Having a prompt outsourced customer service can be a game changer for a business. Interactions with customers have a significant impact on the reputation and overall business performance. Maintaining a better customer relationship needs a better customer service team. 

It becomes difficult to form an in-house customer service team since it requires a big staff and infrastructure. However, initially, companies opted for outsourcing to Business Process Outsourcing BPOs, changes to international or offshore outsourcing teams, and finally culminated into a recent solution which offers benefits of outsourcing and of insourcing– Employer of Record (EOR).

According to the study, 88% of consumers are more likely to make another purchase when they receive excellent customer service. Due to this businesses are constantly looking for a better option that is a more efficient and cost-effective work model. Here is the companies’ journey to finding the best work model to form a customer service team. Each stage of the journey has some advantages and challenges which eventually reflect on efficiency, cost savings, and better quality of customer service. Let’s understand this crucial evolution of businesses.

In-House Customer Service Team Challenges

Initially, many businesses opted for in-house customer service teams for better control over quality and operational activities. The team operates within the company’s premises. However, as this model offers some advantages of control over quality and operations, it also brings a few challenges.

The prime challenge for establishing a customer service team is infrastructure. This office requires a significant investment in infrastructure. The expenses include office space, equipment, and technology. If the company is a small to mid-sized business, it will bring a financial burden. 

It seems having an In-house team is an expensive option. Scaling would be a challenge during peak times of holidays or at the time of project launching. Also, training and hiring would be a time-consuming process.

Managing an in-house customer service team includes administrative overhead, payroll, benefits, and compliance with labor laws which affects the concentration of the core business functions. To overcome these challenges companies looked for specialist in the industry of customer service who could offer better solutions with lesser cost than running the operations internally.

Outsourced Customer Service: A BPO

Most businesses have started utilizing business process outsourcing (BPO) to overcome the challenges of in-house teams. BPOs are known for handling customer service functions with the help of their prowess and economies of scale.

Outsourcing appeared as a cost-saving option. BPOs select regions that are less expensive in terms of labor costs. It also reduces the cost of infrastructure and personnel. BPOs are better than in-house teams when ramping up or down their functions to complete the demands and provide flexibility. With the help of outsourced experts, the company experiences quality service and customer satisfaction.

However, the evolution is inevitable. Companies may demand more control over the quality of service. Following the service standards and brand representation can be challenging for an outsourced customer service team. Businesses were still not satisfied with the cost it saved. Communication is another challenge the companies faced that impacted the customer experience.

As the result of evolution, offshore outsourcing customer service appeared as an option with the capability of serving the purposes.

Offshore Outsourcing of Customer Service

Due to the concerning nature of local BPOs or outsourced customer service teams, companies chose to go global. When a company grows or wants to expand its customer base internationally, they have always chosen offshore customer service. 

Due to the different time zones, companies can offer 24/7 support to their customers which will lead to better customer satisfaction. Offshore customer service often provides lower labor costs as compared to the locally outsourced customer service team. 

However, ensuring quality control and monitoring the team across the country needs a robust training and monitoring mechanism. Also, data security is a concern for outsourced customer service teams. It includes sharing customers’ information with the outsourced customer service team which raises concerns about security and privacy. 

At the same time, talent retention with the outsourcing agencies became a big concern for the businesses. Companies were looking for a model that would provide in-house and outsourcing advantages with security. Companies started exploring the Employer of Record(EOR)type of business model option that provides a comprehensive solution to all the issues. Let’s understand why employer of record.

 FOR MORE ABOUT -   Alternative to Customer Service Outsourcing