One of the fastest-growing trends in business today is the call center. Outsourcing calls can increase profits, improve 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 benefits to a business owner of using a call center?
(1) Staying Up-to-date. Call center agents are available 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 conducts payroll and other personnel functions.
(3) Efficiency. Incoming calls are automatically transferred to the appropriate agent, making the best possible use of an agent`s knowledge and expertise. If one agent cannot solve a problem, the call can be transferred to a more knowledgeable 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 take orders, resolve problems or complaints, offer technical assistance, answer questions and schedule appointments, all at the customer`s convenience.
(5) Savings. use of a call center reduces the need for office space, furniture and equipment for customer service representatives. Also, it`s cheaper to outsource calls than to retain agents on all three shifts.
(6) Greater Freedom. Call centers handle the client base, allowing owners to grow their business.
Conversely, there are a down side to using call centers.
(1) Unpredictable Service. The quality of customer support depends upon the training and expertise of a given agent and skills can vary enormously between agents.
(2) Communication Issues. Customers complain about not being understood and not understanding agents from call centers in non-English speaking countries, with accents and/or limited ability with the English language. Some customers say that these agents are badly trained, unable to solve problems, answer questions or take appropriate actions.
(3) Lack of Supervisory Personnel. Some call centers have insufficient supervisory personnel to troubleshoot problems an individual agent cannot handle. This can leave a customer`s trouble indefinitely unresolved.
(4) Discontented Agents. Some agents report feeling dehumanized at call centers due to inadequate salaries, lack of privacy, inability to leave their work areas and the stress of continual incoming calls. This can produce unconcerned agents who are impolite to customers.
(5) Having to Call Repeatedly. Some customers report that, due to the great variability of skill among agents, they must phone the call center more than once to connect with an agent who has the expertise to solve a given problem or to address a particular inquiry.
Call centers are the trend of the future and many businesses are at least considering outsourcing their calls. However, the success of outsourcing will be a result of the quality of customer service delivered by the call centers themselves.
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