Covid-19 has brought massive changes in the customer service outsourcing industry. It would be fair to say that most of these changes were forced on brands. Previously all brands cared about were cost. However, now brands look for quality, product delivery, performance, and a lot more matrices along with cost.
Re-defining business continuity
Now that businesses are able to cope with this new normal, they will try to find out what worked in the pandemic and what not. This will be a great learning and will heavily impact the future course of actions. Businesses will try to eliminate processes that did not work. They will be more open to innovation now as compared to any time in the past. Remote working is here to stay, and businesses will have to deal with it in a professional manner.
It’s time for automation
Businesses that used automation were able to deal with this pandemic in a better way. At a time when services were not available, automation came to rescue. Brands understand this and they will try to mold their future path along these lines. Automation will give better flexibility and performance. The thing about technology is that either you adopt it or perish. Top customer service outsourcing companies must move towards automation.
Innovation is the key
Brands will have to make their outsourcing model more flexible. Innovation is the key here. Covid-19 has taught us that you need to be prepared for the future. Future is uncertain and anything can happen. So innovation should follow. For better performance, businesses should look for modern technology like chatbots and virtual assistant. These robots are becoming smarter day by day.
Challenges and how to deal with it
Covid-19 has confined us in our home. Most of the outsourcing service providers are debarred from travelling. Many companies have shifted to remote working; however, they don’t have necessary equipment and expertise. It is very difficult for these types of businesses to survive.
There is a lack of incoming work as well. Due to strict lockdown many works are pending. Outsourcing service providers will have to first clear their backlog before they can work again. The biggest challenge right now is to survive till this crisis is over. Many businesses are innovating and building customized remote working platform for themselves. Today or tomorrow, this pandemic will be over, however, remote working is here to stay.
Call of the hour
Most of the companies are shifting their work to BPOs. This is an affordable as well as flexible way to get good service from the industry experts. Companies outsource most of their work and then focus on things that are more important to grow the business. However, you should always select the best possible BPO for your company needs. It can reduce limitations and maximize benefits. Here are recent trends in customer service outsourcing.
Remote call center
Remote working is the new normal. There are many advantages of remote working. Brands can hire better talent across boundaries. They are no longer limited to physical locations. When employees are working remotely there is no need to worry about power fluctuations or other such things to hamper employee productivity. Employees will be in a better mode in their natural location and will be able to better contribute to their business.
Experience and expertise
There are so many teams offering so much variety of work. However, brands need to cherry pick the best one among them. Specialization and experience are the keywords. Brands need to look for specialized teams with more than 5 years of experience in their field. This way they will be able to get the best out of outsourced work.
Quality control for best customer support
Different companies will provide you with different qualities of work. A polite representative is the thing that you should care for. Most of the customers believe that a polite representative is the most important thing for a business. There are many more matrices to choose the best customer service provider. Before signing deal with any company, first know about their quality of work, average handle time, their track record, etc. and only then make your mind.
Geographical location
One more thing to consider when selecting your outsourced team is their geographical location. This will greatly determine the cost you will have to incur. American and European call centers are highly expensive. If you outsource your work to India, it would be cheaper, as well as of good quality. The way India has dealt with Coronavirus is just amazing. This makes businesses rely more on the graduates and professionals from India. If we compare Indian team with European or American team, the former is cheaper as well as efficient.
Security risks
When you are proving your customer data to third parties, you are risking your reputation as well as sensitive data of customers. You should be aware of the risks associated with outsourcing. Before hiring any third party, you should have confidence on your system. It would be better to recheck security issues so that sensitive data is not compromised.
To sum up
Outsourced call center solutions or customer service outsourcing is here to stay. It is up to brands to figure out how they can better use this opportunity. They can help you expand your business, reduce costs as well as improve support coverage. Before choosing your outsourcing partner, you should look at their geographical location, experience, skills, risk management, and the availability of other value-added services. Always remember that when you outsource your work to an external company you need to be highly vigilant so that they can represent your brand and provide better customer satisfaction.
Different outsourcing companies come with different price points, different shapes and sizes, as well as different levels of service quality. It is much easier to find the outsourcing partner best suited for your company when you know what you want.
