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The differences between service dispatchers and customer 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 service dispatcher, becoming a customer service representative takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a service dispatcher has an average salary of $33,663, which is higher than the $32,260 average annual salary of a customer service representative.
The top three skills for a service dispatcher include HVAC, data entry and phone calls. The most important skills for a customer service representative are cleanliness, POS, and data entry.
| Service Dispatcher | Customer Service Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $33,663 | $32,260 |
| Hourly rate | $16.18 | $15.51 |
| Growth rate | -4% | -4% |
| Number of jobs | 74,936 | 209,515 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4 |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 30% | High School Diploma, 33% |
| Average age | 43 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 12 |
Service dispatchers are professionals who are responsible for answering the calls of customers while creating dispatch tickets for each service call. These dispatchers must gather detailed address information from their customers and acquire a basic overview of their service issues. They must dispatch service crews to their scheduled appointments and emergency situations while using maps and GPS programs to plan routes for their destination. Service dispatchers must also use digital filing systems to add customer information and log into their files when scheduling service calls.
Customer service representatives are the first point of contact of the customers, acting as the frontiers of the company and help in driving customer loyalty and retention by leaving a great impression and resolving all of their concerns. They accommodate customer queries by providing useful and comprehensive information about any products or services. Some would use that as an opportunity to market and promote more sales. The most challenging issues they use to handle are customer complaints and processing of refunds and returns. They also assist in basic troubleshooting or accounts and payment setup with the use of specific guidelines or step by step procedures. At most, they help and solve customer issues on their own, but sometimes they would need support from supervisors or other departments.
Service dispatchers and customer service representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Service Dispatcher | Customer Service Representative | |
| Average salary | $33,663 | $32,260 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $42,000 | Between $25,000 And $41,000 |
| Highest paying City | Kent, WA | Des Moines, WA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Washington |
| Best paying company | Basin Electric Power Cooperative | Oracle |
| Best paying industry | Government | Insurance |
There are a few differences between a service dispatcher and a customer service representative in terms of educational background:
| Service Dispatcher | Customer Service Representative | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 30% | High School Diploma, 33% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between service dispatchers' and customer service representatives' demographics:
| Service Dispatcher | Customer Service Representative | |
| Average age | 43 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 33.6% Female, 66.4% | Male, 30.5% Female, 69.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.5% Asian, 3.8% White, 62.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 21.2% Asian, 6.3% White, 55.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |