Understanding Business Process Outsourcing
Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) is a way to contract another company or individual to perform a business process for you. It can be anything from processing credit card payments to providing customer support, accounting & payroll services, human resources management, or marketing work. BPO offers a solution for those that can’t afford full-time employees for every position they needed to fill.
Benefits to outsourcing your business processes.
- You save money on labor costs because you aren’t paying for salaries & training
- Your existing staff will have more time available for higher-level tasks
- You can outsource to multiple vendors, which provides you with more flexibility to find those with expertise in your service areas
- Outsourcing gives your company access to new talent pools and business practices
These same benefits and advantages can be found when evaluating outsourcing customer support for your eCommerce business.
Outsourcing Customer Support
Customer support teams are important because they take up a significant portion of customer interaction both before, during, and after the purchase. If handled in a positive way, these interactions have a huge impact on your business. The customer support team is in charge of addressing any concerns customers might have about the products or services they purchased from you.
For a growing company, customer support is often one of the first processes brands tend to outsource. If you are currently handling customer support in-house, there are a number of reasons why it makes sense for you to outsource this function.
- You don’t have the time or staff to handle your current level of customer support.
- You can’t afford to hire full-time employees to work on these tasks.
- Your company doesn’t handle enough customer interactions to justify hiring 1-on-1 support staff.
Outsourcing allows you to scale up or down depending on demand. You also get access to quality expertise in your particular service area.
What is Customer Support Outsourcing?
Customer support outsourcing involves partnering with another company or individual to handle your customer support interactions. Your outsourcing partner can handle incoming phone calls, emails, or chats from customers looking for solutions to their problems. You also gain access to new talent pools that can provide expert knowledge in customer support.
Call center outsourcing
The most familiar form of outsourcing is for call center support. A company could outsource its phone-based customer service functions to a third party that specializes in this area. The outsourced provider would take calls from your customers over the telephone, then handle billing and schedule appointments for you.
The benefits of outsourcing customer support with a call center provider
In addition to reducing your operating costs, other advantages associated with call center outsourcing emerge. Your business could have access to a broader skillset and a larger pool of resources that it would not be able to otherwise access. Call center providers often have extensive on-site training programs that allow them to quickly train new employees for your company, as well as backup operators in case an immediate need arises. Finally, they can handle overflow calls or last-minute changes (e.g., scheduling) with ease, which reduces the chance of stressed-out employees and unhappy customers due to insufficient planning.
Email ticketing system outsourcing
Another way of providing support is with an email ticketing system: this method of outsourcing customer support allows you to outsource your email-based support. Customers can email questions and receive a response from the outsourced provider, typically within 24 hours. In addition to answering billing and scheduling questions, this type of outsourcing also provides customers with access to a broader skillset and larger pool of resources than would be available internally, as is the case with call centers.
The benefits of outsourcing customer support with an email ticketing system
Additional benefits come from using an email ticketing system. For instance, your business has access to a broader skill-set and a larger pool of resources. Your employees also spend less time on routine queries and are able to focus on more important deliverables. Email ticketing systems provide your customers with a way to contact you 24/7—even if an employee is unavailable. Finally, they can handle overflow emails or last-minute changes (e.g., scheduling) with ease, which reduces the chance of stressed-out employees and unhappy customers due to insufficient planning.
Chat service outsourcing
Another option for customer support outsourcing is chat service: this type of support is becoming popular due to its convenience for customers and cost-effectiveness for companies. This form of support allows your company to have one central place where customers can receive answers around the clock from live operators that can answer their questions thoroughly and quickly. Your business will benefit by having access to superior levels of customer service without requiring an in-house team to provide it.
The benefits of outsourcing customer support with a live chat system
Live chat service is similar to email ticketing systems but provides customers with instant feedback. You can outsource your customer support through a live chat system for cost-effectiveness and convenience. The company you choose may have agents available 24/7. This means complete coverage to answer your customers’ questions. This frees up employees so they can focus on other important work. Outsourced chat CS can handle overflow chats or last-minute changes. Doing so reduces the chance of stressed-out employees and unhappy customers. Other benefits include gaining the ability to offer real-time information about your company and the chance at increased sales.
Problems solved by outsourcing customer support and customer service
Outsourced customer service is a business process that you can outsource and why you should do so. There are many benefits to outsourcing your customer support. These include accessing greater resources and reducing first reply time. However, it’s important not to make any decision without considering all factors first. Let us know if this sounds like something you’re interested in and don’t have the bandwidth to implement right now. Our team at wrrk focuses on providing excellent support solutions that help small and growing eCommerce businesses.
