One of the fastest-growing trends in business today is the call center. Outsourcing calls can increase profits, enhance the quality of customer service, streamline business operations and save money. With virtual accessibility, call centers have become a possibility for any business, large or small.
What are the advantages to a business owner of using a call center?
(1) Staying Knowledgeable. Call center agents are on the job 24/7 to handle calls and keep business owners apprised about what`s going on in their customer base. Some call centers even compile statistics about customer calls.
(2) Fewer Personnel Headaches. Agents are recruited and trained by the call center, which also manages payroll and other personnel responsibilities.
(3) Efficiency. Incoming calls are automatically transmitted to the applicable agent, making the best possible use of an agent`s knowledge and training. If one agent cannot rectify a problem, the call can be transferred to a more informed agent. Calls are always covered despite the ebb and flow of business call volume.
(4) Accessibility. With 24/7 coverage, agents are always available to fill orders, take on problems or complaints, offer technical support, answer questions and set appointments, all at the customer`s leisure.
(5) Savings. outsourcing calls to a call center eliminates the need for office space, furniture and equipment for customer service representatives. Also, it`s cheaper to outsource calls than to hire agents on all three shifts.
(6) Greater Freedom. Call centers handle the customer base, allowing owners to expand their business.
On the other hand, there are disadvantages to using call centers.
(1) Irregular Service. The quality of customer support depends upon the skill set and knowledge of a given agent and abilities can vary greatly between agents.
(2) Communication Problems. Customers complain about not being understood and not understanding agents from call centers in non-English speaking countries, with accents and/or insufficient ability with the English language. Some customers maintain that these agents are poorly trained, unable to solve problems, answer questions or take appropriate actions.
(3) Lack of Supervisory Personnel. Some call centers have insufficient supervisory personnel to rectify problems an individual agent cannot deal with. This can leave a customer`s trouble indefinitely in limbo.
(4) Unhappy Agents. Some representatives report feeling dehumanized at call centers due to low salaries, lack of privacy, inability to leave their work stations and the stress of constant incoming calls. This can produce unresponsive agents who are impolite to customers.
(5) Having to Call Repeatedly. Some customers complain that, due to the great variability of skill among agents, they must contact the call center numerous time to connect with an agent who has the skill to solve a particular problem or to answer a particular query.
Call centers are the direction of the future and many businesses are at least considering outsourcing their calls. However, the success of outsourcing will be a result of the caliber of customer service delivered by the call centers themselves.
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