There are a number of different jobs that are loosely defined together as customer service. The single shared duty of these types of jobs is that the customer service agent must deal directly with customers or clients in order to find solutions to problems that have occurred. Agents might also have to provide support to people who are confused about the products or services that have been purchased. Customer service positions exist in retail stores, call centers, financial institutions and in almost any business where customers are allowed to make direct contact with the company. The duties of a customer service agent can vary depending on the exact job. Some positions require an individual to process returned merchandise with a point of sale (POS) terminal and to provide credits or refunds to customers. Other positions might be geared towards explaining advanced concepts to customers who need information about an investment or a live plant that was purchased. Larger companies often integrate customer service agents into areas such as money management, records and other back-office tasks that cannot be quickly performed by people in other positions. Nearly every customer service agent, however, must deal with angry customers at some point and will need to use specific techniques in order to calm the customer and resolve the issue. Different customer service jobs have different employment requirements. Call centers and retail locations often require very little or no education. Representatives of more specialized companies might require specific certifications. A customer service agent for a bank might require a financial certification while a representative at a gardening company might need an educational background in horticulture. These positions almost always use some type of computer system so current knowledge of basic operating systems and the ability to type quickly can be important. A few customer service jobs also require continuing education in the form of trainings or college classes in order to meet basic requirements for different job responsibilities. Salaries for customer service jobs vary from minimum wage to a slightly below-average hourly wage. The potential for advancement within the field of customer service is often limited to becoming an administrator, manager or trainer. There are some employment situations, however, where the interaction between a customer service agent and other departments can result in opportunities to advance into different career fields like purchasing, information technology or marketing.