of customer advisor salaries for various roles:

   Type of Customer Advisor	Description	Hourly rate
   Customer Advisor	Customer service representatives interact with customers to handle complaints, process orders, and provide information about an organization’s products and services.	$9-24
   Customer Relations Representative	A customer relations representative is responsible for providing the highest customer service by interacting with customers to respond to their inquiries and concerns, process their requests, and resolve their complaints. Customer relations representatives assist the customers with their needs by offering products and services according to their requirements and budget limitations... Show more	$13-24
   Customer Care Representative	A customer care representative is responsible for providing resolution with the customer's concerns, following the business' procedures and strategic processes. Customer care representatives must have exceptional customer service skills to address their clients' concerns efficiently and accurately, as well as having extensive knowledge of the products and services their company offer... Show more	$12-19

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Excellent Interpersonal
   • Persuasion
   • Multitasking
   • Customer Satisfaction
   • Customer Service
   • Work Ethic
   • Customer Care
   • Inbound Calls
   • Customer Inquiries
   • Outbound Calls
   • Customer Accounts
   • CRM
   • Customer Support
   • Customer Calls

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Collaborate with management to train new employees on company policies and procedures and manage customer concerns via LiveChat.
   • Work at the POS completing transactions.
   • Clean windows and vacuum store and work area.
   • Use the POS of sale system including inputting transactions.
   • Register new patients into the specialty pharmacy database by gathering patient/physician demographics, insurance, medication, and ICD-9 diagnosis information.
   • Make sure identify and communicate gaps/concerns in the RMA process and suggest solutions.

   More customer advisor duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your customer advisor job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A customer advisor salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, customer advisors' average salary in west virginia is 41% less than in district of columbia.
   • Seniority. Entry-level customer advisors earn 60% less than senior-level customer advisors.
   • Certifications. A customer advisor with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a customer advisor's salary.

   Average customer advisor salary

   $15.63hourly

   $32,515 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level customer advisor salary

   $20,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 24, 2025

   Average customer advisor salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$45,750	$22
   2	New York	$44,341	$21
   3	Massachusetts	$41,226	$20
   4	Connecticut	$39,278	$19
   5	New Hampshire	$38,255	$18
   6	Alaska	$37,863	$18
   7	Minnesota	$37,053	$18
   8	Washington	$36,861	$18
   9	Illinois	$36,856	$18
   10	Arizona	$35,659	$17
   11	Texas	$35,107	$17
   12	Wisconsin	$34,888	$17
   13	North Carolina	$34,753	$17
   14	Nevada	$34,705	$17
   15	Indiana	$34,131	$16
   16	Ohio	$34,113	$16
   17	Virginia	$34,081	$16
   18	Colorado	$33,748	$16
   19	Florida	$33,656	$16
   20	Oregon	$33,586	$16

   Average customer advisor salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Dell	$73,621	$35.39	3
   2	Salesforce	$65,081	$31.29	5
   3	Essex Property Trust	$47,617	$22.89	1
   4	Apptio	$44,051	$21.18
   5	Southern California Edison	$43,895	$21.10	62
   6	City of Seattle	$43,814	$21.06	1
   7	Autodesk	$43,051	$20.70	2
   8	HealthTrust	$42,639	$20.50
   9	GoodLeap	$41,562	$19.98
   10	Jea	$41,167	$19.79
   11	HMSA	$40,139	$19.30	4
   12	Kohler Co.	$39,934	$19.20	2
   13	Busey	$38,853	$18.68	2
   14	Safari	$38,837	$18.67
   15	Quorum International	$38,269	$18.40
   16	Navient	$37,895	$18.22	4
   17	EMC	$37,023	$17.80
   18	Clarins	$36,692	$17.64
   19	Dahl Consulting	$36,532	$17.56	1
   20	Hireology	$36,060	$17.34

4. Writing a customer advisor job description

   A customer advisor job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a customer advisor job description:

   Customer advisor job description example

   Are you passionate about assisting clients while helping a rapidly growing manufacturer become and remain their customer’ s best vendor? Do you dream of collaborating with a closely-knit team, in a company offering an incredible culture, amazing benefits generous bonuses, and the possibility of huge personal career growth? If so, we’ d love to chat with you about this exciting
   Customer Success Advisor opportunity!
   
   Accountabilities
   Interaction with customers via phone, email, and social media, providing answers about product availability, pricing, expediting, shipping information and product troubleshooting Expediting order entry and checking, returned goods authorizations and invoicing Support National Sales Manager & Manufacturer’ s Representatives, assuring they have the tools necessary to succeed in their territories Assist Internal departments with expediting, shipping issues and freight claims Accurate and timely reporting on revenue, commissions, and representative performance via ERP system
   Qualifications
   Excellent verbal and written communication skills Ability to work both independently and as part of team Microsoft Office proficiency Excellent typing and data entry skills Knowledge of ERP systems a plus Ability to learn new systems and adapt to changes in the workplace Proven excellent customer service skills in a fast-paced environment from diagnosis of the issue to solution Ability to empathize with the customer and become their advisor
   
   About Morgan Hunter
   
   Since 1986, Morgan Hunter has served Kansas City-area employers to help them meet a range of hiring needs, from temporary staffing to direct-hire placements. Thoughtful and thorough in our approach, we’ re also responsive and efficient, creating a tailored hiring experience for both employer and job seeker – because everyone deserves to find the right fit.
   
   MH123

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find customer advisors for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your customer advisor job on Zippia to find and recruit customer advisor candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with customer advisor candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   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 customer advisor

   Once you have selected a candidate for the customer advisor position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize 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 customer advisor first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

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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How much does it cost to hire a customer advisor?