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The differences between retention specialists and customer relations specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a retention specialist and a customer relations specialist. Additionally, a customer relations specialist has an average salary of $37,827, which is higher than the $37,175 average annual salary of a retention specialist.
The top three skills for a retention specialist include customer service, outbound calls and powerpoint. The most important skills for a customer relations specialist are customer relations, data entry, and work ethic.
| Retention Specialist | Customer Relations Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $37,175 | $37,827 |
| Hourly rate | $17.87 | $18.19 |
| Growth rate | -4% | -4% |
| Number of jobs | 199,631 | 215,862 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A retention specialist is responsible for devising strategies to maintain a healthy relationship with clients. They are primarily in charge of negotiating and securing contract renewals, handling issues and corrective measures for customer satisfaction, utilizing feedback to improve services, and maintaining a healthy rapport to strengthen the client base. Furthermore, as a retention specialist, it is essential to perform calls and correspondence, keep records of all transactions, and coordinate with work-staff.
A customer relations specialist is responsible for providing high-quality services for customers by responding to their inquiries and concerns and resolving complaints about the company's goods and services. Customer relations specialists update customer accounts on the database, recording their transactions accurately, and posting their payments timely. They may also sell new products and services to the clients, demonstrating features and usability, processing orders, and confirming delivery details. A customer relations specialist must have excellent communication and organizational skills to ensure customer satisfaction and maintain healthy business relationships with the customers.
Retention specialists and customer relations specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Retention Specialist | Customer Relations Specialist | |
| Average salary | $37,175 | $37,827 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $48,000 | Between $27,000 And $52,000 |
| Highest paying City | Los Angeles, CA | Columbia, MD |
| Highest paying state | California | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Adobe | Deloitte |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a retention specialist and a customer relations specialist in terms of educational background:
| Retention Specialist | Customer Relations Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between retention specialists' and customer relations specialists' demographics:
| Retention Specialist | Customer Relations Specialist | |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 37.0% Female, 63.0% | Male, 31.8% Female, 68.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 20.6% Asian, 6.0% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 11.7% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 19.5% Asian, 7.5% White, 55.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |