Call Center Basics: Inbound vs. Outbound

Most call center services seem to be the same. This is far from true. Not all call centers provide the same type of service or the same service quality. Finding the right BPO provider or call center company involves knowing exactly what kind of service you need. Unless they are looking for administrative or back-office support, businesses usually need to outsource a service that they provide for their customers. The type of service a call center provides in relation to your customers can be classified into two broad categories: Inbound and Outbound. Which kind do you need?

Inbound

For inbound call center services, customers initiate the call or contact your company. Agents are expected to answer incoming calls or reply to messages sent via email or chat. These services include:

• Customer Service

Retail companies often need customer service in order to provide assistance to customers when they have inquiries, issues or complaints about the company’s products or services. Outsourcing this service means someone is always available to answer your customer’s queries and concerns. Customer service is conducted via phone, live chat and email.

• Inbound Sales

Customers call in to inquire about a product or service from sales agents who inform them of its features and benefits to help them decide. Reservations or booking is one example of inbound sales, and hotels and companies in the travel industry often outsource this service.

• Technical Support

Troubleshooting is a valuable service that companies provide to customers who need help with any computer or technology-related concerns.  Customers may need walkthroughs for using the company’s website or require more detailed instructions on how to use a certain equipment, for example.

Outbound

On the other hand, for outbound call center services, the company contacts customers. Agents are tasked with making outgoing calls or sending emails to customers. These services cover the following:

• Telemarketing

Telemarketing is often confused with telesales.  The main distinction is that telemarketing is more concerned with generating interest in the product and gathering information about individuals that sales agents make follow-up calls to. The greater part of telemarketing consists of lead generation and appointment setting.

• Telesales

Telesales benefits from telemarketing since telesales agents call the leads generated by the telemarketers.  They present the products and services to potential customers during the call  and close the deal with them.

Whether you are looking for outbound or inbound call center services, Taking You Forward can provide the best solutions for your business needs. Call us today and learn how to utilize outsourcing to improve your processes and grow your business.

Source: http://www.takingyouforward.com/blog/sme/call-center-basics-inbound-vs-outbound/

2021 Buyers Guide

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Training

 

1.)	CTCOMM Call Centers Contact Centers Admin Training Supervisor Training https://www.ctcomm.com.tr

2.)

Davis-Mayo Associates "Service Excellence" Customer Service Training Live onsite training for your teams. Experienced by more than 450,000 people in 48 US states and 18 countries. No-nonsense approach by our experts with field-test content customized to your situation and using your scenarios. https://davismayoassociates.com/customer-service-training/

3.)

Happitu Happitu Happitu is your customer support team’s personal coach. It guides your team through every interaction with custom workflows, responsive scripting, and dynamic help topics. As a result, Happitu slashes training time, delivers higher resolution rates, and reduces handle times. Documentation in Happitu is automated, detailed, and consistent. Go beyond handle times and service levels with the rich insights of Happitu – from granular interaction data to aggregate data and trends – you get the complete CX journey! We intentionally built the Happitu Workflow Designer with your customer support team in mind. Using our intuitive tools that provide quick and safe iteration, you eliminate the... (read more)Happitu is your customer support team’s personal coach. It guides your team through every interaction with custom workflows, responsive scripting, and dynamic help topics. As a result, Happitu slashes training time, delivers higher resolution rates, and reduces handle times. Documentation in Happitu is automated, detailed, and consistent. Go beyond handle times and service levels with the rich insights of Happitu – from granular interaction data to aggregate data and trends – you get the complete CX journey! We intentionally built the Happitu Workflow Designer with your customer support team in mind. Using our intuitive tools that provide quick and safe iteration, you eliminate the need to involve IT or Development. Yes, you will no longer have to dread submitting a change request to Devin from IT! Try it free for 45 days! PH: 833-427-7488 https://happitu.com

4.)

Lieber & Associates Training Executives, Managers, Supervisors, and Reps Lieber & Associates provides training for all levels of the contact center team. The firm customizes its off-the-shelf trainings to meet your specific company needs, Executive and manager sessions address topics such as customer experience, metrics, technology, AI, and video calls. Supervisor sessions train your leaders to better coach and motivate reps. Phone staff modules include sessions on customer service, order-taking, cross-selling, handling difficult calls, phone "soft skills," and more. PH: +1-773-325-0608 https://www.lieberandassociates.com/Train-Speak/training-and-speaking-menu.html

5.)

