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    Call Center Connections: Keys to Produce Successful Customer Service Outcomes: Call Center Success Series, #3
    Call Center Connections: Keys to Produce Successful Customer Service Outcomes: Call Center Success Series, #3
    Call Center Connections: Keys to Produce Successful Customer Service Outcomes: Call Center Success Series, #3
    Ebook178 pages1 hour

    Call Center Connections: Keys to Produce Successful Customer Service Outcomes: Call Center Success Series, #3

    By Peter Lyle DeHaan

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    About this ebook

    Running a call center is hard. But it can also be rewarding. 

     

    Tip the balance in your favor with Call Center Connections to discover the keys to produce successful customer service outcomes. 

     

    Experience a thriving center operation and become a leader in customer service with Call Center Connections.

     

    Benefits: 

    • Boost staff morale and appreciation 
    • Create a positive customer experience 
    • Improve leadership skills and strategies 

    What's inside: 

    • Learn how to find the perfect call center manager 
    • Explore the benefits of using home-based agents 
    • Discover the impact of artificial intelligence on call centers 

    Written by call center veteran and publisher of Connections Magazine, Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD, this book offers practical insights and tips from his extensive industry experience. 

     

    Discover: 

    • How your management style may be hurting your call center 
    • An easy way to determine agent starting pay 
    • Ways to enhance the customer experience 
    • Five tips for agent customer service success 
    • How to optimize your call center for better outcomes 

    Don't miss out on the opportunity to improve your call center operations and exceed customer expectations. 

     

    Get your copy of Call Center Connections today.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRock Rooster Books
    Release dateJun 6, 2024
    ISBN9798888090817
    Call Center Connections: Keys to Produce Successful Customer Service Outcomes: Call Center Success Series, #3

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      Book preview

      Call Center Connections - Peter Lyle DeHaan

      ARE YOU IN OR OUT?

      UNDERSTAND INDUSTRY NUANCES

      Since you’re reading this book, you’re in the call center industry. Yet the question, Are you in or out? doesn’t ask about your connection to the industry, but rather your operation’s role within it, relative to the greater call center industry.

      Forgive me if you already know the answer, but too many people—even if they know their call center’s role—don’t have a comprehensive industry view. Here are the basics to get us started.

      We classify call center activity in two ways. The first is if they handle inbound traffic or outbound traffic. The second is whether they are an in-house or outsource operation. Therefore, Are you in or out? implies two questions. This produces four possible outcomes:

      1) An in-house call center, doing inbound work

      2) An in-house call center, doing outbound work

      3) An outsource call center, doing inbound work

      4) An outsource call center, doing outbound work

      Inbound or Outbound?

      Inbound or outbound refers to the direction of calls. That is, whether the center makes calls (outbound) or receives calls (inbound). For an outsider—or even an uninformed insider—this would seem to be a small distinction. What’s the big difference? they ask. Both involve agents, use phones, and are supported by technology. If you’re doing one, the other should be no problem.

      Not so fast. The differences are as profound as day and night.

      Inbound: Since inbound call centers answer calls, agents work in a reactive mode. That is, they wait for the phone to ring (or for the next call to drop from the queue) and then they react to it.

      Inbound call centers are equipped with ACDs (automatic call distribution) to send calls to the next available agent. Inbound operations are staffed more hours of the day than their outbound counterparts, with most operating 24/7. Agents are scheduled to work in anticipation of projected call volume based on historical data, future projections, and marketing initiatives.

      Outbound: For the outbound call center, agents must be proactive. That is, they need to take initiative. The successful outbound agent has a different personality than the ideal inbound agent. Even if the nature of their outbound work is not specifically in sales, they still need a sales mentality. They need to engage the called party, lead them toward a stated objective, and deal well with rejection—some of which may be personally directed.

      Outbound call centers rely on predictive dialers to place calls. Outbound centers have reduced hours of operation, limited by law and the needs of specific campaigns. In this situation, agents are scheduled as needed to complete a requisite number of calls within a certain window of time.

      Outbound call centers must comply with national and state laws that regulate (that is, limit) outbound calling, historically called telemarketing. When these laws were implemented, it greatly curtailed outbound calling and forced marginal players out of the industry. Most that remain are professional operations, providing a valuable service.

      Blended: Not to be overlooked, the concept of blended call centers (those doing both inbound and outbound work) has been pursued, although with varying degrees of success. Blending can occur at different levels.

      The first is within a call center, where some agents are answering calls while others are placing calls.

      The second level of blending occurs with agents who are proficient with both calling disciplines. They can be scheduled for either activity as needed. Most agents cannot successfully make this transition from one day to the next, but those who can appreciate the variety.

