Customer Sales and Service Representative

Position Summary

The Customer Service Sales Representative (CSSR) is a fast-paced, customer-facing position that combines customer service, inside sales, order management, and basic technical support. This role involves much more than answering phones. The CSSR works with customers to identify their needs, prepare quotes, enter orders, coordinate repairs and service work, and recommend appropriate products from the lines we represent.

The successful candidate must be comfortable making timely decisions, managing multiple priorities, and taking ownership of customer requests from initial contact through completion. This individual must also understand pricing, margins, and the importance of making profitable business decisions while maintaining strong customer relationships.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Respond to customer inquiries by phone, email, and other communication channels.
• Enter and manage customer orders accurately and efficiently.
• Prepare quotes using appropriate pricing, cost, and margin guidelines.
• Follow up on open quotes, orders, deliveries, and customer requests.
• Provide basic troubleshooting support for fluid power products and applications.
• Assist customers with identifying products and replacement parts.
• Cross-reference competitor or obsolete parts to products offered by the company.
• Work with multiple product lines and understand the differences between manufacturers and available solutions.
• Coordinate repair orders, including customer communication, documentation, quoting, approvals, and order status.
• Coordinate service orders with customers, technicians, vendors, and internal departments.
• Review product availability, lead times, and alternative options to meet customer needs.
• Make timely decisions and know when additional technical or management support is required.
• Build strong working relationships with different types of customers and understand their individual service expectations.
• Communicate effectively with Sales, Purchasing, Warehouse, Service, Operations, and Accounting.
• Maintain accurate customer, order, quote, and product information in the company’s ERP and related systems.
• Resolve customer concerns professionally while balancing customer satisfaction with company policies and profitability.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications

• Previous experience in customer service, inside sales, order entry, distribution, manufacturing, industrial products, or a related field.
• Strong preference for candidates with fluid power, hydraulic, pneumatic, mechanical, or industrial distribution experience.
• Ability to understand pricing, gross margin, and the effect business decisions have on profitability.
• Ability to work accurately and remain organized in a fast-paced environment.
• Ability to prioritize multiple customer requests and make sound decisions quickly.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong problem-solving skills and mechanical aptitude.
• More than basic computer knowledge, including experience working with an ERP or order-entry system, email, and Microsoft Office applications.
• Willingness and ability to learn multiple manufacturers, product lines, customer requirements, and internal processes.
• Dependable, detail-oriented, and able to take ownership of responsibilities.

Education and Experience

Relevant hands-on experience is valued more highly than a specific college degree. A high school diploma or equivalent is required. Additional technical education, industry training, or a college degree is a plus but is not required.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with fluid power products, including hydraulics and pneumatics.
• Experience quoting and selling industrial components.
• Experience cross-referencing products between manufacturers.
• Experience coordinating repair or field-service orders.
• Experience using an ERP system.
• Advanced computer skills.
• Knowledge of inventory, purchasing, shipping, and distribution processes.

Key Competencies

• Customer focus
• Sense of urgency
• Sound judgment and decision-making
• Technical curiosity
• Commercial and margin awareness
• Accuracy and attention to detail
• Organization and follow-through
• Adaptability
• Teamwork
• Clear communication
• Accountability

Founded in 1923, Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE: AIT) is a leading value-added distributor and technical solutions provider of industrial motion, fluid power, flow control, automation technologies, and related maintenance supplies. Our leading brands, specialized services, and comprehensive knowledge serve MRO and OEM end users in virtually all industrial markets through our multi-channel capabilities that provide choice, convenience, and expertise.