Manitoba Customer Contact Association Making Training and Development Part of Your Corporate Landscape Organizations are always on the look out to save money and make more profit. Usually when it comes to crunch time some leaders will scrap training in order to tighten the belt. The downside of this is the cycle it creates. Because some employers see training as a flexible benefit, employee development is often taken off the table. When employees don’t feel valued it becomes easy to see a revolving door. The constant need to hire goes up which ultimately means costs go up; we know that hiring costs more than retaining the right people. Start the conversation: Explore our Training Page http://www.mcca.mb.ca/train... (read more)Making Training and Development Part of Your Corporate Landscape Organizations are always on the look out to save money and make more profit. Usually when it comes to crunch time some leaders will scrap training in order to tighten the belt. The downside of this is the cycle it creates. Because some employers see training as a flexible benefit, employee development is often taken off the table. When employees don’t feel valued it becomes easy to see a revolving door. The constant need to hire goes up which ultimately means costs go up; we know that hiring costs more than retaining the right people. Start the conversation: Explore our Training Page http://www.mcca.mb.ca/training and see our variety of options. We are eager to start the dialogue on how we can best support your team. Contact us today! PH: 204-975-6468 http://www.mcca.mb.ca/training

6.)

Navedas CSAT.AI CSAT.AI Scores Better Customer Service with Gamified Guidance! CSAT.AI lets agents know when they’re on the right track by predicting CSAT scores in real time (when they’re fixable!) - because most customers don’t leave feedback, they just leave. Agents have the immediate positive feedback that reinforces good behaviors for self training. PH: 323-380-8555 https://www.csat.ai/

7.)

OMNI HR Consulting (Pty) Ltd Human Capital & Organisational Development Omni HR Consulting provides business and people development solutions through Training and Consulting services. We work across a number of sectors to provide solutions from both a Skills Development / Business perspective. Skills Development: accredited & non-accredited learning solutions including Learnerships, RPL solutions and Skills Programmes, including a curriculum for developing future skills. Business Solutions: are designed to be customisable, relevant and industry-related to support businesses to achieve their strategic objectives and needs. PH: +27 21 685 9160 https://www.omnihrc.com/

8.)

Orion Learning Services Inc. Learning & Development Learning & Development for Agents, Supervisors, Managers and Administration/Support Staff Orion Learning is a global leader in providing accredited learning and development solutions for organizations globally. We offer call/contact center certification programs for Agents, Supervisors and Managers, business certifications and examinations for wide range of topics including project management, change management and service management, leadership soft skills and a full suite of assessment tools which can be used for recruitment, talent management, succession planning and coaching/mentoring. We deliver our solutions to global community and all of our solutions are delivered digitally. PH: 1-416-992-5158 https://learning.orionlms.com/

9.)

Vads VADS Training Center PT VADS Indonesia as a Learning Center provides trainers, modules, development programs for individuals and teams. VADS Indonesia owns a vast curriculum for training provided by local trainers with flexible training locations that can be arranged at the client's place or PT VADS Learning Center. VADS Provide knowledge process, transformation consultancy, customer service training, leadership training, interpersonal development, and training for trainers. Benefit : - Customizable training by experienced trainers - Increase motivation and engagement - Improves customer service skills and knowledge PH: 0217991445 https://www.vads.co.id/

10.)

The Forum Get connected to raise standards. Established in 2000, we are celebrating 20 years of best practice, our community of professionals is recognised as the ‘go-to place’ for innovation in customer operations, from contact centre and digital to field, back office, branch & retail services, working across all industry sectors. We offer an independent and trusted space for learning and sharing, proud to welcome members are into a thriving and active community to network with other like-minded professionals. Benchmark against the best in class and learn from innovators and pioneers. Our team of independent experts can also offer bespoke advice, consultancy and training. We have helped many organisations develop the capability of their vital support functions. PH: +44 (0)3331235960 https://theforum.social/