Call centers and contact centers are integral to
any present-day business operation. Without a quality call center representing
your brand, your business is more likely to fail than succeed in this extremely
competitive world. But costing is one thing that prevents many companies from
running a call center – be it outsourced or in-house. Especially, businesses
that do not have much financial clout find it hard to justify call center
costing. This is the major reason why they end up with substandard outsourced call center
solutions. And, this is also the main cause of them being not able to
usurp the big players in the market.
The Steps to Reduce Call Center Operation Cost
Spending heavily on a call center operation does
not guarantee its success. It is imperative that the money is spent
judiciously. Optimized call center operations are a whole lot better than plush
ones. Have a look at some steps that can reduce call center outsourcing
cost considerably:
Automating call center operations
Thanks to all the software development going on in
the call center domain, we have a number of software solutions that can
simplify call center operations. IVR is one of
the most evolving tools in the call center industry that can be used for
simplifying a range of tasks. Its best utilizations come in the forms of
self-service and improvised call routing. Smart IVR menus can direct customers
to the right departments, cutting short the time that is spent in long queues.
The same way, self-help instructions and broadcast messaging via IVR can cut
down the number of manhours spent on attending the calls.
Focus on improving FCR
When it comes to solving the calls in the first
attempt, the attitude of the agents matters a lot. A call center business
outsourcing can work wonderfully well if the agents take every call as
a challenge and do their utmost best to resolve it in one go i.e. improve First
Call Resolution (FCR) ratings. It has a two-fold impact on a call center
operation – 1. Customers do not call for the same issue more than once, which
reduces the number of calls in the queues. 2. Overall customer satisfaction
level improves as customers’ issues are resolved quickly.
Use multiple modes of digital communication
Phone support alone is not sufficient to tackle
customers’ issues in the modern world. There are multiple modes via which
customers like to make contact e.g. email, social
media and Live Chat. If you are only going to use phone support than you will
limit the number of people calling in, thus reducing your brand’s outreach and
popularity. Also, quality phone support agents are rarer and more difficult to
find. You also have to pay them higher salaries. For these reasons, an
Omnichannel approach like running a contact center makes perfect business
sense. Partnering with a competent vendor with readymade resources is the perfect
way to cut down on call center
outsourcing cost.
Offshore outsourcing and recruiting a liaison
manager
Call center business outsourcing to a developing country like India allows you to
exploit the currency exchange rate to its fullest. You can cut down the cost of
operation by half and even more in some scenarios. And, if you are worried
about high cost of travel to oversee these operations, you can hire a liaison
manager. This person will act as your eyes and ears, and will coordinate all
your operations in the vendor premises. A win-win situation for both you and
the vendor.
Vcare is one of the most
prominent call center business outsourcing company. It has experience of
handling projects from different domains including the highly challenging call center for doctors offices.
As it has all the right resources available in-house, it serves as your
one-stop-shop for hassle-free outsourcing at considerably reduced price point.