What Do Consumer Services Jobs Pay [46 Jobs and Pay]

Jan 25

Consumer services aren’t typically an area that most people find attractive for their careers, but maybe we should all take another look. This segment of jobs can offer career growth and earning potential beyond what many of us think of when we think of consumer services.

In today’s article, I’m going to discuss what exactly the consumer services field is, some of the jobs available, and what you can expect to be paid.

What Are Consumer Services Jobs

Google what consumer services are and you’ll get several different answers. Some people will tell you they are customer service jobs. Others will tell you that they are jobs with companies that sell goods and services to individuals instead of businesses, known as B2C.

I don’t think either is correct. From my experience working with consumer service and consumer packaged goods companies, here is my definition of what the managers I’ve spoken with consider to be consumer services.

Consumer services are just that. They are services, not products, which are sold to individuals in a business-to-consumer fashion. Some businesses may sell products, but usually, they are not their products, rather the service is providing you with the products. It’s a large category that encompasses many industries and many more job titles to staff those businesses.

Examples of Consumer Services Industry

Here are some examples of consumer services businesses.

Bars
Retailers
Music Lessons
Legal Services
Hotels
Dry Cleaners
Entertainment
Education Services
Healthcare Services
Banking
Consulting
Social Services
Insurance
Marketing

As you can see, there are a lot of career paths and countless jobs and industries that fall within the consumer services umbrella.

Consumer Services Outlook

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) consumer services jobs are expected to decline over the next 10 years, but that shouldn’t stop you from exploring these jobs as potential career paths. Here’s why. Despite the decline, there are still nearly 400,000 job openings forecasted each year.

Also because consumer services is such a broad category, growth and decline vary quite a bit as you narrow down into smaller niches. For example, advertising and marketing jobs within consumer services have a forecasted 7% increase in jobs over the next ten years.

Consumer Service vs. Customer Service

Many times people confuse the two of these. Just Google consumer services pay and you’ll see that even the big sites like ZipRecruiter and Indeed think you’re asking about pay for customer service roles. These two are not the same at all.

Customer service is support given to customers before, during, and after they make a purchase. It involves answering phones, responding to chat messages, providing technical support, and processing refunds.

But consumer services is a much larger segment than customer service. It can include customer service jobs, but it also includes all the jobs that support companies that sell services directly to consumers (or individuals rather than businesses).

Both care about providing great customer service, but oftentimes the approaches to providing that service are different.

48 Consumer Services Careers, Jobs, And Pay

As we discuss some of the jobs within consumer services, keep in mind that the pay bands and average salaries can vary greatly from my numbers based on many factors. Discussing compensation is difficult because there are so many nuances at play that can impact those numbers.

For example, where I live, if you drive 20 miles west, you can expect a $20,000 pay increase for many professional jobs. Other factors that impact pay are company size, organization structure, and industry. Furthermore, your own licenses, certifications, or unique software knowledge can impact these numbers significantly.

The numbers you’ll find below are averages based on reviewing hundreds of job postings. Since 2019, I’ve been tracking job postings in a CRM for our recruiting

consulting operations and that data includes listed salary. This isn’t BLS data, it isn’t even what the company may have offered, but it is based on what companies have listed as their salary bands.

Academic Advisor

Academic Advisors work with students to help them set and achieve their academic goals. These jobs are often found in colleges and universities.

To become an Academic Advisor, you’ll need networking and mentoring skills with an understanding of how various degrees and programs work. Most require at least an Associate Degree, but others may ask for a Bachelor's Degree to apply.

Typical Annual Salary Band: $44,000 to $58,000

Account Coordinator

An Account Coordinator typically manages customer accounts and communications with clients. They may be responsible for handling client budgets, and expenses, handling complaints, processing service requests, and coordinating with internal teams to deliver promised resolutions and services.

I’ve often seen these jobs with marketing agencies. Some Account Coordinator jobs are more sophisticated than others. If you have prior administrative assistant, customer service, and sales experience, many companies would find you to be an attractive candidate.

