Five9, a provider of cloud contact center software, announced the results of its recent survey of U.S.-based contact center outsourcers, revealing insights into how outsourcers compete, manage staff and work with clients.
The survey underscores the need for outsourcers to leverage cloud technology solutions that are fast to deploy, easy for agents and supervisors to use, include robust reporting capabilities, incorporate workforce management features, and are reliable and scalable.
When asked what they considered to be their top competitive differentiator, 80 percent said delivering a seamless and superior customer experience that is in line with their client’s brand, tops the list.
There were several key factors outsourcers pointed to that help them achieve this:
- 77 percent noted hiring and training high-quality agents.
- 50 percent said integrating their contact center solutions with a leading CRM system.
- 48 percent claimed using advanced cloud technology.
- 35 percent said tapping into a remote-agent workforce to get non-local, high quality talent.
As an outsourcer, reporting progress and success back to clients is essential to maintaining a positive ongoing relationship. The Five9 survey revealed some interesting insights around how outsourcers measure their effectiveness. Notably, 38 percent of outsourcers expect to implement outcome-based metrics, such as increased sales, improvement in customer satisfaction scores or an uptick in a Net Promoter Score, in the next 12-18 months.
Currently, outsourcers track and report on:
- Calls completed per hour (83 percent)
- Wait time (64 percent)
- Sales (61 percent).
- First call resolution (42 percent)
- Cases closed per hour (33 percent)
In addition to delivering great customer experiences and measuring success, hiring, training, managing and keeping agents is essential to any outsourcer’s success. The Five9 survey found that 38 percent of outsourcers noted agent turnover and retention as their biggest challenge. Also, 40 percent of respondents said they have agents working remotely within the U.S.
When asked about their biggest challenges, being agile and scaling up for new campaigns and seasonality were on the list. Other challenges included:
- Scheduling agents (11 percent)
- Custom reporting for individual clients (23 percent)
- Increasing cost-per-acquisition of new customers (12 percent)
“Companies today often outsource their contact center operations because they don’t have the necessary internal resources or they have a strong desire to focus on core competencies rather than maintaining a contact center,” said Liz Osborn, vice president of product and solution marketing, Five9, in a statement. “This creates a tremendous opportunity for outsourcers to provide significant value to clients; however outsourcing is not without its challenges. Our recent survey uncovered some key insights into the effort involved in running an outsourced contact center; what was really clear is that in many cases leveraging cloud technology can make a big difference in the success of an outsourcer.”