Canadian Marketing Blog

I Want to Work at a Call Centre!

Today it seems call centres just don’t get any respect. We are loved (when we get rid of problems) yet despised when solutions don’t come quick enough or to our satisfaction. Most of us have experienced these highs and lows. So what makes one call centre stand-out against the others as a great place to work and in turn, a business that will shine? It's pretty simple, really, and those of us in the business, may need to be reminded about.....

These three things:

1. How we treat our front line staff

Treat staff fairly when it comes to life issues; be there when they need some advice; let them know right away when they handled a call really well (they probably just saved a valuable Customer after all); reward them for good performance (a free dinner or event is a very big deal for a Representative who rarely ever gets invited to these things).

2. Fair compensation for the work performed

Check local businesses with similar call centre requirements to make sure you are offering fair compensation (this includes the extras your organization offers such as discounts on your product or service, and benefits - money is a real issue for someone making $10-$15 per hour) - as a result there may be added stresses on the people in your call centre - be sensitive to this and you will come to understand the people in your call centre are actually a very resilient bunch.

3. It’s about the environment

Working in tight spaces exacerbate some of the common "people interaction" problems we all experience (you try having to sit 5 feet away from someone for 8 hours and you soon will realize how difficult this can be to deal with on a day to day basis); brighten up their area with sunlight, add plants, paint, art, let them brighten the area with their own creations; keep your centre extra clean and manage your "problem" people effectively to reduce the stress of others in your call centre (brightening the environment often improves attitudes, your customers will notice this as well).

In October, CMA's Contact Centre Council will be hosting a 1/2 day Best Practices Forum - bringing together senior Call Centre leaders with hands-on experience to share practices that have made a real difference in their Centres - the outcome will be documented and then shared with the call centre industry. If this is something you would like to participate in, please express your interest directly to contactcouncils@the-cma.org.

Loved or despised call centres are here to stay....you get stuck in some problem and the solution is just one phone call away..although sometimes agents don't sound very efficient but most of the issues are usually resolved.....nice post.

Outsourcing Costa Rica? It could be a smart move.

In today’s highly competitive outsourcing market, a closer proximity to the United States , Central Time Zone and Spanish language capability as an added value are now considered almost basic requirements when making a decision on what call center to use for your important project. Leaving this to chance is not even an option anymore.

Many of the offshore call center agents are bilingual in their native Middle Eastern or Asian language which is difficult to the North American ear. Whereas Spanish is more useful and practical as a second language for potential untapped markets throughout the North, Central and South American populations as well as those countries where Spanish is either a primary or secondary language. This aspect alone has made Costa Rica a very attractive “near-shore” outsourcing solution.

Most importantly, you can take advantage of the international tax laws granted to international companies that invest in Costa Rica and its local economy. The potential savings and benefits will make your outsourcing campaign a very wise business decision.

In addition, unlike other traditional call centers, Costa Rica’s Call Center stays focused on managing no more than a hundred person call center, one outsourced or inbound customer oriented campaign at a time in order to properly control quality, performance and positive employee morale. Once capacity is reached at one of our call centers, another location will be created with the same structure and business plan in order to keep our call center results and expectations consistently higher than that of the competition.

Call center software is as important to an outsourced campaign as telemarketing training. Both areas must be secure, reliable and willing to out perform the same competition that you are currently considering. Costa Rica has a very solid infrastructure ,stable democratic government, very competitive labor costs and a call center job pool that is especially attunded to the North American culture. Call center jobs are some of the top paying career opportunities in Costa Rica. This differs greatly from other countries that consider it as a starting position in a dead end company. Turnover at these other locations are five to ten times more than in Costa Rica.The high demand for call center services has provided our company with an abundance of respectable resumes of qualified telemarketers that want to work with and for you.

We encourage you to visit one of our call centers on your next personal vacation or business trip to Central America’s paradise, Costa Rica. While you are here, we would recommend taking an extra day of your trip to visit breathtaking virgin beaches, play golf next to the ocean, try your luck at deep sea fishing, explore tropical jungles, climb a volcano or just relax in natural hot springs. Come and see for yourself why call center outsourcing in Costa Rica is a perfect solution for your growing company and a powerhouse in the BPO industry.

http://www.costaricascallcenter.com/why_costarica.html

There are more then hundreds of agents working in Call Centers. Today in India, the call center companies are growing like anything and the young generation are well attracted by the salary and the good atmosphere in call center.

Young people are doing a good job in call center swith high expectations.

Call centers are giving the growth to the agents. For outsourcing,call centers are playing very good role. The jobs are secure.

In today's business word, call centers are giving golden career opportunities to employee all over the word.

By the newly elected president of the United States, hope that Obama won’t eradicate the call center outsourcing industry and the millions of people who are working behind it.

The global financial crisis or the recession really affects the business industry including the IT, BPO and call center industry worldwide. But these industries are continuously growing and improving. Thanks for sharing the post. Interesting blog.

Even as other countries continue to struggle with their lagging job markets, BPO industry has been continuously opening up employment opportunities. Thousands of young graduates who would have been jobless found employment in Philippine call center that sprouted all over the country in the past few years.

I work for a virtual call center, and I think this is a really good thing. We don't take inbound calls, but there are virtual call centers that do, and if there's more of a need, maybe more will be developed for people who want or need to work from home such as myself.