Typical Annual Salary Band: $40,000 to $45,000

Bank Teller

With the rise of online banking and new technology, most of us don’t speak with bank tellers too often anymore; however, these jobs still exist. Tellers verify customer identity and financial information to process transactions at a bank. This can include cashing a check, depositing money, or collecting money for loan payments.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), bank teller jobs are expected to decline another 15% over the next ten years. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was more. Despite the decline, there are still around 30,000 job openings projected next year.

Even if these jobs are being slowly phased out, while they exist, they can be an excellent gateway job that opens up new opportunities within the banking industry.

Having previous cash handling experience, good mathematical abilities, and solid communication skills are required for this role. Very few institutions require any formal education past a high school diploma, so if you didn’t go to college, this could be a career path to explore. It’s a great entry level position in the banking industry.

Typical Annual Salary Band: $30,000 to $45,000

Call Center Director

Call Center Directors oversee the strategy execution of onshore and offshore customer service facilities. Sometimes call center representatives work remotely and this adds another layer of sophistication for Directors to manage. Directors are typically involved in determining goals, lead and lag key performance indicators for their centers, and oversee the strategy to execute those operations.

Typical Annual Salary Band: $95,000 to $130,000

Call Center Manager

Call Center Managers usually report to a Director and are responsible for the day-to-day operations of their facility and team. This is one of many managing positions that can be found within a contact or call center environment.

They are tasked with ensuring KPIs are met, coaching and developing team members, ensuring quality assurance, planning workflows and team delegation, and handling escalations. This is often the step before becoming a Call Center Director.

Typical Annual Salary Band: $65,000 to $110,000

Chef

Private Chefs are all the rage in many parts of the country. I’ve even seen openings for Live-In Private Chefs near me. When I talk about Chefs I’m not talking about working in the kitchen at the Olive Garden, but rather high-end jobs for catering companies, fine dining, or private residences.

In this role, you may prepare meal plans, create menus, shop for ingredients, and cook meals. You’ll need to know about food safety and how to budget and manage inventory. While there are still some who find an apprenticeship, many chefs today go to culinary school.

Average Annual Salary Band: $70,000 to $120,000

Client Relations Specialist

Client Relations Specialists have the job of ensuring long-term customer satisfaction. Subscription-based services most likely will have a client relations team. In this role, you may speak with clients on the phone or via email. Some are even tasked with responding to customer reviews and handling some reputation management functions.

While there is no degree requirement, having an Associate’s degree does help obtain these roles.

Average Annual Salary Band: $40,000 to $60,000

Client Services Manager

Client Services Managers ensure that customers are satisfied with their service and also oversee projects to make sure they not only meet customer expectations but also stay within defined budgets. In this role, your job includes advocating for customers, collecting feedback, and training others to ensure compliance with company policies.

Most people have a Bachelor’s degree and several years of experience in related fields. You’ll need great communication, organization, and negotiation abilities to thrive in this job.

Average Annual Salary Band: $60,000 to $75,000

Concierge

A Concierge answers inquiries, takes phone calls, and coordinates travel plans for customers. These jobs can be found with airlines, hotels, and other establishments. If you love working with guests and creating great customer experiences, this could be a job to explore.

This is one job that isn’t as easily outsourced or shipped to a “Zoom Town” in another country. The career outlook is fairly positive for these roles with a consistent 5% growth year over year in job openings.

Average Annual Salary Band: $40,000 to $50,000

CRM Coordinator

Customer relationship management software is used by nearly every sales and marketing team these days. CRM Coordinators work closely with these departments to maintain customer data and assist with reaching out to new leads and following up on communications. Many have a Bachelor's degree and are masters at a particular type of CRM such as Salesforce.

You can find these jobs in private industries as well as education and social services.

Average Annual Salary Band: $74,000 to $100,000

Customer Experience Strategist

This job is exactly as it sounds. These individuals create the plans for other teams to execute to meet customer expectations. They’re good at project management, customer service, and data analysis.

