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The differences between customer support representatives and customer service administrative assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a customer support representative, becoming a customer service administrative assistant takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a customer support representative has an average salary of $37,404, which is higher than the $33,741 average annual salary of a customer service administrative assistant.
The top three skills for a customer support representative include technical support, windows and customer inquiries. The most important skills for a customer service administrative assistant are data entry, purchase orders, and payroll.
| Customer Support Representative | Customer Service Administrative Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $37,404 | $33,741 |
| Hourly rate | $17.98 | $16.22 |
| Growth rate | -4% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 243,140 | 93,535 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 38% |
| Average age | 40 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 2 |
A customer support representative is responsible for answering calls and correspondence, providing customer assistance in various technical issues, concerns, or difficulties. There are also instances when they must make calls to follow-up on the issues, or even sell products and services. Most of the time, a customer support representative has a certain quota to reach and works under a manager's supervision. Furthermore, it is essential to keep accurate records and report to managers or supervisors should there be any problems.
A customer service administrative assistant is responsible for responding to customers' inquiries and concerns, alongside performing administrative tasks as required. Customer service administrative assistants must escalate high-level complaints to the appropriate department, organize client meetings, process business letters, assist with developing promotional offers and marketing materials, and research potential clients. They also manage inventories and request stock supplies, create expense reports, and update customer records in the database. A customer service administrative assistant must have excellent customer service skills, as well as the ability to multitask and work under pressure and strict deadlines.
Customer support representatives and customer service administrative assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Customer Support Representative | Customer Service Administrative Assistant | |
| Average salary | $37,404 | $33,741 |
| Salary range | Between $29,000 And $47,000 | Between $28,000 And $40,000 |
| Highest paying City | Boston, MA | Everett, WA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | Washington |
| Best paying company | University of California, Berkeley | Uline |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Finance |
There are a few differences between a customer support representative and a customer service administrative assistant in terms of educational background:
| Customer Support Representative | Customer Service Administrative Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 38% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between customer support representatives' and customer service administrative assistants' demographics:
| Customer Support Representative | Customer Service Administrative Assistant | |
| Average age | 40 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 47.0% Female, 53.0% | Male, 10.7% Female, 89.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 5.5% Hispanic or Latino, 20.1% Asian, 7.3% White, 55.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 6% |