Comprehensive Guide to Contact Centre Outsourcing
Customer service is a critical factor that can either make or break eCommerce brands, especially with the
influence of prominent review sites like Trustpilot. To provide top-notch customer service without incurring
substantial costs, many businesses are now considering the option of utilizing outsourced contact centre services.
In this article, we will delve into the essentials of contact centre outsourcing and its benefits.
What is a Contact Centre?
A contact centre serves as a centralized hub where all customer interactions are channelled and handled.
Businesses receive inquiries from customers through various channels, such as telephone calls and emails, and
contact centres are responsible for managing these queries, regardless of their format. Typically, contact centres
are classified into two main types: inbound and outbound.

1. Inbound contact centres deal with customer inquiries, providing advice, information, updates, and
   handling complaints.
2. Outbound contact centres, on the other hand, proactively reach out to individuals, often using phone calls
   for various purposes.
   In the context of eCommerce, a contact centre usually integrates both inbound and outbound functions,
   managing incoming customer inquiries and initiating outbound communications, such as updating customers on
   order statuses.
   What is Contact Centre Outsourcing?
   Contact centre outsourcing involves partnering with a third-party service provider to handle a business’s contact
   centre operations. Rather than investing in the setup and maintenance of an in-house contact centre, eCommerce
   brands opt to delegate their inbound and outbound customer service needs to an external company.
   The Advantages of Contact Centre Outsourcing
   Contact centre outsourcing offers several advantages, particularly for growing eCommerce brands:
3. Cost-effectiveness: Setting up an in-house contact centre can be costly due to expenses like staff salaries,
   equipment, software, and office space. Outsourcing provides cost savings and allows businesses to
   allocate capital more effectively.
4. Improved Customer Experience: As eCommerce brands grow, managing the increasing volume of
   customer inquiries can become challenging. Outsourced contact centres can ensure prompt and efficient
   responses, leading to better customer experiences.
5. Access to Expertise: Handling diverse customer inquiries requires specialized skills, which an internal team
   may lack. Outsourcing to experts in the field ensures professional handling of customer interactions,
   along with valuable insights through advanced data collection tools.
6. Improved Customer Retention: Consistent and reliable customer service, provided by third-party contact
   centres, leads to higher customer satisfaction and increased customer loyalty.
7. Enhanced Availability: Outsourced contact centres can operate 24/7 or extended hours, making
   businesses more accessible to customers, akin to the service offered by major eCommerce brands like
   Amazon.
   The Disadvantages of Contact Centre Outsourcing
   While contact centre outsourcing has numerous advantages, there are some potential drawbacks:
8. Less Control: Outsourcing may result in less control over brand messaging, but effective communication
   with the third-party provider can mitigate this concern.
9. Lack of Industry Knowledge: Choosing the wrong third-party contact centre could lead to insufficient
   understanding of the industry, potentially affecting the quality of service provided.
10. Limited Qualitative Feedback: While outsourcing yields valuable quantitative data, obtaining qualitative
    feedback about service quality or products may require alternative channels, such as email surveys or
    social media platforms.