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The differences between customer service assistants and customer service specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a customer service assistant and a customer service specialist. Additionally, a customer service assistant has an average salary of $33,862, which is higher than the $33,238 average annual salary of a customer service specialist.
The top three skills for a customer service assistant include front end, customer service and service calls. The most important skills for a customer service specialist are customer service, strong customer service, and cleanliness.
| Customer Service Assistant | Customer Service Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $33,862 | $33,238 |
| Hourly rate | $16.28 | $15.98 |
| Growth rate | -4% | -4% |
| Number of jobs | 220,286 | 223,323 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Bachelor's Degree, 43% |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A Customer Service Assistant is responsible for providing customer support by responding to inquiries and correspondence or transferring them to a particular department when necessary. The duties of a Customer Service Assistant will vary according to an assigned setting. However, it mostly revolves around answering calls, providing troubleshooting options, helping a customer navigate systems or applications, and filling out details. Furthermore, there are instances when a Customer Service Assistant must fulfill orders, process payments or refunds, and even sell services or products. All efforts are focused on attaining customer satisfaction.
Customer service specialists are employees who are responsible for providing the best customer experience to customers, usually for after-sales transactions. They attend to customers' inquiries and provide answers to their questions on products or services that the company offers. They also address customer complaints and help mitigate the concerns by offering solutions such as instructions on how to fix defects, or processing replacements or refunds. Customer service specialists also listen to customer feedback and ensure that these are logged properly so that proper departments will be able to receive them.
Customer service assistants and customer service specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Customer Service Assistant | Customer Service Specialist | |
| Average salary | $33,862 | $33,238 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $42,000 | Between $26,000 And $42,000 |
| Highest paying City | Helena, MT | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | Montana | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Fidelity Investments | Dell |
| Best paying industry | Government | Finance |
There are a few differences between a customer service assistant and a customer service specialist in terms of educational background:
| Customer Service Assistant | Customer Service Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Bachelor's Degree, 43% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between customer service assistants' and customer service specialists' demographics:
| Customer Service Assistant | Customer Service Specialist | |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 29.7% Female, 70.3% | Male, 32.0% Female, 68.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.4% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 22.8% Asian, 6.5% White, 52.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 20.0% Asian, 6.8% White, 55.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |