Pros And Cons Of Outsourcing Customer Service
AtPoint
Near-shore process management and call center services customized to your unique needs.
Published Jan 08, 2021
When it comes to customer service, each call counts, each chat matters, and every email needs to receive a fast response. However, employing customer service representatives can take a huge chunk of your company’s budget, in addition to time and resources.
We explain why more and more businesses are choosing to outsource customer service.
What Is Customer Service Outsourcing?
Outsourcing is a common business practice of contracting a third party for a specific task. With an outsourced customer service team, agents work at a call center and are trained to handle a business’s incoming calls, emails, and other communication channels.
Why Do Companies Outsource Customer Service?
The way you treat your customers can ultimately make or break your business. So why do companies outsource call centers? When businesses are too busy to handle every communication channel, they often seek third party help.
Excellent customer service is crucial to the success of your business, so it’s important to dedicate enough time and resources to achieve customer satisfaction.
7 Advantages and Disadvantages of Outsourcing Customer Service
In certain situations, keeping your customer support team in-house may be a better choice for you. However, if you’re struggling to provide an excellent customer experience at a profitable level, outsourcing may be the key to growing your company.
4 Advantages of Outsourcing Customer Service
The ability to outsource customer service for entrepreneurs and business owners can be highly beneficial. Some of the advantages include:
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- Cost Savings – Outsourced customer support services are extremely cost-effective, offering flexible and affordable staffing options. Unlike full-time in-house employees, outsourced workers don’t require a fixed salary, employee benefits or even office space from your business. This saves your company money and resources, allowing you to focus on your day-to-day operations.
- After-Hours Coverage – With outsourcing, you’re able to offer your customers convenient after-hours support, whether that be night, weekends, or even 24/7 service.
- Less headache – When you don’t have to worry about answering customer calls and emails, you can fully commit to your business. Your staff can be more productive while still maintaining excellent customer service.
- Better Technology & Resources – Communicating with your customers is simple when you use customer service outsourcing. These agencies often have access to the latest technology, training, and resources that many small businesses don’t have the funds to invest in.
3 Disadvantages of Outsourcing Customer Service
While outsourcing customer service has several benefits, there are a few negative effects that should be taken into consideration. Some of the cons include:
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- Company Knowledge – When you outsource your customer service, representatives do not always have the proper knowledge of the company’s practices and values, and therefore may not be able to provide your clients with the best service.
It’s important to establish expectations and ensure that your agents are trained and well-informed of company policies. When you outsource to a customer service team with agents dedicated to your business, you can mitigate this issue. - Poor Communication Between Departments – When working with a remote team, there’s bound to be some level of disconnect between your in-house and offshore representatives. To improve your company, it’s important for your outsourcers to gather and relay customer feedback. If there’s not an effective communication system between departments, obtaining this key information can be a challenge.
Finding a nearshore BPO provider can help align time zones and cultural similarities that streamline communication. - Security Concerns – Customer service often involves the exchange of personal information, such as credit card numbers, names, addresses and more. While many outsourcing companies have advanced technology to protect your customers’ private information, some can be a liability for your business. It’s important to discuss security measures with your outsourcer to ensure your clients’ data isn’t compromised.
How to Outsource Customer Service the Right Way
Before you move forward with hiring an outsourced call center, here are some important questions to ask yourself:
- Do they have experience in your industry?
- Will you be working with dedicated or shared agents?
- Whom do they hire and how are they trained?
- What security measures do they take?
- How do they maintain quality control?
- What are the contract requirements?
Knowing the answers to these questions should put your mind at ease when choosing an outsourcer.
Should I Outsource Customer Service?
The above pros and cons should help you decide whether or not customer service outsourcing is right for your company.
When In-House Is Best – If you have a high customer service budget, abundant office space, and advanced technology and on-site training programs, then in-house customer service may be your best bet.
When Outsourcing Is Best – If you’re interested in improving the profitability of your customer service operations and leveraging a highly-trained team of customer service agents, you should consider outsourcing.
AtPoint's Nearshore Customer Service Outsourcing Offers Quality and Cost Benefits
When you outsource with AtPoint, you can expect increased revenue while managing your budget. We offer competitive pricing with customer service outsourcing that costs 1/3 to ½ that of a domestic call center.
Your team of AtPoint agents is dedicated to you and your business. Your highly-trained customer service representatives will use modern tools and techniques and are available for daily check-ins with your in-house management team. AtPoint provides high-quality customer service every day, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Contact AtPoint today to learn more about how our BPO services work.
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