Inbound Call Center Buyer's Guide

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Introduction

Is the potentially peaceful environment of your office constantly interrupted by the ringing phone? Are your employees overextended dealing with incoming sales and service calls? Would you like a more efficient (yet cost-effective) way of dealing with your businesses’ burgeoning amount of incoming calls.

If so, an inbound calling center might be just the solution you are looking for. These call centers employ experts to hand your sales and service calls for you while leaving your office free to focus on other aspects of growing your business. With their years of experience, specialized equipment, and goals of efficiency and satisfaction, inbound calling centers are a great alternative to creating an in-house calling center for your business.

However, not all inbound calling centers are created equal—it may take some research to find the best fit for your business. Let us here at 360Telemarketing help you find the best call center for your business—free of charge. Fill out a single form online about what your needs are and we will make sure that up to five qualified, reliable inbound calling centers get back to you with price quotes.

What is an inbound call center?

An inbound call center is another name for a business that specializes in answering all sorts of incoming business calls. As could (and should) be expected, inbound call centers are adept at handling volumes of calls large enough to sink most in-house call centers. Inbound call centers can help you by handling the following types of calls:

• phone orders
• customer service
• technical support
• inbound lead qualifying
• answering services

Many inbound call centers specialize in one type of inbound calling, but some inbound call centers—known as consolidated call centers—can handle several of inbound calls. If you are looking for more than one of the services listed above, it may be a good idea to consider consolidated inbound call centers, so you can have all of your needs satisfied at a single destination. However, specialized inbound call centers may be a better bet for you if you are looking for specialists in a single inbound calling service area.

Why would I want to outsource my calling needs ?

If your business receives a small amount of calls per month, the argument could be made for an in-house call center. It might be “cheaper”, although the cost could end up being higher in the end—after all, when you don’t have the equipment, experience, and knowledge of trained professionals backing your in-house inbound call operation, who knows what costly problems you could run into! And, if your business receives a large amount of calls then the decision is hands-down in favor of an inbound call center

Why? Because once your call volume reaches a certain point, in order to be effective you would need to upgrade your in-house call center’s phone equipment and software, reconfigure your office and hire new employees. Not to mention, cope with any unexpected changes without the benefit of experience. An inbound call center is trained especially to deal with the fluctuations, difficulties, and challenges of effectively and efficiently managing inbound calls. Hire them to do their business so that you can get back to doing yours.

Not convinced? Keep reading: the following situations are tailor-made for inbound call centers:

• Rapid Growth: Project launches or expansions into new territories can generate a plethora of calls over a very short time period.
• Unpredictable Call Volume: Businesses that receive a dramatic seasonal upswing of inbound calls, or experience unpredictable ebbs and flows of calls throughout the year can often benefit from the flexibility of inbound call centers.
• Testing: If your business is about to get flooded with inbound calls and you have not had time to properly test and implement your own phone system, it would probably be easier to simply hire a call center with an already proven system.
• 24 Hour Service: If your business needs to provide customers with around the clock service and support, consider utilizing a call center that is accustomed to working these kind of hours instead of attempting to acclimate your own office. Chances are, it will be a much less painful process!

What are the benefits of using an inbound call center?

Inbound call centers are a great telemarketing solution for several reasons:

• Their Volume. Inbound call centers can employ hundreds of customer service representatives (CSRs) who are well-trained and experienced in effectively handling a high volume of incoming calls.
• Their Flexibility. Inbound call centers know that customer call volume can vary widely—and are able to add or reassign reps as necessary to your account to ensure maximum service and minimum cost. (Make sure to discuss each call center’s flexibility before signing a contract with them, as each center will have a different way of approaching things.)
• Their Effectiveness. Inbound call centers have the science of taking calls down pat! They specialize in effective incoming call management—and its hard to beat years of experience and training.
• Their Cost. Outsourcing your calls to an inbound call center saves your business the cost of building, hiring, training, and equipping your own staff to do the job. By paying a fixed rate to a call center, you can start making money instead of spending it on initial set-up and continual maintenance fees. (Each call center may bill differently, please ask the call center about their payment policy before signing any paperwork.)
• Their Timeliness. Setting up your own call center takes both time and effort. It could be weeks, if not months, before your business begins seeing returns from the investment. By contrast, an inbound call center can begin taking calls for you literally overnight. If time is of the essence, it may be a good idea to call in the professionals.

What do I need to know about my needs before I look for an inbound call center?

The most important thing to know before searching for an inbound call center is the volume of calls you expect to receive. When figuring your expected volume out, try to be as accurate as possible—as hefty overage charges are often incurred if you go over your specified limit, and also because paying for unused service is unnecessary.

You can discuss seasonal and occasional call volume fluctuation with them so that they are aware of the service you need, and you get the coverage you want at the right price. Many inbound call centers can accommodate fluctuations with their pricing plans as long as it does not come as a surprise.

How do I get the best price on an inbound call center?

The most effective way to get the best price is to shop around and compare both the service deals and the costs of each vendor. While that process can be time consuming and frustrating, here at 360Telemarketing we make it easy to be a smart consumer. Simply fill out a single form telling us about your needs and up to five qualified inbound call centers will get back to you with their bids. 100% FREE, 100% easy, 100% smart. Click here to get started!

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