Blog Factors to consider when outsourcing customer service

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Factors to consider when outsourcing customer service

Many businesses find outsourcing customer service to U.S.-based inbound call centers to be beneficial, but some thought needs to be put into such a decision. An Entrepreneur Magazine article detailed the most important factors that should be considered before using the services of a virtual call center. We’ve highlighted a few of the most important points below:

Cost of outsourcing 

Pricing varies widely between providers. Outsourcing is typically less costly than a company having dedicated agents but the costs of outsourcing shouldn’t be your only concern. There are many providers of outsourced customer service.  Inexpensive, but poorly-trained customer service reps will not provide you with much benefit.so look beyond cost and be certain that the providers you evaluate have a verifiable track record of quality and performance at the volume of calls you are outsourcing. Customer retention and increased sales depends on good service.

Current customer experience 

Many small businesses pride themselves on providing superb customer service, but this can become difficult as a company begins to grow.

“Smaller enterprises, especially growing ones, rarely have trained or dedicated customer service staff,” the source states. “Issues are often fielded by whoever happens to be available, with decidedly mixed results. Salespeople get pulled into troubleshooting when they should be making sales calls. That translates into lost revenue.”

Trained customer service specialists who work remotely provide a much needed service to these companies.

Performance of contact center 

Before committing to any call center, spend some time listening to how its agents deal with customers. You should make note of their decorum and communication skills. Agents from offshore centers often have language difficulties. If you find that you are having a hard time understanding what they’re saying, it’s likely that your customers will as well. For this reason, it may be a better idea to use a domestic call center.

Outsourcing some of your customer service operations to a well-run domestic inbound call center is a great way to guarantee that your customers’ needs are being met.