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The differences between merchandising associates and merchandising specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a merchandising associate has an average salary of $33,201, which is higher than the $32,920 average annual salary of a merchandising specialist.
The top three skills for a merchandising associate include cleanliness, sales floor and customer service. The most important skills for a merchandising specialist are customer service, sales floor, and cash handling.
| Merchandising Associate | Merchandising Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $33,201 | $32,920 |
| Hourly rate | $15.96 | $15.83 |
| Growth rate | - | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 370,401 | 49,769 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 41% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 41 | 40 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
Merchandise associates ensure that customers get a complete shopping experience. They pleasantly arrange and stock merchandise on shelves for customers to purchase. Also, they assemble product displays and make sure popular and on-sale products are visible to customers. Part of their duty is to place the appropriate sales tag on items and record new developments in the store's inventory. Skills required for the job include excellent customer service, being detail-oriented, and relevant experience in sales.
A merchandising specialist is responsible for managing the promotion of the business' products, arranging creative displays both on the physical store and company website to attract consumers on purchasing the products to generate revenues and increase profitability. Merchandising specialists assist in the development of marketing campaigns, as well as facilitating promotional offers on different communication channels. They also monitor stock inventories, analyze pricing structures, and adjust selling strategies by researching the current market trends, identifying business opportunities to meet customers' demands, and improve the negotiation process.
Merchandising associates and merchandising specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Merchandising Associate | Merchandising Specialist | |
| Average salary | $33,201 | $32,920 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $42,000 | Between $22,000 And $47,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | Cupertino, CA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | California |
| Best paying company | Uline | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a merchandising associate and a merchandising specialist in terms of educational background:
| Merchandising Associate | Merchandising Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 41% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between merchandising associates' and merchandising specialists' demographics:
| Merchandising Associate | Merchandising Specialist | |
| Average age | 41 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 43.8% Female, 56.2% | Male, 43.5% Female, 56.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 20.3% Asian, 7.0% White, 56.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 13.8% Asian, 5.3% White, 66.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 17% |