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The differences between product support representatives and service representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a product support representative, becoming a service representative takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a product support representative has an average salary of $36,865, which is higher than the $33,692 average annual salary of a service representative.
The top three skills for a product support representative include customer service, technical support and product knowledge. The most important skills for a service representative are customer service, client service, and patients.
| Product Support Representative | Service Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $36,865 | $33,692 |
| Hourly rate | $17.72 | $16.20 |
| Growth rate | 10% | -4% |
| Number of jobs | 125,112 | 210,671 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 51% |
| Average age | 42 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 12 |
Product support representatives are skilled employees who are responsible for performing tasks related to product support services. These representatives must provide excellent customer service as well as technical and product support by responding to phone calls and emails of their customers. They must advise their customers on preventative maintenance and configurations that may negatively affect product performance. Product support representatives are also required to document all activities and communications about problems related to product support services and report them with the development team for solutions.
Service representatives handle customer inquiries, requests, complaints, and other general feedback. They are usually the first point of contact with the company's customers. Service representatives are expected to be familiar with all of the company's products so that they can answer all inquiries made by the customers. They should also be familiar with company policies and guidelines on sales and customer handling so that they can address concerns and feedback. They are usually the ones who try to resolve customer complaints by sending issues to applicable departments and ensuring that customers are satisfied with the company's products and services.
Product support representatives and service representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Product Support Representative | Service Representative | |
| Average salary | $36,865 | $33,692 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $56,000 | Between $24,000 And $45,000 |
| Highest paying City | Trenton, NJ | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | Rhode Island | New York |
| Best paying company | Kronos Incorporated | Northern Trust |
| Best paying industry | - | Government |
There are a few differences between a product support representative and a service representative in terms of educational background:
| Product Support Representative | Service Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 51% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | - |
Here are the differences between product support representatives' and service representatives' demographics:
| Product Support Representative | Service Representative | |
| Average age | 42 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 65.0% Female, 35.0% | Male, 39.6% Female, 60.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 10.0% White, 56.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 20.6% Asian, 6.8% White, 55.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 7% |