Customer Service Outsourcing
Customer support outsourcing-An over view- various methods-advantages and pit falls.
Customer service outsourcing is a very common and successful strategy used by companies of all sizes. Small, one-person shops use it since there are simply not enough hours a day for one person to do it all. Large shops use it to allow them to focus on their core competency, save money and gain access to a first class, high quality customer service operation that would otherwise take millions of dollars to set up.
The first method would be to provide “self-help” customer service in the form of FAQs. If customers can find the answer to their questions on their own, that has saved you the expense of one interaction. Some customers prefer e-mail response. Just make sure you respond promptly to their queries. Other methods include fax-back systems, online chat, and automated callback and lastly, just old fashioned phone calls. Some people still just want to pick up the phone and hear a human voice.
Some companies have set up their call centers in low cost developing countries like India, where highly trained workers, staff the call center from an overseas location. This obviously means less expensive labor and competitive rates. Interestingly, Indian staff is trained to speak with American accents, so your customers won’t be able to tell the difference, regardless of whether that phone call actually terminates in the Bronx or Bombay.
Whatever be the medium you use to allow customers to contact you, it is important that each method receive the same attention and prompt response. Furthermore, integration is essential, so that when a customer calls you on the phone, you can look up the record in your database and see at a glance that they e-mailed you last week and conducted an online chat with you a month ago. The company you choose to do your customer service should be able to tie together each response mechanism into a unified system, so customers can have access to the same information, regardless of how they contact the call center. If used correctly, customer service outsourcing can be a useful tool for managing your customer relationships and getting the most value out of each one.