These jobs have been more rare lately and you’ll need a degree and some experience to be competitive enough to obtain one, but the salary is good.

Average Annual Salary Band: $73,000 to $100,000

Customer Relationship Manager

Customer Relationship Managers are the people who develop and maintain client relationships. They’re problem solvers and good at resolving customer issues over the long term to ensure continued business.

These roles are often a blend of sales and account management as they oversee the entire customer lifecycle and build trust through relationships with their customers over time. Many banks employ customer relationship managers.

Average Annual Salary Band: $55,000 to $ 75,000 plus commissions

Customer Service Director

This title could be used for a front-line manager, but a true Customer Service Director usually oversees the big-picture strategy and execution. This role requires someone who can analyze data such as customer service KPIs, customer satisfaction rankings, NPS, customer retention, first-call resolutions, and other metrics to identify areas where service quality can be improved.

A Customer Service Director is responsible for the overall strategy execution and process development of all customer service teams.

Average Annual Salary Band: $85,000 to $130,000

Customer Service Representative

Customer Service Reps answer questions and requests from customers usually by phone or email. They may provide order assistance, resolve complaints, process orders, or work in a loyalty department to help curb customer churn.

There is quite a bit of variety in job duties depending on the industry and company. Some customer service representatives act more as salespeople, so be sure to read the full listing so you know what you’re getting into.

Average Annual Salary Band: $38,000 to $60,000

Digital Marketer

A digital marketer promotes services using online channels such as social media, Google, websites, and online advertisements to build brand awareness, authority, and leads. Many times these jobs are generalist roles that require knowledge of how to build social media engagement, how to write email copy that converts, managing influencer relationships, analyzing marketing data, and some coding for website maintenance.

While you don’t need a degree to obtain one of these roles, internships and freelancing on projects will help you secure one of these jobs.

Average Annual Salary Band: $50,000 to $85,000

Doctor

There are many types of doctors and depending on your specialty, you may earn much more or less than the numbers listed below. Some doctors have an M.D. while others have a D.O. There are many sub-career paths you can take as a doctor. If this is your career path, expect to invest quite a bit of time in school and residency programs.

Average Annual Salary Band: $140,000 to $210,000

Event Manager

Event Managers plan and may organize events for conferences, weddings, and concerts depending on their company. Corporate offices may hire event managers and many other service-based industries employ these roles too.

This job requires a level of creativity to develop concepts and themes as well as a high degree of organization and communication. You’ll also need to understand budgets and how to manage them.

Average Annual Salary Band: $60,000 to $80,000

Event Planner

While many people use the titles of Event Planner and Event Manager interchangeably, they are different jobs. Event Managers typically handle everything from preparation, and budgeting, to coordinating and implementing events. Event Planners typically only handle the preparation of the events. They don’t have the full scope of responsibilities that managers do.

Average Annual Salary Band: $59,000 to $72,000

Financial Advisor

Financial Advisors work for investment firms and assist people with reaching their financial goals. This may include college planning, insurance, and retirement. Most states I’ve worked in require special training and licensing to become a Financial Advisor. You can find these jobs with life insurance companies, banks, and retirement planning companies to name a few.

Most of these roles have a heavy commission piece to their compensation as they are sales roles. I’ve met Financial Advisors who make $150,000 plus during good years and I’ve met some who make less than $100,000. Depending on your sales skills, you could earn much more than the salary band below.

Average Annual Salary Band: $60,000 to $95,000

Flight Attendant

If you want to see the world, consider becoming a Flight Attendant. These people keep passengers safe, enforce aircraft rules, and also create memorable customer experiences. This job involves a blend of conflict management, customer service, and communication abilities.

These jobs are expected to continue to grow by over 10%, so there are plenty of jobs available. You’ll need to obtain an FAA Certification, but usually, this happens after you’ve secured a job and completed the airline’s training program.

