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The differences between customer service associates and customer sales associates 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 associate and a customer sales associate. Additionally, a customer sales associate has an average salary of $37,024, which is higher than the $31,709 average annual salary of a customer service associate.
The top three skills for a customer service associate include patients, sales floor and plumbing. The most important skills for a customer sales associate are sales floor, customer satisfaction, and customer service.
| Customer Service Associate | Customer Sales Associate | |
| Yearly salary | $31,709 | $37,024 |
| Hourly rate | $15.24 | $17.80 |
| Growth rate | -4% | -4% |
| Number of jobs | 380,943 | 415,981 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 35% | Bachelor's Degree, 41% |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
Customer service associates are representatives of the company who are responsible for solving customer concerns. They provide exceptional service to clients to ensure that their problems are solved and that the relationship between the client and the company remains strong. Customer service associates are in-charge of processing transactions, maintaining a good working relationship between the client and the company, ensuring that the client remains loyal to the company, and working on the requests of the client. Through all of this, customer service associates must keep any information they may encounter confidential. They should also have time management skills, problem-solving skills, and customer service skills.
A customer sales associate specializes in handling and communicating with customers to secure sales in a retail store. Their primary responsibilities revolve around greeting clients, responding to inquiries, providing assistance, and even offering suggestions when necessary. Aside from ensuring customer satisfaction, it is also their responsibility to maintain the cleanliness and order on the sales floor by re-stocking shelves and arranging them to look presentable. Furthermore, a customer sales associate must coordinate with other sales floor members and report to a manager or supervisor.
Customer service associates and customer sales associates have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Customer Service Associate | Customer Sales Associate | |
| Average salary | $31,709 | $37,024 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $40,000 | Between $27,000 And $49,000 |
| Highest paying City | Richmond, CA | Odenton, MD |
| Highest paying state | California | Maryland |
| Best paying company | Fidelity Investments | Johnson Controls |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Real Estate |
There are a few differences between a customer service associate and a customer sales associate in terms of educational background:
| Customer Service Associate | Customer Sales Associate | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 35% | Bachelor's Degree, 41% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between customer service associates' and customer sales associates' demographics:
| Customer Service Associate | Customer Sales Associate | |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 38.4% Female, 61.6% | Male, 50.6% Female, 49.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 19.5% Asian, 6.6% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 5.5% Hispanic or Latino, 20.5% Asian, 7.0% White, 55.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |