Using state-of-the-art technology is a
great way to take your business to
the next level. That goes for every aspect from the corporate network to the
call center. Today’s state-of-the-art call
centers are virtual operations.
A virtual call center and virtual call
routing is more of a call center technology deployment strategy than it is a product that you can go out and purchase.
The strategy starts with choosing the
right call center ACD (automatic call distribution) platform, then incorporating
the features you want and need, such as
skills-based routing, multi-site presence,
centralized administration and remote
workers capabilities.
“Every forward-thinking manager should
at least consider the virtual call center,”
says Michael White, the senior vice president responsible for information technology infrastructure and call center technology at InfoCision Management Corp.
The virtual call center strategy gives
enterprises unlimited flexibility when it
comes to call center capacity. You can
staff an inbound program to the bare minimum level when a client has low call volume and instantly handle spikes during
high call volume situations by linking
agents from several call centers together
to create one large virtual call center.
Using the same technology, you can reach
beyond brick-and-mortar call centers to
work-at-home agents.
Smart Business spoke with White about
virtual call centers, how to set one up and
how they can enhance your business.
How does a business begin to set up a virtual call center operation?
It starts when a business needs to have
agents in multiple locations handle calls as
if they were all in the same location.
Traditionally, if a call center had more than
one location, it would have an ACD at
each location. This approach would sometimes prevent the call centers from routing
calls seamlessly to the best person available to take the call. With advancements in
technology, many vendors began creating
systems that allow centralized hardware
still manage distinct groups of agents as if they were all in the same room.
What advantages can a virtual call center
bring to an organization?
A virtual call center allows calls to be
routed to specific communicators based
on performance, skills and training, ensuring that the best person is utilized when a
customer or donor calls. This, coupled
with the ability to quickly scale up the
number of people on any given program,
keeps abandon rates low while putting the
best communicators forward. By looking
across all locations for an agent with the
appropriate skill to handle the call, you
are not bound by the physical location or
ACD hardware at that location. For example, if you have 10 inbound calls come in
and only three agents available at the
main call center, the technology will look
for other agents in other locations who
are logged in and available with the skills
to handle the calls.
Is call center virtualization expensive?
Again, call center virtualization is more
a strategy than a product, so with proper
planning and technology, there could
actually be a cost savings by eliminating
hardware in multiple locations. There is
also the potential reduction in technical
support needed at each location. In many
cases, administration tasks can be centralized. The economics relate directly to
the impact of having the best person
available handing a call versus the cost of
having callers sit on hold in one call center while agents sit available in another
center. For organizations that are struggling through those types of challenges,
the concept of call center virtualization
can have a huge impact on operational
efficiencies.
Are there certain businesses that benefit
more from a virtual approach?
That’s definitely one area where this can
be a huge advantage. The ability to secure
two to five agents from multiple locations
or to have agents log on from home to
help handle a late-night call volume spike
is much easier with a virtual call center
strategy. If snowstorms or inclement
weather prevent agents from coming into
the office, they can remain home and handle phone calls just as if they were in the
office. If the cost of office real estate prevents you from running a traditional
brick-and-mortar call center, virtualization can give you the ability to create an
operation that is as large as, or even larger, than a traditional operation.
MICHAEL WHITE is the senior vice president responsible for information technology infrastructure and call center technology at
InfoCision Management Corp. Reach him at (330) 668-1400 or [email protected]. In business for 25 years, InfoCision
Management Corp. is the second largest privately held teleservices company and a leading provider of customer care services, commercial sales and marketing for a variety of Fortune 100 companies and smaller businesses. InfoCision is also a leader of inbound and
outbound marketing for nonprofit, religious and political organizations. InfoCision operates 32 call centers at 13 locations throughout
Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. For more information, visit www.infocision.com.