Average Annual Salary Band: $52,000 to $90,000

Front Desk Clerk

Most of these jobs are found with hotels; however, you may see some receptionist jobs listed as front desk clerks as well when searching online. Front Desk clerks are the first point of contact for customers. They greet customers, answer phones, deliver mail, and assist customers with questions and concerns. Some may even assist with food prep and other duties at hotels.

Average Annual Salary Band: $33,000 to $48,000

Front Desk Manager

Front Desk Managers supervise the daily operations of the front desk and reception area for hospitality companies, mainly hotels. While they may step in and do some of the front desk clerk duties, they are also responsible for training staff, reporting, and handling other administrative tasks. Front Desk Managers also handle customer complaints that their front desk staff cannot manage.

Average Annual Salary Band: $55,000 to $68,000

Graphic Designer

Graphic Designers can be found in both product-based companies and consumer services. They are responsible for creating the designs and visuals for advertisements, product packaging, magazines, websites, and more.

You’ll need a solid understanding of design principles, color theory, and the like to obtain one of these jobs. They’ve had slow and steady job growth over the past few years with a forecasted 3% growth in job opportunities over the next ten years.

Average Annual Salary Band: $48,000 to $85,000

Help Desk Analyst

Help Desk Analysts assist customers with technical software issues. They record, track, and document problems and how they solved them as well as bring issues to a resolution. Tasks may include installing and upgrading software, implementing file backups, and configuring systems and applications.

Not only do you need a working knowledge of various software systems and programming, but you’ll also need a high degree of problem-solving aptitude and the ability to prioritize issues based on the greatest downstream impact on customers and the organization.

Average Annual Salary Band: $60,000 to $80,000

Hotel Manager

After several years of working your way up the hospitality ladder, you could end up as a Hotel Manager. These professionals oversee the entire hotel’s daily operations including staffing, procurement, contract negotiations, capital improvements, and financial reporting.

Average Annual Salary Band: $68,000 to $120,000

Human Resources Manager

Human Resources Managers are in charge of many functions and depending on the size of the organization, they could be responsible for recruitment, employee relations, performance management, training, benefits administration, compensation analysis, workers compensation, and HRIS maintenance.

The great thing about these jobs is that every organization that employs people needs an HR professional. While smaller companies may outsource some of these functions, HR jobs aren’t going anywhere.

Average Annual Salary Band: $73,000 to $115,000

Insurance Agent

Insurance Agents sell products, write policies, and consult with customers on all kinds of insurance products from life insurance to health insurance and everything in between. Many times these are heavily commissioned roles, meaning there may be a small base salary and then you make a commission based on your sales. Some roles are even exclusively commission-based or may require you to start your own business. Be sure to review any job openings in detail to know what type of insurance agent job you’re looking at.

Average Annual Salary Band: $55,000 to $110,000

IT Consultant

IT Consultants work to develop, integrate, and optimize information technology systems. They are experts in hardware, software, networks, applications, and project management. They may interface with customers directly or through customer success teams to understand user needs and then collaborate with technical staff to fix and improve systems.

Many IT Consultants have a software engineering degree, but not all. Some have technical schooling instead of a Bachelor’s degree. Most likely you will need some type of formal training though.

Average Annual Salary Band: $65,000 to $110,000

Market Research Manager

Market Research Managers gather insights about customers, competitors, and the markets and synthesize that data into research studies that are then used to steer company decisions. These jobs typically exist with larger organizations and are fairly rare. But if you have a background in research, analytics, data management, and presenting to senior executives, this could be a rewarding job to snag when the opportunity arises.

Average Annual Salary Band: $85,000 to $110,000

Marketing Manager

There seems to be some disagreement on what a Marketing Manager does when you read job listings. Some companies think it’s one person who does it all including the day-to-day work and strategy. A true Marketing Manager usually manages a team of marketers which could include graphic designers, social media specialists, web developers, and more.

They’re responsible for the overall execution of the marketing plan. Today, most marketing managers have a formal education of a Bachelor’s or even an MBA as well as years of marketing experience.

