How to hire a customer service professional

How to hire a customer service professional, step by step

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

What does a customer service professional do?

Post a customer service professional job for free, promote it for a fee

Post free

1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your customer service professional job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a customer service professional for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

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

   The following list breaks down different types of customer service professionals and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Customer Service Professional	Description	Hourly rate
   Customer Service Professional	Customer service representatives interact with customers to handle complaints, process orders, and provide information about an organization’s products and services.	$12-40
   Customer Relations Representative	A customer relations representative is responsible for providing the highest customer service by interacting with customers to respond to their inquiries and concerns, process their requests, and resolve their complaints. Customer relations representatives assist the customers with their needs by offering products and services according to their requirements and budget limitations... Show more	$13-24
   Service Agent	A service agent is a professional whose primary function is to provide a friendly service to internal and external customers about the organization's products and services. An agent should be people-oriented, highly motivated with a positive and friendly attitude... Show more	$10-18

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Customer Service
   • Inbound Calls
   • Strong Customer Service
   • Annuities
   • Schedule Appointments
   • Troubleshoot
   • Windows
   • Outbound Calls
   • Customer Care
   • Credit Card Payments
   • Customer Orders
   • Customer Calls
   • Customer Support
   • Healthcare

   Check all skills

   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.
   • Execute all office and systems procedures, including opening, closing, POS, cash drawer reconciliation, and paperwork filing.
   • Receive numerous customer appreciation emails for providing solutions for windows operating system issues and other software-relate problems.

   More customer service professional duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your customer service professional job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A customer service professional salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a customer service professional in Kentucky may be lower than in California, and an entry-level customer service professional usually earns less than a senior-level customer service professional. Additionally, a customer service professional with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average customer service professional salary

   $46,620yearly

   $22.41 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level customer service professional salary

   $25,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 20, 2026

   Average customer service professional salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$92,106	$44
   2	New York	$66,022	$32
   3	Washington	$64,456	$31
   4	Texas	$59,453	$29
   5	New Jersey	$59,360	$29
   6	District of Columbia	$57,989	$28
   7	Florida	$52,317	$25
   8	Oklahoma	$52,031	$25
   9	North Carolina	$51,270	$25
   10	Georgia	$49,379	$24
   11	Oregon	$49,144	$24
   12	Massachusetts	$48,393	$23
   13	Hawaii	$48,280	$23
   14	Arizona	$47,778	$23
   15	Illinois	$46,619	$22
   16	Colorado	$41,825	$20
   17	Michigan	$37,020	$18
   18	South Carolina	$36,406	$18
   19	Ohio	$36,032	$17
   20	Maine	$35,520	$17

   Average customer service professional salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Amazon	$151,380	$72.78	160
   2	Citi	$132,298	$63.60	13
   3	TIBCO Software	$132,217	$63.57
   4	Google	$124,341	$59.78	38
   5	Cisco	$110,005	$52.89	15
   6	Morgan Stanley	$109,077	$52.44	218
   7	Devon Energy	$107,407	$51.64	5
   8	Splunk	$102,236	$49.15
   9	Softpath System	$100,580	$48.36	2
   10	IBM	$87,657	$42.14	13
   11	Software AG	$86,605	$41.64
   12	General Electric	$78,697	$37.84	6
   13	Hca Hospital Services Of San Diego	$77,348	$37.19
   14	Siemens	$76,354	$36.71	60
   15	American Express	$72,655	$34.93	18
   16	Toyota Escondido	$69,695	$33.51
   17	Ameriprise Financial	$66,486	$31.96	27
   18	VIVA USA	$63,616	$30.58
   19	Thrivent	$63,510	$30.53	16
   20	QuintilesIMS	$62,619	$30.11	81

4. Writing a customer service professional job description

   A customer service professional 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 service professional job description:

   Customer service professional job description example

   Job DescriptionOur Ultimate team is currently supporting several key employers, in their search for Customer Service professionals throughout Portland and surrounding areas. If you are interested in new opportunities and looking to join the best of the best, we should talk!
   Job Title: Customer Service Representative
   Salary: Minimum hourly rates starting at $18 per/hour
   Locations: Portland, OR.
   
   Requirements - What Matters Most
   1-3 years of customer service-related experience. Functional understanding of Microsoft Office. Ability to multi-task. Attention to detail and accuracy. High-energy and professional demeanor. Excellent communication skills including listening, writing, and speaking. If you are currently a candidate of Ultimate Staffing Services, please contact your recruiter for further details.
   
   Ultimate Staffing is part of the Roth Staffing family of Companies, which is one of the largest, privately held staffing companies in the country, with locations across the country. We are proud of being the only staffing company recognized with all industry's top awards for -- The Best Staffing Firm to Work for, The Best Staffing Firm to Temp for, and the Best in Client Service. We get to make life better for the people we serve, and we create remarkable experiences every day.
   Ultimate Staffing Services offers competitive pay, ACA compliant medical benefits, holiday pay, annual bonus, 401K, direct-deposit and complimentary online tutorials and business card.
   
   We are an equal opportunity employer and make hiring decisions based on merit. Recruitment, hiring, training, and job assignments are made without regard to race, color, national origin, age, ancestry, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, disability, or any other protected classification. We consider all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles' Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right customer service professional 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 service professionals they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit customer service professionals 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 service professional job on Zippia to find and recruit customer service professional candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit customer service professionals, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   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 service professional

   Once you've decided on a perfect customer service professional 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.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new customer service professional. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

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.)

   Sign up to download full list

   Sign up

How much does it cost to hire a customer service professional?