A contact center is designed to handle inbound and outbound calls as well as digital services such as email, chat, and more. Given that contact centers offer additional channels of communication beyond calls, they have quickly made call centers obsolete. There are two types of contact centers: onsite and cloud-based. This article will highlight the differences between the two to help you decide which one is right for you.
The Differences Between Onsite and Cloud
The classic on-premise contact center predates the cloud and as such was the only choice businesses had at the time. However, with the relatively recent introduction of cloud contact centers as a service (CCaaS), businesses now have a choice. What choice your company makes could have a significant impact on customer satisfaction. So when choosing between an on-premise or cloud contact center, you should ask yourself, which one will provide a better experience for my customers?
Location
Onsite contact centers are centers that have a physical location. It can take months before a physical location is set up and fully functional. These types of contact centers are subject to the time zone and the cost of doing business in that area. In addition, on-premise centers usually require a hefty investment in hardware, customer service software, and extra employees to perform maintenance.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, you have cloud contact center solutions. CCaaS solutions move the physical contact center onto the internet. Since the software and services are provided by a software as a service (SaaS) provider, it takes only a short amount of time to get up and running. Once the service is ready, contact center representatives can field customer questions from anywhere.
A commonly overlooked benefit of CCaaS is the effect it can have on your hiring efforts. With an onsite contact center, you’re locked into finding new team members locally. When using CCaaS, representatives can respond to customers from anywhere. This means you won’t have to restrict your hiring efforts to the surrounding area. You’ll be able to focus solely on finding the best candidates.
Scaling Resources
A constant problem that faces most onsite contact centers is keeping pace with increased customer traffic. Customer traffic ebbs and flows throughout the day and year, creating peak times and seasons. The only way to keep up is to predict when these highs and lows will come. If your on-site contact center makes an incorrect prediction, it could lead to you under- or overspending on resources.
CCaaS eliminates this problem by allowing you to scale your resources and workforce when needed. This function can help streamline the process and help you save money on operational costs.
Multiple Channel Communication
One of the biggest benefits of a cloud contact center is the multiple channels your customers can use to get in contact with you. The SaaS vendor providing your CCaaS will be able to deliver services such as:
- Private Branch Exchange (PBX)
- Advanced Interactive Voice Response (IVR)
- Automatic Call Distribution (ACD)
- Computer Technology Integration (CTI)
- Text
- Webchat
- Social Media
These features can be implemented in an on-site contact center; however, it’s expensive to add these features to an already existing infrastructure.
Improve Your Customer Service With CCaaS
Affiliated Communications has been building contact centers for our clients since our inception in 1984. Our tried-and-true formula for creating a customer-centric contact center will help you cut costs, increase efficiency, and improve customer satisfaction. Give us a call today!
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Plano
800 Jupiter Road
Suite 200
Plano TX, 75074
Phone: 972-852-4000
Houston
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Houston, TX 77073
Phone: 281-442-9797
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2105 Donley Drive
Suite 300
Austin, TX 75758
Phone: 512-977-8787