While overall marketing employment has grown around 6% year over year, many marketing managers have had a tough time securing jobs during the past few years. Marketing budgets unfortunately have been slashed by many companies and it feels like there are more people seeking manager and director-level jobs within the field.

Average Annual Salary Band: $75,000 to $110,000

Nurse

There are many different types of nurses and you’ll want to choose the setting you work in carefully because you can become pigeonholed in that space easily. Chances are you’ve interacted with a nurse at some point whether that be in a hospital setting, at a physician’s office, or elsewhere.

These jobs require formal education and licensure. If you have the temperament for it, can handle stressful situations, and have a way of making others feel comfortable in uncomfortable situations, this could be a career path for you.

I’ve written many nursing resumes and this has continued to be a very in-demand field with many job opportunities. You could even become a traveling nurse if you like to change it up every few months.

Average Annual Salary Band: $80,000 to $105,000

Online Chat Support

Online Chat Support Representatives may assist customers with questions, fill orders, and resolve complaints. This is a hard job category to determine a salary band for because depending on the consumer service, the pay fluctuates greatly. For example, since the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a rise in telemedicine and with that are specialized online chat representatives that field medical questions. These remote jobs are staffed by nurses and physician assistants who easily make over $100,000 to reply to chats.

But for the vast majority of chat support that doesn’t require a specialist with high levels of education and knowledge, you can expect much lower compensation closer to $50,000.

Average Annual Salary Band: $40,000 to $110,000

Paralegal

Paralegals support attorneys by locating and contacting witnesses, arranging interviews and depositions, and drafting declarations and statements. They also research relevant laws and investigate facts.

You will need to obtain an Associate degree and it’s beneficial to explore a paralegal certificate program to obtain one of these jobs. The BLS forecasts a continued 4% growth in Paralegal jobs over the next ten years.

Average Annual Salary Band: $65,000 to $90,000

Patient Coordinator

Patient Coordinators manage healthcare plans for medical patients. This involves coordinating care services and following up to ensure patients receive the required medical care. This person may be involved in scheduling and will closely work with multiple healthcare professionals to coordinate plans.

Average Annual Salary Band: $47,000 to $65,000

Project Manager

If you search for Project Manager jobs, you’ll find a diversity of jobs. When it comes to consumer services, project managers often deal with how a particular operation is delivered and how to build a positive experience for customers. Project Managers may have direct contact with clients as well as internal stakeholders involved in executing a service or process.

Average Annual Salary Band: $75,000 to $138,000

Public Relations Manager

Public Relations Managers, or PR Managers, review press releases, sponsor corporate events, and are tasked with improving a brand’s public image. Most people with this job hold a degree in PR, journalism, communications, or marketing. The ability to pitch stories to media outlets, create media kits, and field questions from the media are key responsibilities of this role.

Many Public Relations Managers also have a background in media such as previous experience with a major news network, sales experience, and marketing or communications experience. If you’re thinking about a career in PR, starting in one of those fields can help you.

Average Annual Salary Band: $70,000 to $120,000

Receptionist

Receptionists can be found in many businesses including dental offices to salons. Individuals doing this job answer phones, greet customers, handle scheduling, and ensure customers are directed to the appropriate person within an organization.

Taking a typing test and having solid computer skills in word processing and spreadsheets will help you secure one of these jobs. Some receptionists also man multi-line phones, so having a working knowledge of how those systems work will aid you in securing one of these jobs.

Average Annual Salary Band: $35,000 to $52,000

Retail Associate

Retail Associates are tasked with ensuring a clean, safe environment for customers to shop in as well as preventing theft and ensuring customer satisfaction. Many people think retail associates simply answer questions and fold clothes, but there is much more that goes into this job. They may help implement new merchandising plans, execute loss prevention activities, and act as a cashier.

These jobs can be found as seasonal, part-time, and full-time jobs. Having the right attitude and personality will go a long way to securing one of these jobs.

