Once your business grows to a certain point, it might not be easy to handle all the calls that come through daily. Even if you have an in-house team that is designated to handle this important task, they might still end up being overwhelmed. This is because you might not possess certain systems and structures to ensure the process is fast and efficient.
In such a case, the best option is to outsource this task to a professional call center. You can read this source to learn the benefits of outsourcing work for your business. While this is a necessary step to take, it shouldn’t be done without careful consideration.
If you choose the wrong provider, you might lose your customers, cause a drop in your sales, and damage your brand reputation. Therefore, to ensure that none of this happens, we’ll guide you on how to find and hire the right professional call center outsourcing service. If you follow these instructions, we’re sure you won’t regret your decision.
Factors That Determine the Call Center You Hire
Before you begin the process of hiring a provider, there are things you need to consider that will determine the firm you hire. The fact that the firm is the best in the industry doesn’t mean they’re perfect for you. So, here are the factors that determine the call enter you hire.
The Needs of Your Business
The needs of your business are the first factor you need to consider before making that important decision. If the call center cannot fill the vacuum of needs in your organization, then you have no business hiring them. Doing so might have a counter-effect on your progress and development.
Therefore, the first thing you need to do is to identify the volume and type of interaction you have with your customers. Do they contact you via calls, email, or other platforms? It’s a no-brainer to opt for call center outsourcing if most of your clients reach you via email. It will be a waste of money to invest in more help than you need.
The next step is to determine KPIs (key performance indicators) for assessing the quality of the provider. This will come in handy when you compare different call centers for the job. Some of the KPIs you can use are the following.
- First-call resolution result
- Average handling time
- Customer churn quality
- Net promoter scores
You must also consider the future needs of your business. If you’re planning to enter a new market or create a new service, the call center you hire must be able to accommodate and handle tasks that such growth might bring. After all, having to get a new provider in just a few months or years might not be ideal for business.
Infrastructure and Technology
When you want to choose a service, find out the tools they use in executing the task. A firm that has advanced tools is capable of handling more tasks and challenges while providing customer satisfaction. For instance, computer telephony integration is an advanced tool that can help in streamlining communication. Computers and phones can be linked thereby allowing operators to handle the calls straight from their computers.
Universal queuing allows the operators to manage and give priority to all call interactions no matter the channel involved. Predictive dialers will help to automate dialing. This, in turn, will boost the productivity of the representatives and reduce call waiting time. Intelligent call-back enhances the caller’s experience by providing them with the option of getting called back rather than waiting.
The use of a CRM (customer relationship management) software is also important. You can read this post to learn more about CRM. With such software, it’s easier to access the history of each customer thereby leading to a more efficient and personalized service.
Lastly, find out if they utilize cloud-based solutions. This is important to ensure reliability and scalability especially when your business grows. Cloud-based solutions also provide easier access to information about customers.
Pricing Structure
Hiring a great call center for your business doesn’t mean you have to break the bank. Therefore, you need to be informed about how these firms structure their pricing. One of the models these providers use is to charge per minute for every call they receive. Another model is a package deal.
If your business doesn’t get a large volume of calls, the per-minute model will work best for you. On the other hand, package deals are great for large volumes of calls. Therefore, if you’ve done what we instructed earlier when determining your business needs, knowing the category your business falls under won’t be a problem.
Another thing you need to pay attention to when it comes to pricing structure is hidden costs. You can visit this source to learn tips on how to avoid hidden fees. Ensure that you find out about possible extra charges such as training, software licensing, and setup fees. The provider you hire must be transparent to reveal their pricing structure and ensure it matches your budget and projected growth.
Security & Compliance Measures
For the protection of customer data and your business information from breaches, the call center must have strict security and compliance measures in place. Do not downplay how important this is as it could adversely affect your company.
Therefore, find out if the firm you want to choose has privacy regulation compliances such as DSS, PCI, HIPAA, and GDPR, depending on the location of your company and industry. Doing this will ensure that they can handle and protect customer data according to global standards.
As such data encryption as well as having proper data transmission procedures are crucial. This will prevent unauthorized access to sensitive information. The provider must also practice regular external and internal audits to determine if the measures put in place are still meeting global standards.
Another security measure that must be set up is a recovery plan. This will ensure the services are uninterrupted due to natural disasters or power outages, the outsourcing company must have contingency plans. Examples of such contingency plans include emergency call routing to a different center, redundant servers, backup power sources, etc.
Conclusion
Outsourcing to a call center is a good move for any company that is overwhelmed with daily customer calls. These organizations are well-equipped to handle such demands way better than any in-house department can manage. In the article above, we’ve discussed in detail factors that will help you determine the right call center to hire.
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