Receptionist telephone operator vs receptionist/customer service

The differences between receptionist telephone operators and receptionist/customer services can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a receptionist telephone operator, becoming a receptionist/customer service takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a receptionist/customer service has an average salary of $30,604, which is higher than the $27,595 average annual salary of a receptionist telephone operator.

The top three skills for a receptionist telephone operator include scheduling appointments, patients and customer service. The most important skills for a receptionist/customer service are customer service, phone calls, and data entry.

Receptionist telephone operator vs receptionist/customer service overview

	Receptionist Telephone Operator	Receptionist/Customer Service
Yearly salary	$27,595	$30,604
Hourly rate	$13.27	$14.71
Growth rate	-	-4%
Number of jobs	45,734	216,587
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	High School Diploma, 35%
Average age	42	40
Years of experience	2	12

Receptionist telephone operator vs receptionist/customer service salary

Receptionist telephone operators and receptionist/customer services have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Receptionist Telephone Operator	Receptionist/Customer Service
Average salary	$27,595	$30,604
Salary range	Between $21,000 And $35,000	Between $25,000 And $37,000
Highest paying City	-	Billerica, MA
Highest paying state	-	Minnesota
Best paying company	-	Uline
Best paying industry	-	Manufacturing

Differences between receptionist telephone operator and receptionist/customer service education

There are a few differences between a receptionist telephone operator and a receptionist/customer service in terms of educational background:

	Receptionist Telephone Operator	Receptionist/Customer Service
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	High School Diploma, 35%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Receptionist telephone operator vs receptionist/customer service demographics

Here are the differences between receptionist telephone operators' and receptionist/customer services' demographics:

	Receptionist Telephone Operator	Receptionist/Customer Service
Average age	42	40
Gender ratio	Male, 12.1% Female, 87.9%	Male, 8.0% Female, 92.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 21.3% Asian, 6.2% White, 55.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 25.4% Asian, 6.1% White, 51.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	6%	7%

Differences between receptionist telephone operator and receptionist/customer service duties and responsibilities

Receptionist telephone operator example responsibilities.

Assist office management and staff with administrative projects/responsibilities such as managing time-sensitive projects, filing, copying, and collating materials.
Perform receptionist duties and registration of patients.
Establish accurate accounts for each guest upon check-in according to their requirements and ensure guest paperwork or documentation are filed appropriately.
Work at switchboards at a variety of businesses and handle outgoing, interoffice or incoming calls.
Prepare healthy meal replacement protein smoothies

Receptionist/customer service example responsibilities.

Assist office management and staff with administrative projects/responsibilities such as managing time-sensitive projects, filing, copying, and collating materials.
Assist office management and staff with administrative projects/responsibilities such as managing time-sensitive projects, filing, copying, and collating materials.
Bill and collect from private pay, Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance companies.
Doctor authorization for treatments, understanding of Medicare and Medicaid, prior authorizations (if need).
Resolve problems with the buyers concerning invoices that do not match in the AS400 system.
Receive and apply checks into AS400 accounting database and scan checks into bank, on a daily basis.

Receptionist telephone operator vs receptionist/customer service skills

Common receptionist telephone operator skills

Scheduling Appointments, 24%
Patients, 16%
Customer Service, 12%
Direct Visitors, 11%
Telephone Calls, 6%
Telephone Switchboard, 5%

Common receptionist/customer service skills

Customer Service, 16%
Phone Calls, 15%
Data Entry, 14%
Telephone Calls, 8%
Front Desk, 8%
Scheduling Appointments, 8%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Receptionist Telephone Operator
Receptionist Telephone Operator vs Receptionist/Customer Service

Updated January 8, 2025

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