Average Annual Salary Band: $33,000 to $42,000

Retail Store Manager

Retail Store Managers have a great deal of responsibility. They are tasked with managing overall store operations including recruiting, scheduling, training, merchandising, and implementing promotions. They also have P&L responsibility for their store, meaning they typically monitor profitability and losses. Often there is a bonus component in addition to a base salary that is based on profit and other KPIs.

Depending on the store, its size, and revenue, some Store Managers can make well over the salary band listed below.

Average Annual Salary Band: $65,000 to $129,000

Service Desk Analyst

Service Desk Analysts provide technical support to customers as well as perform maintenance and software updates. These individuals have to become good at prioritizing service desk tickets, testing software, and troubleshooting issues. Most work in a call center environment, but some roles are remote.

Most people doing this role either have years of experience in computer science or some form of IT degree and/or certification. Having specific knowledge of a certain software can give you a leg up with companies that utilize those programs.

Average Annual Salary Band: $47,000 to $78,000

Social Media Manager

Social Media Managers develop strategies that increase awareness. Oftentimes they base success on follower count and engagement across multiple social channels. They are involved in producing content, reviewing analysis for insights, and partnering with internal subject matter experts to create engaging content for their social audiences.

Keep in mind that running your social media page may not necessarily make you qualified for this job. The more you know about how each social media channel works, what audiences you can find on each channel, and how to execute effective social media campaigns that help drive awareness, authority, and ultimately leads, the better you’ll fare finding one of these jobs.

Average Annual Salary Band: $55,000 to $78,000

Software Engineer

Software Engineers use programming languages to build the software that you and I use. They may develop computer games, applications you use on your phone, operating systems, and network control systems. They are responsible for designing, developing, testing, and maintaining different software.

Some junior roles pay much less than the salary band below and I’ve seen some start in the $60,000 range depending on location, but most experienced people make much more than that. Recruiting firms are constantly looking for software engineers. Most employers I’ve spoken with tell me there is a huge skills gap in what they need and what is available in talent marketplaces.

Having the right engineering education, mastering the right programming languages, understanding data structures, and being able to manage projects in an agile way will make you very marketable for these jobs.

Average Annual Salary Band: $85,000 to $132,000

Teacher

Depending on where you work, teacher salaries can vary greatly. Things like private vs public can impact your take-home pay as well as the school district. You’ll also want to strategically decide on how much education you should obtain. Many school districts base their pay scales on education and years of service. With the right combination, you could make six figures, but it may take you a few years to get there.

Teaching is a hard job. Sure you may get summers off in some districts, but there are few breaks during the working day and constantly juggling parent, student, and administrative needs can take a toll on you quickly. But it’s steady pay and usually comes with good benefits.

Average Annual Salary Band: $48,000 to $100,000

Technical Support Representative

Technical Support Reps troubleshoot customer technology problems. They often resolve issues with computers, phones, modems, internet networks, and similar items. Similar to customer service reps, they answer phones, but they also gather information about problems, and try to recreate the issues to find solutions. They may run tests on software and equipment.

Most of these individuals do not have an advanced degree but may have experience in customer support or sales as well as training in particular software programs. Many hold minor certifications in the software and applications that they have mastery of.

Average Annual Salary Band: $52,000 to $65,000

Travel Advisor

Travel Advisors help customers identify hotels, resorts, tours, and other travel-related items. They are tasked with making recommendations to clients to improve travel planning as well as creating personalized experiences.

Many Travel Advisors are well-networked with hotels and other hospitality and entertainment industry professionals. But it’s not purely a customer service type role. You’ll also need to be able to manage budgets, prioritize escalations and issues, and develop working relationships with many internal and external parties to be successful.

Average Annual Salary Band: $55,000 to $75,000

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Cole Sperry has been a recruiter and resume writer since 2015, working with tens of thousands of job seekers, and hundreds of employers. Today Cole runs a boutique advisory firm consulting with dozens of recruiting firms, oversees Optim’s Resume Revision Service and On-Demand Coaching Program, and is the Managing Editor at OptimCareers.com.