      The third level of blending occurs from call to call. If an unexpected rush of incoming calls occurs, the outbound reps are automatically removed from the agent pool of the predictive dialer and placed into the agent pool for the ACD. This continues until the rush ends and the process reverses. Conversely, if it’s a slow day for incoming calls, these agents can be automatically switched to the outbound campaign. While this type of efficiency excites upper management, it often works better on paper than in reality. Reps who can successfully handle this type of on-the-fly mental adjustment are rare.

      In-House or Outsource?

      While the concepts of inbound and outbound are generally understood, the terms in-house and outsource cause some confusion. An in-house call center is one where the work done is performed for the company itself—that is, internally—and is generally secondary to the main function of the company and the products or services they produce.

      Conversely, an outsource call center provides call center services to other companies. Phone work is all they do; it’s their business.

      In-House: There are arguably 50,000 to 100,000 call centers in the United States. The range is so great because they are sometimes challenging to identify. Of these, most are in-house operations.

      Outsource: Outsource call centers, though a minority, are increasing in number and importance. This trend is due to more and more companies looking to outsourcing to increase service levels or options, return to their core competencies, save money, or all three.

      At outsource call centers, processing calls is all they do. Therefore, they must do it well and cost-effectively if they are to remain viable. They also enjoy an economy-of-scale not feasible for most in-house operations. As such, their margins allow the client to save money and the outsource call center to make money.

      The outsource call center industry traces its beginnings to the post-World War I era, when enterprising telephone answering services begin popping up around the country. Even though the label would follow decades later, these entrepreneurs were, in fact, the first outsource call centers. The modern era of outsource call centers began in the 1980s, when the introduction of toll-free numbers made it cost-effective to centralize call centers. Still, it wasn’t until more recently that the outsourcing label was applied.

      Outsource call centers are similar in design and function to their in-house counterparts. There are, however, a few important distinctions.

      First, while an in-house call center can be viewed as either a cost-center or a profit-center, the outsource call center must be a profit-center and is often the only source of revenue for the company.

      Second, the outsource call center must continually search for and find new clients to serve. Therefore, it has an external sales and marketing aspect that is not needed at in-house call centers.

      Last, in-house call centers service their company’s customers, whereas the outsource call center serves their clients’ customers. Therefore, agents at an outsource call center work for their clients, but they work with their clients’ customers or prospects.

      Outsource is Not Synonymous with Offshore

      There was a trend to move call center activity to other countries that boast stable technological infrastructures and offer qualified workers who possess lower wage expectations. This is offshore outsourcing, but it is too often wrongly shortened to outsourcing.

      This is incorrect shorthand, as the majority of U.S. call center outsourcing is, and will continue to be, to U.S.-based call centers. Offshore outsourcing, which is getting all the attention, is a small minority of the total call center outsource picture. Although offshore outsourcing will continue to occur, some companies have tried offshoring and then pulled back in disappointment when it failed to deliver the expected results.

      Moving Forward

      Whether your call center is inbound or outbound, in-house or outsource, this book is for you.

      OPERATIONS AND MANAGEMENT

      We’ll begin our discussion of call center success by looking at considerations that fall under the general umbrella of operations and management.

      With these chapters as our backdrop, we’ll then use them as a foundation to delve into specific areas in upcoming sections.

      Let’s get started on this exciting journey.

      ANSWERING THE CALL IS JUST THE FIRST STEP

      THE GOAL IS TO SERVE CALLERS

      Companies once embraced a vision of providing online self-service, shutting down their call centers and staffed customer service offerings.

      This didn’t work as well as hoped, with companies moving away from forced self-service to some degree of customer service. It matters not if they offer customer service by telephone, text chat, or email. What’s important is their attempt to provide support to customers and not let them flounder. This is good for consumers, companies, workers, and the contact center industry. Everyone wins.

      While some companies hide their customer service channels behind a wall of self-service options and FAQs, others make their offerings prominent. They are the champions. They want to make it easy for customers and potential customers to reach them. They’ve figured out that it’s good business to help the people who buy their products—the same folks who make it possible for them to stay in business.

      Unfortunately, some companies try to control the method of contact. They still don’t comprehend that the customer is important, but at least these businesses are doing something. Other companies limit their hours of availability. They decide they can’t justify having customer service staff work on the third shift or outside regular business hours. News flash: Outsource the work to provide 24/7 coverage on a cost-effective basis.

      Smart companies offer a full range of contact options: phone, chat, email, and even snail mail for those so inclined. And they offer them 24/7. I applaud them. They have the right vision and understand the importance of providing support to their current customers and prospective buyers.

      Yet this is only the beginning. Answering the phone, accepting a chat request, or reading an email is just the first step. It’s a critical step, to be sure, but execution makes the difference.

      Final Thoughts

      I commend companies for answering their phone. The next step is to help the people who contact them. That’s the key to good customer service.

      IS YOUR MANAGEMENT STYLE HURTING YOUR CALL CENTER?

      AFTER DOING ALL YOU CAN TO HIRE STAFF, TURN YOUR ATTENTION TOWARD RETENTION

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