The deliberate choice to hire and oversee a third-party service provider to handle your company’s communication needs is known as contact center outsourcing. The call center outsourcing provider oversees performance under your brand name, employs and educates call center personnel, and maintains infrastructure and communication tools.
There are several benefits to outsourcing your call center that will make you question why you didn’t do it sooner, even though the business procedure may cause some concern. In fact, despite the alleged disadvantages, big worldwide firms like Amazon, Pfizer, and AT&T have already outsourced their call centers because they understand the enormous value it adds to their businesses.
These companies, along with hundreds of others throughout the globe, have evaluated the benefits of outsourcing and come to the conclusion that the following six benefits much exceed any potential drawbacks.
Outstanding Benefits of call center outsourcing services
As more businesses use BPOs, call center outsourcing has attracted a lot of attention lately. from major players in the market including Time Warner Inc., Hershey Foods, and The Wall Street Journal, who have gained notoriety for reporting that they had outsourced a portion of their call center employees to reduce expenses. Industry heavyweights such as Dell, Capital One, and JPMorgan Chase have announced that they have ceased their call center outsourcing India operations because the expenses have surpassed the advantages. The question of whether call center offshore outsourcing is good for business is still up for dispute, and some prominent figures in the sector are taking sides.
The strategic business choice to outsource your call center and customer care activities to a third-party company, often known as a business process outsourcer or BPO, is known as call center outsourcing.
1. Economy of Cost
A cost-effective analysis is often conducted by all firms before the implementation of new policies. Sifting through the copious information quickly exposes the huge payments that have already been confirmed for individuals who are thinking about making the transition to outsourcing. Both large and small businesses may save up to 30% a month by choosing to outsource, according to Harvard Business Review.
The main cause of this decrease is because adding additional staff is not necessary. Your business saves time on hiring, training, and salary, freeing up resources for other areas of growth or operational advancement. In a similar vein, companies are no longer responsible for maintaining solutions for call center outsourcing India.
2. Availability of the Newest Technologies
Outsourced call centers are committed to implementing the most beneficial technologies since they are committed to maximising operational procedures and communication performance at every level. Every person at the outsourced center will have access to the best tools available, whether they are an agent interacting directly with consumers or management reviewing stats.
Additionally, the service provider bears the cost of deploying and maintaining these cutting-edge communication tools, guaranteeing that your business gets the best software without having to bear the expense.
3. Effectiveness of Operations
Businesses might choose an all-inclusive outsourced contact center rather than managing many departments focused on different facets of the customer experience. These contact centers have constant access to comprehensive information and can concentrate only on their primary duties of communication.
Furthermore, outsourced contact centers can optimise basic procedures. For example, depending on customised business criteria, their creative, intelligent software may automatically route leads and other duties to agents. Because they lack automated tools, third-party staff are therefore able to do more than your in-house agents.
4. Maximized Sales
Increased conversions are a noteworthy advantage of outsourcing call center operations. Increasing sales is the consequence of two things: first, agents give their full attention to the work at hand. Employees who are outsourced to handle fewer distractions converse more, which raises the possibility of total profit.
Second, the top contact centers can instantly match leads or clients with the best agent since they have access to the most recent communication technologies. Matching, which is carried out under your brand as a “white labelling” service, improves lead-agent compatibility and boosts rapport and the likelihood of sales. It is based on highly adjustable principles.
5. Adjustability and Adaptability
Call centers that are outsourced can expand to meet your company’s demands. As your client base grows, your outsourced call center will naturally add more people to handle peak calling hours. All you have to do is let your third-party service provider know about any advancements in your business, and they’ll handle the rest, making sure your clients receive prompt, knowledgeable responses.
6. 24/7/365 Supporting
According to several experts, for businesses to be competitive in the twenty-first century, they will need to give customer service a higher priority. 86% of consumers will pay more for exceptional customer service.
Customers will stick with your brand if you can help them whenever they need it, no matter where in the world. Providing 24/7 support makes clients feel valued, which reduces attrition and increases customer satisfaction.
Cons of Call Center Outsourcing
1. Decreased customer satisfaction
All you have to do is let your third-party service provider know about any advancements in your business, and they’ll handle the rest, making sure your clients receive prompt, knowledgeable responses.
2. Lack of company knowledge
The culture, procedures, and values of the organisation are frequently foreign to call outsourced center agents. As a result, they might not be committed to the business, committed to the client, or able to deliver a calibre of service that matches corporate requirements and embodies corporate culture.
3. The agent’s focus can be split
Agents at call centers employed by outsourcing firms are frequently tasked with taking and returning calls on behalf of several different clients. As a result, they might not be entirely committed to (or passionate about) your business and their time and attention might be split.
4. A lack of coordination and conversation between departments and agencies
It is common for agents handling calls for the same organisation to be located in different buildings and lack the means of communication with one another. As a result, there is little cooperation and communication between departments and agents.
5. Hidden costs
There are frequently unnoticed hidden expenses associated with call center outsourcing services. Your bottom line may be severely impacted by unanticipated legal costs, employing a lawyer with experience in international law, losing clients as a result of subpar customer service, and the price of winning back lost clients.
6. Privacy and security issues
Agents working for call centers abroad are frequently exempt from the same background checks that agents in the US receive. Therefore, material that is sensitive or secret may not be as safe as it would be with local agents who have passed a thorough background investigation.
A Way to Have the Best of Both Worlds
If the thought of call center outsourcing services to a foreign supplier is alluring but not worth the risk, you might want to look into a more straightforward and affordable option. A “best of both worlds solution” may be to hire a group of international call center representatives who operate remotely. It can help you lessen the negative effects of outsourcing while still using some of the benefits that make hiring contact center personnel an attractive option.
A worldwide call center workforce may be readily maintained at a reasonable cost thanks to the introduction of new browser-based call center software solutions. Agents just require a computer, a headset, and an internet connection to place and receive calls. They may work from home, complete all training online, pick up the call center software in a matter of minutes, and begin taking and making calls right away. Hiring global at-home agents also gives you access to a bigger pool of applicants because you are not constrained by geography or transportation-related concerns. Therefore, compared to their on-premise local counterparts, the top applicants are typically more flexible, more experienced, and have higher levels of education. Candidates can also be chosen based on other criteria that you think are relevant, such as language and communication proficiency, cultural fit with your business, and others. Thus, you might observe an increase in quality by growing your staff internationally.
Browser-based contact centers not only enable managers to hire more experienced agents and give them the flexibility to work wherever they choose, but they also enable them to closely monitor their worldwide staff and offer real-time feedback when needed. Without the client knowing, managers may listen in on live calls, or sneak in to provide a quiet coaching session for the agent. Real-time updates, automated tasks, integrated CRM and helpdesk software, and historical data allow them to monitor agent performance and maintain team cohesion. IVR, skills-based routing, and call queues allow managers to guarantee that the call is handled by the appropriate person every time. Additionally, you’ll have everything you need to deliver high-quality service at a reasonable cost, including pay-as-you-go choices, the flexibility to add and remove agents in a matter of seconds, and SLAs that ensure call quality and uptime.