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What is a customer service professional and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
Quoted Expert
Andrew Gilliam
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A customer service professional interacts with customers to provide assistance with their inquiries, complaints or issues. They possess excellent communication skills and a deep understanding of the products or services that the company offers. Their main objective is to ensure customer satisfaction by resolving issues in a timely and efficient manner. Customer service professionals use various methods such as phone, email, chat, or in-person to communicate with customers and provide them with support.

What general advice would you give to a Customer Service Professional?

Andrew GilliamAndrew Gilliam LinkedIn Profile

Customer Experience innovator and change agent,, Informa Tech

Searching for jobs is always intimidating, and this year provides many new reasons to be discouraged. However, based on research HDI conducted in July, 57% of support organizations are creating new positions or continuing to fill vacancies. Furthermore, 82% of organizations say it is likely they will continue working from home long-term. Many companies are opening their minds to hiring candidates who don't live near their offices. That's great news for anyone entering the job market!
When looking for work, the best thing an applicant can do is to think like a hiring manager. They're filling a position to meet their needs, not yours, so consider the context in which they're hiring. Right now, businesses are searching for applicants who can contribute to remote teams and support customers remotely. Experience with unified communications, mobile, cloud, and remote support technologies are in high demand. Additionally, organizations are changing how they work at a rapid pace. Understanding the fundamentals of knowledge management, enterprise service management, incident and problem management, and organizational communications will help candidates speak directly to prospective employers' challenges. Having a dedicated space and internet connectivity to enable working from home and a proven ability to work independently or remotely helps dissuade managers' fears of hiring remote candidates.
There are plenty of ways to build these skills and competencies, even without direct work experience. HDI offers numerous resources, many of them free, to expand your knowledge, including articles, webinars, toolkits, research, and virtual classroom training. Dedicating yourself to independent learning, experimenting in a home-lab, and networking at virtual industry events are fantastic ways to demonstrate your job-readiness.
ScoreCustomer Service ProfessionalUS Average
Salary
3.6

Avg. Salary $46,620

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level
5.9

Growth Rate -4%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity
9.7
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.71%

Asian 6.52%

Black or African American 12.34%

Hispanic or Latino 18.48%

Unknown 5.33%

White 56.62%

Gender

female 70.89%

male 29.11%

Age - 39
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39
Stress Level
5.9

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity Level
6.6

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance
6.5

Work Life balance is good

6.4 - fair

What are the pros and cons of being a Customer Service Professional?

Pros

  • Gain knowledge about products/services

  • Chance for career advancement

  • Potential for bonuses and incentives

  • Build problem-solving skills

  • Develop conflict resolution skills

Cons

  • Dealing with angry or rude customers

  • Limited control over company policies

  • Low pay in some industries

  • Need to meet strict performance metrics

  • Working weekends and holidays

Customer Service Professional career paths

Key steps to become a customer service professional

  1. Explore customer service professional education requirements

    Most common customer service professional degrees

    Bachelor's

    41.1 %

    Associate

    24.4 %

    High School Diploma

    20.2 %
  2. Start to develop specific customer service professional skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Customer Service30.01%
    Inbound Calls5.90%
    Strong Customer Service5.71%
    Annuities4.04%
    Schedule Appointments3.44%
  3. Complete relevant customer service professional training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New customer service professionals learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a customer service professional based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real customer service professional resumes.
  4. Research customer service professional duties and responsibilities

    • Manage quality communication, troubleshoot escalate issues; issue refunds, credits and other methods of retention to regain customers trust.
    • Manage bi-weekly payroll duties and employment documentation.
    • Work with technical support to troubleshoot phone and computer system errors by performing physical/technical on-site resolution procedures.
    • Operate POS system to itemize and complete customer purchases, and monitor cash drawers to ensure adequate cash supply.
  5. Prepare your customer service professional resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your customer service professional resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a customer service professional resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose From 10+ Customizable Customer Service Professional Resume templates

    Build a professional Customer Service Professional resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Customer Service Professional resume.
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    Customer Service Professional Resume
  6. Apply for customer service professional jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a customer service professional job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How Did You Land Your First Customer Service Professional Job

Zippi

Are you a Customer Service Professional?

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Average customer service professional salary

The average Customer Service Professional salary in the United States is $46,620 per year or $22 per hour. Customer service professional salaries range between $25,000 and $85,000 per year.

Average Customer Service Professional Salary
$46,620 Yearly
$22.41 hourly

What Am I Worth?

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How do customer service professionals rate their job?

-/5

5 Stars

4 Stars

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1 Star

Customer Service Professional reviews

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A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2022
Pros

I got to do a variety of tasks daily. Got treated with respect from management and other coworkers.

Cons

Sometimes I had to finish up job tasks that were assigned to others that were not completed.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Apr 2020
Pros

Caring to the customer issues is what I do like first and the other thing it is a job that show determination level on the duty.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Apr 2020
Pros

I enjoy helping to be the glue to hold people together as friends. I enjoy talking on the phone . I enjoy learning new things about people.


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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