subject: Customer Service Staff: Tips On Finding A Vendor And Getting A Great Outsourcing Deal [print this page] An excellent customer service staff is an asset to any company. If members of the customer service or help desk team do their job well, they help the company keep its existing customers, help encourage repeat business, and help gain new customers through word of mouth.
Customer service, like so many other tasks including web site content filtering or moderation, software development, animation, legal services, web design, and search engine marketing or search engine optimization (SEO) is being outsourced by hundreds of companies around the world to great results. These companies that outsource have found that hiring an independent, offshore company can help them cut down on overhead expenses while maintaining high levels of quality and productivity as well as on time deliveries. Aside from these, outsourcing also lets companies gain access to highly skilled employees, the latest technology, and the latest knowledge and best practices.
Of course, these benefits would only be possible if you are working with an excellent vendor of customer service staff. So choose your help desk service provider well. Consider several vendors; dont just sign up the first service provider that comes along. Check out, at the very least, four vendors so you can have a better idea of the options that you can choose from and you can make a more informed decision.
Always look for a help desk vendor that aims for consistently high quality results. After all, your company always aims to deliver high quality services or products. A firm that has a similar commitment to quality can be a true partner to your business as it grows.
Find out more about the service providers quality assurance methods or strategies. How does the service provider make sure that the help desk team consistently delivers quality results? Ask your potential service providers exactly how their quality assurance process goes. There is usually a quality assurance (QA) department or unit that oversees the entire process. Tasks of the quality assurance unit include monitoring and reviewing calls, checking the notes or call tickets that were done by the customer service representative during the call, conduct or recommend feedback and coaching sessions, and submit assessments if additional training is needed.
The QA team gives ratings on the call handling based on how skillfully the help desk representative handled the call and took steps to resolve the customers issue and how the call ticket was done. In most cases, ratings are affected if the call has been escalated to a supervisory or higher level team.
Its also a good idea to learn more about pricing if you are thinking of hiring customer service staff. Find out how you will be charged. Is it per incident or per call? Per incident pricing usually allows multiple contacts to the customer service team until the resolution of the problem or issue. Per call pricing, on the other hand, charges for every call or contact made, whether outbound or in bound. Per call pricing is usually associated with customer service thats non technical. Pricing options also include fixed pricing which is common among government type customer service contracts and pre minute pricing which is usually used by non technical help desk.
