Call Center Outsourcing Service
Call center outsourcing (both domestic and overseas) is all the rage among businesses these days. However, the approach is not necessarily right for every company or industry and the pros and cons must be considered carefully before any action is taken.
A sentiment that is currently in favor in business circles is that companies should focus on their core competencies. In other words, if a company manages mutual funds or manufactures clothing, that is what most employees should be focused on. The theory states that certain tasks such as payroll, purchasing, and call center operations are best left to other firms who specialize in those areas.
As a concept, call center outsourcing makes sense from an efficiency point of view. Why should a company pay employees a specified amount (including salaries, benefits, etc.) to process calls when another company can handle all those things and charge less than it would cost to do it in-house?
When it comes to making the decision for a particular business, there are other factors involved besides the upfront dollars and cents. One such factor is call volumes. Most outsourced call center providers will not accept new accounts that don't meet volume requirement minimums. Since they get paid partly on a per call fee, they can’t make a profit if there aren't enough calls. Also, it is not worth the time it takes to train their agents since most of that time is not charged back to the clients. (In some circumstances, clients pay for part of the agents' training time if they want training the call centers considers outside of the "usual and customary.") Small, but growing business will probably find their choice of call center outsourcers limited until their call volumes reach levels attractive to call center sales forces.
Outsourcing firms also charge monthly minimums, which means there will be a certain fee regardless of volume in a certain month. Therefore, volumes must be analyzed carefully. A business can't just think of holiday spikes in call volume when considering outsourcing. If that is the only reason, then bringing in temporary additional help is a much better choice.
Hours of operation are another consideration. Only very large companies operate around the clock. Utilizing an outside call center allows a business to expand its availability to its customers 24 hours, 7 days a week. That can be a great competitive advantage in any line of business. Some companies use a hybrid operating model by having their own fully trained call center staff in-house during the day and using an outsourced call center to handle all calls on nights as weekends as well as occasional overflow calls during the day. That set up also allows in-house call centers to have center wide meetings because the internal phones can all be shut off and the calls sent to the outsourcing vendor.
The most important factor is the quality of the customer service that will be provided by the outsourcer. Can it rival (or indeed exceed) that of the traditional in-house phone team? This is a tough question to answer ahead of time. It's crucial since getting a negative answer after calls have been turned over to a new call center can be disastrous for business. Those evaluating a bid for call center services are advised to:
- Visit the call center if possible.
- Check the vendor's references.
- Call in anonymously at several different times of day to see how calls are handled.
- Discuss the intensity of training and the level of input they will have in the training.
In the right circumstances, call center outsourcing can be a way to expand business, improve customer relationships, and achieve cost savings all at the same time.
|
