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Glossary – Call center

Call center

Nikiforov Alexander
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What is a call center?

A call center is an organization that handles incoming phone calls and conducts outbound calls to customers. The staff at this center answer consumer questions, provide consultations, help with order placements, and sell products and services. A call center can operate as a division within a company or as a separate organization offering its services to other businesses.

Large companies often receive a significant number of calls, making it impossible to handle them solely with an office secretary. Sales managers need to focus on their core tasks, so the creation of a call center becomes a necessity. Specialists at this center work with phone calls from potential clients and partners, and some companies choose outsourcing to delegate call handling in order to save internal resources.

The image shows the company Smarter, which provides outsourced call center services, where employees work in a large open office, each at their own computer and wearing headsets, which facilitates effective communication.

Differences between a call center and a contact center

The term "call center" emerged at a time when the telephone was the primary means of communication. To quickly resolve issues, customers would call companies. However, with technological advancements and the rise of messaging apps, contact centers emerged, which handle incoming messages through various channels, including email, messaging apps, website chats, and social networks.

As a result, traditional call centers are becoming less common, and companies strive for efficient interaction with customers across all available channels. In some cases, the terms "call center" and "contact center" are used interchangeably, referring to a division that engages in primary interactions with customers and partners via both phone and other communication means.

For example, the contact center services provided by "Rostelecom" include customer support, technical assistance, and phone sales, as well as offering a single platform for communication across all popular channels.

Why and who needs a call center?

A call center addresses several key tasks for a business, including:

  • Increasing the speed of call handling;
  • Saving time for specialists and relevant staff;
  • Improving customer service levels and communication quality;
  • Gathering information about customers;
  • Enhancing the effectiveness of sales and marketing.

There is an opinion that a call center is only necessary for large companies. However, both small and medium-sized businesses can benefit from using a call center. Outsourcing call centers offer affordable rates for small companies, which can be more cost-effective than handling calls independently and training employees.

Companies may need a call center in the following cases:

  • When there is a high volume of incoming calls;
  • When unqualified consultations are required;
  • If there is an online store with an active flow of customers;
  • When booking time slots is necessary.

What do call centers do?

The primary task of a call center is to communicate with customers and partners, as well as to gather and analyze information obtained during calls. Call center employees often work from pre-prepared scripts that are tailored to various tasks, such as selling new products, providing consultations, or inviting to events.

Call centers generally operate in three main areas:

  • Handling incoming calls;
  • Making outbound calls;
  • Collecting and analyzing call data.

Incoming calls

Specialists handling incoming calls address the following tasks:

  • Identifying the customer's issue and redirecting the call if necessary;
  • Providing initial consultations on products and promotional conditions;
  • Supporting the purchase process, including checking availability, processing orders, and returns;
  • Receiving complaints and inquiries from customers;
  • Providing initial technical support.

Outgoing calls

Outgoing calls may be directed at solving the following business tasks:

  • Informing regular customers about new promotions and offers;
  • Reminding about service appointments;
  • Communicating new service conditions;
  • Searching for new clients through cold calling;
  • Conducting surveys and polls to gather feedback;
  • Updating the client database.

Collecting and analyzing call data

To improve service quality, call centers engage in the following activities:

  • Recording and listening to conversations;
  • Gathering call statistics;
  • Recording customer data in a CRM system;
  • Analyzing sales scripts and scenarios to develop recommendations.

How do call centers work?

Modern call centers use IP telephony to transmit calls over the internet. To enhance operational efficiency, additional services are connected:

  • PBX (private branch exchange) for managing call flows;
  • CRM system for storing customer data;
  • Programs for monitoring and analyzing calls.

Integrating these systems allows for optimizing the process for both customers and operators, ensuring quick information provision and reduced wait times on the line.

The call handling process looks as follows:

  1. The customer calls the company;
  2. The provider translates the number into an IP address;
  3. The PBX directs the call to an available operator;
  4. The operator receives information about the customer and the script on the screen;
  5. The time of the call is recorded, and the conversation is recorded.

Composition and structure of a call center

The number of employees and the structure of a call center can vary. A small department may only require 3-5 operators, while large outsourcing call centers may include thousands of employees. The main roles in call centers include:

  • Operators: work with customers and must possess excellent communication skills;
  • Supervisors: oversee the work of operators and the achievement of KPIs;
  • Managers: organize work and interact with external clients;
  • Technical specialists: monitor the functioning of equipment and software.

Call centers and artificial intelligence

Organizing the work of a call center requires significant expenses, including purchasing and maintaining equipment, paying operator salaries, and training them. With the development of artificial intelligence, it has become possible to automate routine tasks using voice assistants. These programs can recognize speech and act as consultants, allowing operators to focus on more complex issues and reducing costs.

AI technologies also assist in analyzing calls, recognizing both the content of the conversation and the emotions of the speakers. This allows for improving service quality and providing operators with recommendations based on customer behavior analysis. Often, users are not even aware that they are interacting with artificial intelligence rather than a human.