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The differences between customer service experts and customer service 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 expert and a customer service associate. Additionally, a customer service expert has an average salary of $99,957, which is higher than the $31,709 average annual salary of a customer service associate.
The top three skills for a customer service expert include cleanliness, customer service and reservations. The most important skills for a customer service associate are patients, sales floor, and plumbing.
A customer service expert is responsible for providing excellent customer by responding to the customers' inquiries and concerns regarding the goods and services the company offers. Customer service experts also handle and escalate high-level complaints, processing order replacements, and issuing refunds as needed. They check customer accounts, resolve billing issues, and monitor product delivery details. A customer service expert must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially the knowledge of sales techniques, to sell services that would increase the company's revenues and profitability.
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.
Customer service experts and customer service associates have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Customer Service Expert | Customer Service Associate | |
| Average salary | $99,957 | $31,709 |
| Salary range | Between $57,000 And $173,000 | Between $24,000 And $40,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Richmond, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | SAP | Fidelity Investments |
| Best paying industry | - | Finance |
There are a few differences between a customer service expert and a customer service associate in terms of educational background:
| Customer Service Expert | Customer Service Associate | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 41% | Bachelor's Degree, 35% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between customer service experts' and customer service associates' demographics:
| Customer Service Expert | Customer Service Associate | |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 42.6% Female, 57.4% | Male, 38.4% Female, 61.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 19.4% Asian, 6.5% White, 56.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |