How to hire a customer sales associate

How to hire a customer sales associate, step by step

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

What does a customer sales associate do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The customer sales associate hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

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

   Type of Customer Sales Associate	Description	Hourly rate
   Customer Sales Associate	Customer service representatives interact with customers to handle complaints, process orders, and provide information about an organization’s products and services.	$12-23
   Customer Sales Representative	The primary role of customer service representatives is to help customers with questions and complaints. It is also their duties and responsibilities to provide customers with information about services and products, take and process orders, and process returns and modifications... Show more	$12-25

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Sales Floor
   • Customer Satisfaction
   • Customer Service
   • Product Knowledge
   • Outbound Calls
   • Customer Sales
   • Inbound Calls
   • Customer Orders
   • Customer Transactions
   • Loss Prevention
   • Inventory Control
   • Customer Complaints
   • Pricing Strategy
   • POS

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage cash balances and inventory stock accurately; ensure cleanliness of all work stations and guarantee excellent customer service.
   • Process merchandise information through store computer system, POS register system, and complete all require paperwork according to policy.
   • Used mobile POS systems to streamline the customer experience in order to drive full engagement throughout entire interaction with customer.
   • Provide above average service to customers by bagging groceries appropriately and assist with carryout and loading merchandise into customer's vehicle.
   • Recognize opportunities to up-sell and often take the opportunity to do so to create a better Marriott experience and event.

   More customer sales associate duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the customer sales associate job description is a good way to get more applicants. A customer sales associate salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a customer sales associate in Virginia may be lower than in Maryland, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level customer sales associate. Additionally, a customer sales associate with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average customer sales associate salary

   $37,024yearly

   $17.80 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level customer sales associate salary

   $27,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 17, 2025

   Average customer sales associate salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Maryland	$43,757	$21
   2	California	$42,789	$21
   3	Colorado	$42,113	$20
   4	Massachusetts	$41,680	$20
   5	Arizona	$41,523	$20
   6	New Jersey	$40,935	$20
   7	Pennsylvania	$38,972	$19
   8	Michigan	$37,406	$18
   9	Arkansas	$36,883	$18
   10	New York	$36,867	$18
   11	Texas	$36,849	$18
   12	Nevada	$36,342	$17
   13	Minnesota	$36,038	$17
   14	Ohio	$35,818	$17
   15	Alabama	$35,393	$17
   16	Illinois	$35,385	$17
   17	Indiana	$35,157	$17
   18	Kansas	$34,925	$17
   19	Missouri	$34,586	$17
   20	Florida	$34,070	$16

   Average customer sales associate salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Johnson Controls	$50,063	$24.07	40
   2	Campbells	$49,165	$23.64	4
   3	Schwan's	$43,615	$20.97
   4	DISH Network	$42,255	$20.31
   5	Trinity Solar	$41,696	$20.05
   6	SiteOne Landscape Supply	$40,118	$19.29	31
   7	Trane	$37,727	$18.14	50
   8	Bloomingdale's	$37,033	$17.80	47
   9	Year Up	$36,247	$17.43
   10	The Hertz Corporation	$35,295	$16.97	393
   11	Goodyear	$35,226	$16.94	65
   12	Gap Inc.	$34,671	$16.67
   13	Randstad North America, Inc.	$34,624	$16.65	25
   14	Rent-A-Center	$33,635	$16.17	369
   15	Blick Art Materials	$33,604	$16.16	34
   16	Michaels Stores	$33,517	$16.11	146
   17	CornerStone Staffing	$33,242	$15.98
   18	The Wine Company	$32,936	$15.83
   19	Ollie's Bargain Outlet	$32,216	$15.49	307
   20	Aventure Staffing	$32,194	$15.48	1

4. Writing a customer sales associate job description

   A customer sales associate 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. To help get you started, here's an example of a customer sales associate job description:

   Customer sales associate job description example

   This is a sales professional's dream come true! HOT leads are handed to you every day. We provide the leads, the product samples, the transportation and the training. All you have to do is go close the sale! After a salaried training period, this is a 100% sales commission job with top performers making over $100,000.

   Job Duties:

   • Leads, directs and coordinates all sales activities of the assigned customers per the company policies, goals, and objectives. Sets a standard for excellence in all activities.

   • Visits Customers on "In Home Consultations", where the essential job functions of showing products, measuring and quoting customers are performed

   • Displays "owner" mindset, operates with excellence across aspects of the business

   • In coordination with the marketing effort of the home office, aligns sales strategy with marketing and promotional campaigns

   • Consults with prospective clients, meeting customer needs by offering superior price, quality and service

   • Maintains Close Rate and Margin goals set by the organization

   • Assists Leadership in setting goals that promote company growth

   • Participates in Sales meetings, Vendor meetings, Ongoing training and Conventions as needed

   • Serves as an internal coach by providing training, advice and guidance to employees, particularly newly hired staff.

   • Maintain relationships with Vendors, Builders, Agents and Designers

   • Other Duties as assigned

   Preferred Skills and Qualifications:

   Degree in Sales, Marketing or a related Business Field or Prior Experience in Sales is required; Consultative demeanor, Strong Organization Skills; Excellent Communication Skills, Both Verbal and Written; Strong Problem-Solving Skills; Computer Literate; Adaptable to Change; Driven to Achieve Results; Exceptional Coaching Skills; Strong Decision Making, Action Planning, and Prioritization Skills; Ability to Work on a Team; Commitment to Providing the Highest Level of Support and Quality.

   Company DescriptionAt Budget Blinds, we're the local experts in everything from window blinds and automated shades to custom draperies and the finest designer details, proud of share with our customers over 25 years of experience in design-driven solutions with the highest levels of customer satisfaction.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right customer sales associate for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with customer sales associates they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit customer sales associates who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting customer sales associates requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates 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 customer sales associate

   Once you've decided on a perfect customer sales associate 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 important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new customer sales associate 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 sales associate?