Customer Service Incomplete Without Contact Centers
No doubt, customer-orientation is the most distinguishing feature of call center services. However, every customer is different from the other one. It is not surprising to see that two customers put forth the same query in two completely different ways. Therefore, it is the duty of competent service representatives to offer satisfactory answers to the customers. Without a doubt, customers do not need to make any extra effort to relate to call centers. As a matter of fact, all the business process outsourcing services aim at delivering additional value to their customers. This holds good for all the stages of customer life cycle ranging from acquisition to customer care. It would not be wrong to state that efficient customer service is the key to customer retention.
The arena of business continues to get more complicated with every coming day. One cannot deny that equal focus on the various aspects of business is essential for providing the customers with the best services and products. In addition, cutthroat competition in the business world has increased the expectations of customers. With the availability of so many service providers, it is not unusual for customers to expect the best of services at the least possible prices. Therefore, companies find it difficult to maintain their profit margins. Moreover, compromising on quality to decrease expenditure is of no help because a contemporary customer would never fall prey to such a foolish gimmick. In this situation, enterprises can do little to help themselves but innovate consistently.
Companies Do It All To Reduce Costs
Organizations try every business tactic to lessen their expenditure. This is the reason the trend of outsourcing has found favor amongst companies operating in almost every industry vertical. Not only has it helped companies reduce their work, but has also allowed them to provide value-added services to the customers and enabled a drastic reduction in their costs. All of us agree that outsourcing has created a win-win situation for all the parties associated with a business. The phenomenon of outsourcing is primarily associated with the customer service industry. Consequently, any discussion regarding outsourcing remains incomplete without talking about contact center services.
Call center pricing models work in the favor of the organizations engaged in providing contact center services. It calls for calculations on inbound as well as outbound pricing options. Since contact centers offer round-the-clock services to their outsourcing partners, they need to be aware of the hourly rate that affects the overall pay structure. One can deal well with such questions through the use of some tools that facilitate the management of cost structure while providing outbound and inbound services.
Game of Pricing and Customer Support
The management of contact centers often considers cost to be a challenge. The majority of contracts dealing with call center services are distinguished on the basis of call quantity. The price of services offered by contact centers depends on the support and the service quality being provided to the customers. Call center costs always involve expenditure in addition to the statutory charges. However, the pricing structure differs from organization to organization. In most cases, the setup cost is a part of the fee. Whatever may be the situation, the service providers need to be transparent in terms of pricing structure. Besides this, the companies seeking services from contact centers need to understand and assess their requirements. In this way, they would not only be able to get what their customers expect from them, but also enhance the level of their customer service.
Depending on the kind of services, the pricing models utilized by call centers include:
• Inbound pricing
An inbound pricing model is highly effective in case organizations want to know about the amount of revenue that is being generated through the services of contact centers. The design of this model allows us to determine the prices per sale, per call, per cost and per hour. In addition, the call center can also add a component of sales. Moreover, the pricing model also facilitates evaluation on the basis of different scenarios that help in locating various revenue outcomes.
• Outbound pricing
The outbound pricing model is simple and easy to use. All an agent needs to do is fill out the necessary variables and press the “submit” button to calculate the exact amount of revenue. The model also adds to the convenience of a contact center by giving it an opportunity to opt for the pricing it wants. However, in the present scenario, this model is utilized in the form of performance or pay model.
• Cost of Goods (COG) model
If the cost of goods is known to a contact center, it can make calculated business decisions very easily. The use of COG model with outbound or inbound pricing model enables the determination of revenue, cost as well as profitability.
