As your business grows, the thought of outsourcing some of your services will come to mind. However, It can be quite difficult to give up some control and entrust your services to a third party. Also, by choosing the wrong BPO partner, you could risk dropping the quality of your services and ruin the expectations you have built for your customers.

On the other hand, by partnering with a reputed BPO, you will be able to focus on the core functions of your business, increase productivity, save costs, scale business operations and boost ROI.

By knowing what to look for, you are more likely to make an informed decision and choose a trusted BPO partner. This article aims to help you do just that by listing some simple tips.

Let’s quickly go through them, shall we?

1) A Successful Track Record

Let us begin with the most obvious thing you need to look for first. Any BPO you decide to partner with has to have experience and history in their field. By gauging their history and track record you will be able to make the right judgment calls.

But can you trust in the fact that they will deliver? Can you leverage their history and expertise for the growth of your business? You will need to research their track record by considering the following factors:

• Look for comprehensive case studies and references
• Check for client testimonials
• Ensure that the BPO’s track record is relevant to your industry
• Is their level of experience is relevant to your business
• If possible, get in touch with their existing clients

2) The Right Infrastructure & Technology

The top BPO’s have the best infrastructure and implement advanced technology in the services they offer. Ensure the call center you opt for offers the same.

They must possess the baseline for advanced infrastructure elements such as speech analytics capability, robotic process automation (RPA), machine language (ML), social media monitoring, call recording features, chatbots, and virtual queues.

Also, check if they offer multi-channel support (email, chat, and voice). Lastly, the BPO must have the right infrastructures in place to ensure that phone traffic flows correctly at all times.

3) The Native Language & Timezone Availability

Call center agents who can speak your customer’s native language can go a long way in maintaining customer loyalty.

In fact, 74% of customers are likely to continue using your services if the after-sales support is provided in their language. Ensure that the call center you opt for offers multilingual support.

Also, ensure that the BPO is culturally aware of your target audience. This way, they will be mindful of common holidays, understand references better, and build a good rapport with your audience.

Next, make sure that you choose a BPO that can provide services in the same time zone as your target audience. Your best bet would be a BPO that is available for your customers 24/7, 365 days a year!

 4) Security Protocol & Procedures

As you search for call center partners, don’t forget to emphasize on security. Ask questions about the center’s software security and what measures will be undertaken to ensure data security.

The best BPO’s will always have a security plan in place and know how to reply to these questions. Avoid the ones that don’t.

5) An Analytics Emphasis

Many BPO’s will provide the reports of their work for you, such as call volume. However, only the best ones will collect and provide insightful analytics with valuable data.

Your partner should have a combination of some of the points mentioned below:

• Customer call satisfaction rate
• Call escalation rate
• Average time in queue
• Percentage of calls blocked
• Speed of answer
• Call abandonment rate
• Average call duration
• Call resolution rate

Before zeroing down on a partner, you can ask them for a sample analytics report. This way, you can evaluate the effectiveness of their work.

6) An Efficient Training Program

Make sure that the BPO you choose has an efficient employee training program in place. The outsourced agents working for your company need to be educated and skilled with best calling practices. You need to look for the following traits:

• What is the training system like?
• How will your call center partner communicate with agents in the case of a program change?
• Can they handle internal monitoring well?
• How does their incentive system work?
• How do they retain experienced staff?

Furthermore, the onboarding process should also involve a proper introduction to your business, value proposition, and products/services.

7) The Right Cost

Lastly, the cost has to be right. The ideal BPO partner will be the one who can provide top-notch services without breaking your budget.

However, once the call volume increases, affordable costs could be less favorable. The right BPO partner will have a cost structure that grows with your business. It will begin with affordability, but as your profits increase, the costs will scale up naturally.

Keep in mind, even the best BPO partner that offers all the above-mentioned points will not bring long-term value if their costs are too high for your business model.

We hope you have gained noteworthy insights from this blog. If you are looking for a reputed BPO partner, then your search ends here. With over 18+ years of experience, KServe is a leading BPO provider that checks all the above-mentioned points.

When you partner with us, you will gain access to a pool of resources, the latest technology, and highly skilled management that will cater to your business needs.

If you want to know more about our services, feel free to connect with us. Our team will get in touch with you and sort all your queries.