To save money, companies are relying more and more on outsourced customer support. Instead of the traditional overseas call centers, there are now more choices for these companies. The choices include: traditional call centers, mobile apps, live chats, service desks, IT. Even customers themselves are utilizing outsourced customer support.

Traditional Call Centers

Customers call in to get support on various issues. The company saves money because labor is cheaper overseas so it’s a win for them. Unfortunately, it’s not usually a win for the customer because there are difficult menus to navigate through as well as the language barrier. More times than not, there is also a lot of transferring between departments and long hold times.  Companies should always try to use call centers with strong English proficiency (or matched to your customer base).
Some of the top traditional call centers include: TeleDirect, 1-888-GO-ANSWER, Five Star, Signius Communications

Mobile Apps for Customer Support

Customers download an app to their device and a third-party takes care of the issue for them. This pretty much allows the customer to type in their issue and walk away until it’s resolved. With the popularity of mobile devices, this is a big win for the customers. 2 popular companies on the market are AirHelp and Service. AirHelp reads through air travel related emails and contacts the airline on the customer’s behalf to get a refund if any of them were delayed on cancelled. Service lets the customer know if their flight is delayed. It also monitors hotel reservations and if a lower rate is found, the app will secure the lower rate automatically.
Some of the other top mobile apps include: Zendesk, Clickdesk, FAQ

Live Chats for Customer Support

A study done by Forresters Research found that 44% of customers preferred to have an online chat while making a purchase. Another study done by ATG Global Consumer Trend found that 90% of customers found live chats helpful. 63% of customers would return to a website that offered live chats according to a study done by emarketer.com. For the business, this again cuts operating costs and could potentially increase sales. Businesses need to hire trained outsourced employees that are highly trained and trained in sales.
Some of the top live chats include: OctaChat, Leads By Chat, Help Squad, Live Chat Monitoring, GreeChat

Service Desks

As with the other online support companies, the service desks can save the company money and give the company the opportunity to focus on other important matters. The disadvantage here is possible customer dissatisfaction mainly due to language barriers.
Some of the top service desks include: Synoptek, Zendesk, Global Help Desk Services

IT Customer Service

IT help desks allow businesses with IT departments free up their time to work on more pressing matters. They are also a benefit for the customers who have issues outside of normal business hours. The representatives are trained in common issues and will be better able to solve the problems.
Some of the top IT providers include: Accenture, TCS, Cognizant, Wipro, IBM
Overall, outsourcing customer support through the above means saves the business money. It appears that while still relevant, traditional call centers may soon be a thing of the past. Customers are looking for a quick, easy, understandable, and painless way to get their issues resolved. Taking the lead with this technology are the mobile apps that allow the customers to simply submit their query and that’s it!

More Reading:
-The Advantages of Outsourcing a Help Desk
https://smallbusiness.chron.com/advantages-outsourcing-desk-15977.html
-CanvasIT
https://www.canvasit.com/
-Do’s and Dont’s of Outsourcing Your Live Chat Support
http://customerthink.com/dos-and-donts-of-outsourcing-your-live-chat-support/
-How To Choose A Live Chat Outsourcing Company
https://www.digitaldoughnut.com/articles/2016/april/how-to-choose-a-live-chat-outsourcing-company
-A Fresh Perspective On Customer Service Outsourcing
https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikhailnaumov/2018/07/11/welcome-to-the-era-of-customer-powered-customer-service-outsourcing/#5a1528b76f17
-Best Call Centers and Answering Services for Businesses in 2018
https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/5473-best-call-center-services.html
-9 Customer Service Mobile Apps worth Trying
https://tech.co/9-customer-service-mobile-apps-worth-trying-2013-11
-Top 10 Best Managed Live Chat Services & Outsource Chat Agent Monitoring 2018
https://bloggerlocal.com/national/reviews/best-managed-live-chat-services-outsource-chat-agent-monitoring-companies
-Outsource IT Help Desk: 5 Benefits of Outsourcing IT – iCorps
https://blog.icorps.com/bid/135253/5-benefits-of-outsourcing-your-it-help-desk-services