How to hire a customer relations representative

How to hire a customer relations representative, step by step

Here's a step-by-step customer relations representative 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 relations representative job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new customer relations representative
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a customer relations representative do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the customer relations representative you need to hire. Certain customer relations representative roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   A customer relations representative's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, customer relations representatives 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.

   This list shows salaries for various types of customer relations representatives.

   Type of Customer Relations Representative	Description	Hourly rate
   Customer Relations Representative	Customer service representatives interact with customers to handle complaints, process orders, and provide information about an organization’s products and services.	$13-24
   Customer Service Professional	A customer service professional is responsible for providing the highest customer service by responding to the customers' inquiries and concerns, resolving complaints, and updating the customers of goods and services for generating revenues and profitability to the company. Customer service professionals process order transactions, administering payment plans and adjusting service features in meeting customers' needs... Show more	$12-40
   Customer Care Professional	A customer care professional is in charge of assisting clients with their needs, ensuring efficiency and client satisfaction. They typically manage calls and correspondence where they respond to inquiries, provide technical support, address concerns, and resolve issues promptly and efficiently... Show more	$12-20

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Customer Relations
   • Customer Complaints
   • Team-Oriented Environment
   • Propane
   • Customer Retention
   • Schedule Appointments
   • Work Ethic
   • Phone Calls
   • Product Knowledge
   • Problem Resolution
   • Strong Work Ethic
   • CRR
   • Policy Changes
   • Accounts Receivables

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Lead upselling program initiatives that elevate company revenue.
   • Manage software maintenance renewal partner and assist with upselling additional and higher functionality licenses to increase revenue.
   • Monitor and coach CRA'S on calls to meet the clients expectations.
   • Demonstrate superb organizational and multitasking abilities
   • Work closely with QA to develop use cases, review test cases and track feature bugs.
   • Assist as needed maintaining meeting minutes, working with QA to identify and track bugs and other projects as assigned.

   More customer relations representative duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your customer relations representative job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A customer relations representative 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 customer relations representative in Kansas may be lower than in New Jersey, and an entry-level customer relations representative usually earns less than a senior-level customer relations representative. Additionally, a customer relations representative 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 customer relations representative salary

   $38,632yearly

   $18.57 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level customer relations representative salary

   $29,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 20, 2025

   Average customer relations representative salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New York	$44,009	$21
   2	California	$43,731	$21
   3	Oregon	$43,284	$21
   4	Ohio	$41,732	$20
   5	Illinois	$41,095	$20
   6	Missouri	$40,553	$20
   7	Georgia	$40,332	$19
   8	Minnesota	$39,399	$19
   9	Nevada	$37,455	$18
   10	Colorado	$36,966	$18
   11	Wisconsin	$36,823	$18
   12	Pennsylvania	$36,639	$18
   13	Iowa	$36,436	$18
   14	Indiana	$36,305	$17
   15	Arizona	$35,413	$17
   16	North Carolina	$34,688	$17
   17	Texas	$34,066	$16
   18	South Carolina	$33,090	$16
   19	Florida	$32,931	$16
   20	West Virginia	$31,671	$15

   Average customer relations representative salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Cook Children's Medical Center	$53,551	$25.75	4
   2	Data	$49,417	$23.76
   3	Bosch USA	$47,345	$22.76	5
   4	Donatech	$42,208	$20.29	2
   5	The Timken Company	$42,199	$20.29	4
   6	Canon	$41,957	$20.17	69
   7	Stewart Enterprises	$41,922	$20.15	10
   8	Essex Property Trust	$41,752	$20.07	5
   9	Quest Diagnostics	$40,799	$19.61	73
   10	CVS Health	$40,480	$19.46	316
   11	HKA Enterprises	$40,478	$19.46
   12	Applied Medical Resources	$40,361	$19.40
   13	State Farm	$39,885	$19.18	18
   14	PNMAC Holdings, Inc.	$39,706	$19.09	6
   15	NKC of America	$39,357	$18.92
   16	Starkey Hearing Technologies	$39,320	$18.90
   17	Tom Conklin - State Farm Agent	$39,064	$18.78	2
   18	Michael Farms	$39,003	$18.75	11
   19	Snider Fleet Solutions	$38,771	$18.64	11
   20	Baker Commodities	$38,701	$18.61	6

4. Writing a customer relations representative job description

   A job description for a customer relations representative role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a customer relations representative job description:

   Customer relations representative job description example

   Customer Relations Representative
   We are presenting the opportunity for a Customer Relations Representative role in our Indianapolis, IN office and will report to the Operations Supervisor.
   The Customer Relations Representative Role is very essential to the success of the work we do. There are many responsibilities that come along with this position, some of which include supporting the Global Response Center by answering all medical referral, benefits, and claims questions. Some more examples include inbound verbal and written communications to the beneficiary and providers while utilizing the world class customer service that we take pride in being known for. It is important to recognize that the person who takes on this role needs to be reliable and dependable.
   As you consider this role, we want to be open and clear about what your performance objectives will be and what is expected of someone taking on this position. We have created a timeframe with the hope that those applying understand there is a lot of the opportunity for progression.
   
   Shift- Monday through Friday 10:30AM-7:00PM
   Pay rate $17/HR
   
   Qualities & Skills:

   • Ability to be empathetic towards people speaking with and their situations.
   • Outstanding customer service skills.
   • Strong and proper phone etiquette - this position communicates with people who need assistance during difficult situations and maintaining a calm and professional tone is very important.
   • Strong multi-tasking skills, meaning listening & comprehending what is being said and relaying that information accurately without delaying the process.
   • Computer knowledge beneficial.

   Position Knowledge & Requirements:
   
   Education High School diploma or equivalent
   Experience Experience in travel and hospitality industry, insurance claims processing, or foreign
   language skills are encouraged to apply.
   Insurance and medical knowledge are not required and will be trained on but is preferred.
   
   We are an equal opportunity employer and make hiring decisions based on merit. Recruitment, hiring, training, and job assignments are made without regard to race, color, national origin, age, ancestry, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, disability, or any other protected classification. We consider all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles' Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find customer relations representatives for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any customer relations representatives they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level customer relations representatives with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit customer relations representatives, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up 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 relations representative

   Once you've decided on a perfect customer relations representative candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your 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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