Call Center Companies & Services

Call center pricing can vary depending on the country. For example, in the U.S. it is common for call centers to charge between $20–30 per hour. In India, call centers cost between $6-10 an hour on average. Location is just one factor for determining the cost of a call center partnership — it's important to consider the effects of call volume, product complexity, and scope of services that the call center agencies are intended to provide.

Call centers generally charge based on hourly rates - the more hours they work and the more dedicated agents are working, the more the cost will add up.

Factors that influence the cost of call center services include:

Business needs; Language offerings; Amount of call center agents; Inbound v outbound call center services; Setup costs, availability, and Location of the call center.

Tip: Companies in Western & Eastern Europe seem to charge slightly more for call center services than those in North America, Latin America, and locations in Asia like the Philippines.

A call center, or otherwise known as a contact center, is a facility that leverages technology and personnel to accept and respond to customer inquiries—typically telephone calls, but this also can include email, text messages, instant messages, etc. Call centers use automatic call distribution systems to route calls to the most qualified customer service representatives.

Call center companies can be contracted for telephone answering services, customer support or troubleshooting, order processing or renewals, appointment scheduling, debt collection, and more. Companies looking for a full-service call center partnership with both inbound and outbound capabilities will need to sign larger contracts with more resources from a hybrid call center. Companies requiring a smaller scope of services will not need as complex of a contract or services.

When looking to hire a call center, there are several factors that you should consider. Look for a company with an established positive reputation and track record. It is also beneficial to find a company that has experience in your particular industry.

Enquire if the call center is capable of providing multilingual services and if yes, which languages. This would be beneficial in order to provide support to customers from different countries, making sure they can get the help they need in their native tongue.

Make sure you do research on different companies to find one with competitive pricing and features that will help you meet your long-term goals.

Other questions to ask potential call center partners:

How experienced is your staff? What is the average tenure?, Do you offer ongoing training to improve customer service skills of your staff? Do you use quality assurance software to monitor calls? If so, which? How do you maintain accurate records of customer interactions? Do you offer chat services? Email response services? SMS services?

Be clear on what your budget range is and the type of call center services are most important to you.

Call centers can provide various types of customer support services such as sales, technical support, billing inquiries, order placement, and general inquiries.

The most common types of call centers are inbound, outbound and blended call centers. Blended call centers do a bit of both, inbound and outbound activities. Inbound call centers are primarily responsible for fielding incoming calls that customers are making to a company for questions and customer support. Outbound call center companies, on the other hand, are tasked with cold calling and initiating communications with customers and prospects.

Call centers take customer data protection very seriously. They will have mitigation measures in place to protect customers’ personal data and ensure that it is handled securely.

These include: using industry-standard encryption methods, verifying the identity of each caller, training staff on data handling protocols, and only sharing customer information on a need-to-know basis.

Call centers are required by law to adhere to privacy and security regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in order to protect customer data. Additionally, call centers should have routine audits of their systems to ensure that data is not being accessed by unauthorized personnel.

Using a call center for customer service can improve response time, reduce labor costs, and allow your company to offer services that aren’t always available in person or online, or in your time zone. Call centers also provide you access to an entire team of knowledgeable customer service professionals who are trained in how to offer the best customer support quickly and efficiently.

Call centers can also improve your customer satisfaction rating as they typically are available 24/7 or outside your normal business hours. This gives customers access to assistance at any time of day or night.

Call centers require technology such as an automatic call distribution system, interactive voice response systems (IVR), predictive dialers, caller identification systems, recording devices, and quality assurance software.

The average response time varies depending on how many calls a call center receives in a given time period. Generally, call centers aim to answer all customer service calls within 30 seconds. But this depends on the complexity of the customer query. It may take longer for the call center agents to resolve an issue.

When talking with potential call center service providers, ask them what their average response times are.

Most call centers track customer interactions electronically via special software in order to better ensure that all queries are addressed in a timely manner. Popular call center customer interaction software includes Zendesk; Webex; Zoho Desk; LiveAgent and TalkDesk.

Tracking customer interactions helps call centers identify areas that need improvement, such as response time, resolution rates, or quality of service. Additionally, tracking customer interactions can be used by call centers to provide tailored services to customers based on their previous purchases or interactions with the call center.

Call centers or contact centers will also monitor calls for quality assurance purposes. This helps ensure that customers are getting the highest level of customer service possible. Monitoring calls allows call center service providers to make improvements in order to provide an even better customer experience.

Every review submitted on Clutch goes through a verification process in which Clutch’s analysts seek to identify the reviewer and establish proof of connection to the service provider. If they’re able to establish that there is no conflict of interest and that the project took place, the review will be published with a verified checkmark on the service provider’s profile.

This helps buyers looking for the right service provider feel confident that the reviews they are reading accurately reflect the services provided and the results of the project. Each review contains detailed information about the project, including:

Services provided; Costs; Client industry; Key results; Project management and communication.

While most Clutch reviews are submitted through an online form, Clutch also offers phone interviews for Sponsoring service providers. Each interview takes about 15-20 minutes and covers the same information as an online review.