Do you have a thriving online business? Is it becoming difficult to manage customer orders, queries, and day-to-day tasks? If so, you might need to consider help. But do you build an in-house team, or do you outsource?
In this post, we look at the benefits of outsourcing your customer support division.
Cost Savings
You’d think that running an in-house team would be cheaper than hiring a team from another company. You’d be wrong. When you manage your own team, you have to build in redundancies and make allowances for annual and sick leave.
You also have to spend time and money recruiting, training, housing, and equipping consultants. Those agents will require benefits in addition to their normal salary.
Outsourcing helps you short-circuit these expenses. You might wonder how considering that the company you hire must allow for all those overheads as well.
Most companies of this nature operate in countries where the overheads and cost of living are a lot lower. They can, therefore, afford to pay their consultants a decent wage while still remaining competitive.
Also, most companies allow you to choose whether you want dedicated support or a shared team. The former option is closest to having an in-house team but costs more. With the latter option, you share your consultants with other companies.
Scalability and Flexibility
Is your business seasonal in nature? Do you have distinct and forecastable peaks in demands? If so, e-commerce customer service outsourcing gives you much-needed scalability and flexibility.
Say, for example, that you suddenly receive an influx of orders and need to upscale your support department. If you have to find, recruit, and train employees, it can take weeks. If you’re working with the right outsourcer, they’ll have trained personnel on standby to assist.
You’ll be able to increase your team capacity in a much shorter period without damaging customer service. Most companies also allow you to scale up your team temporarily before peak periods like holidays. This capability makes it easy to provide support during the busiest periods without blowing your annual budget.
Focus on Core Competencies
You started your e-commerce business because you were passionate about your niche. You love sourcing new products and finding new solutions for your clients. One thing you didn’t count on is how much effort good customer support takes.
If you outsource this function to experts, you know your clients are in good hands. You can then more easily focus on your core business.
Better Customer Service
To outsource customer support makes it possible to offer all the major services your customers might expect as standard, such as:
- 24/7 support
- Multilingual consultants
- Support across a variety of platforms
- Efficient service and high-quality interactions
- Standardized responses give accurate information every time
Offering professional support eases client frustration when issues arise. Expert consultants deal with everything fairly and with empathy. They’re great when it comes to showing the customer that they understand their feelings.
Technology and Innovation
Today, it seems like there’s an app for everything. This is particularly true when it comes to customer service. Just thinking about all the products you might need to properly interact with customers can make your head spin.
You’ll need a tool that allows you to offer instant chat, payment gateways, and customer relationship management software. You’ll want robust solutions that offer data analytics and communication equipment of the best quality.
Partnering with an outsourcing agency gives you access to advanced technology and software. These providers need to use the best programs to remain competitive, so they spend a significant amount on them. This means that working with them gives you access to the same tools for a fraction of the price.
Risk Mitigation
Being non-compliant with the numerous privacy and security regulations today can be extremely expensive. You’ll not only face fines from regulatory bodies but also potential lawsuits from clients.
Working with teams that specialize in customer service can give you access to the compliance expertise you need.
Better Employee Satisfaction
How does customer support work in your company at the moment? If you’re like many startups or small businesses, anyone who can reach the phone in time answers it.
This works well initially because support calls are few and far between. However, when you start to get busier, it’s very frustrating for your team to drop what they’re doing and answer tedious questions.
Outsourcing this function reduces the number of distractions throughout the day. This enables your team to be more productive. They also don’t have to answer tedious questions, so they feel more satisfied with their work.
Conclusion
You shouldn’t take the step of outsourcing your e-commerce support lightly. However, there are numerous financial and practical reasons for considering this step. Working with a partner gives you access to expertise and technology in an extremely
cost-effective manner.
What’s more, it’s a solution that’s easy to scale up or down as you require. The key is to do copious research before settling on one particular partner.
