The Pros and Cons of Using Overseas Call Centers

Outsourcing customer services to a call center located overseas is a tactic that has been employed by various companies over the years, some of them rather well-known. 

While recent technological advancements including savvy and advanced call center software solutions have made it easier for companies to run these services, the fact remains that several still prefer outsourcing.

When you outsource customer services, you are more or less relinquishing your control over them. Instead, the call center will be taking over the control. They will provide the customer services on behalf of your company. 

If you are choosing the overseas route then the contact center might end up being located in a completely different continent.

This throws up all sorts of challenges but brings in a number of benefits. It is difficult to state outright whether such outsourcing is actually beneficial to the company or an error. 

The fact is that there are two sides to the coin and this outsourcing debate has never been settled satisfactorily.

There are quite a few companies who have found success by outsourcing their call center operations to an overseas company. 

On the other hand, there are equally successful companies who run their own call center operations. As such, you need to look to your own business and determine which route to take.

To do so, you need a proper understanding of the pros and cons associated with overseas call centers. We have done the research for you and our findings are presented as follows. First, we shall be taking a look at the benefits offered by them.

•  One of the major advantages of outsourcing is that doing so can bring about a significant reduction in the expenditure in running call center operations. 

As such, you do not need to worry about operational, overheads and labor costs. All of them will be effectively reduced resulting in sizeable savings for your company.

• Another advantage is that the overseas call center will be taking care of everything. You do not need to worry about resourcing and operational issues including which cloud contact center software to use. 

Additionally, staffing issues such as hiring, training and managing the agents. As such, your company can end up saving a considerable amount of time and effort.

• Overflow in the call volume is a major issue when running a call center. However, this will no longer be a problem when you opt for an overseas call center. 

They are capable of taking care of the issue since they have multiple work-teams to handle such peaks and valleys in business cycles, especially since they use modern tools and resources such as the best call center software. 

As such, it becomes an excellent solution to what usually is a costly problem.

Now that you have seen the benefits, you should now take a look at the downsides of outsourcing call center operations.

• Even if the call center is using the best telemarketing software, there is always a possibility of a reduction in customer satisfaction. There are several reasons why this occurs including the presence of cultural and linguistic barriers. 

After all, the overseas agents are likely to lack the communication skills and cultural knowledge which a native will possess. 

•When you are using overseas call centers, you give away the control you could have exerted over the team. As such, you cannot do much to ensure that the quality of customer service expected from your company is maintained. 

The drop in quality will certainly be noticed by your customers and it may have an effect on your business. Even a good outbound call center software cannot help in this matter.

• With an overseas call center, there is always the possibility of a lack of collaboration between your departments. As such, confusion can arise between members of your company and the agents of the call center. 

While this can be limited by the use of the right customer contact center software solutions, the fact remains that it will still be a problem for your company.

As you can see, there are points for both, for and against the use of call centers situated overseas. As a result, your choice ultimately boils down to what you believe will be the best for the continued success of your company.