The present year has changed things drastically for the BPO industry. There were some paradigm shifts and the essence of the business process outsourcing work has changed from a cost-oriented to a quality-oriented framework. Cost, that core element that has fuelled call center growth in third world countries, is no longer the pivot
Call center services that had no meat in them except for low costs fell flat and were run out of business. Companies in countries like USA and UK or other parts of Europe were willing to work with a considerably expensive call center company if they got the right quality. In a consumer-driven market, failure to adhere to certain standards would result in the whole deal collapsing in a heap. Telemarketing services was now depending on the skill and technology of the service providers.
Another trend that worked in 2010 was that BPO companies were not just getting business from the larger business firms, but also from the smaller ones. Mid-level companies and small-sized firms that did their customer service or lead generation from in-house departments, decided to hire call centers for the jobs. They were convinced that the additional expenditure was actually a very profitable investment.
Moreover, they found that it was way cheaper to get these professionals to do it. It saved time, was more productive and there was a certain benchmark of quality in the whole process. From the perspective of the call center units, they had more projects to work on. Depending on bigger business concerns often led to barren spells of little or no work at the telemarketing desk. Such projects also got them much-needed experience in the profession that they are in.
The importance of technology cannot be slighted when you're talking about 2010. This year, the BPO technology emerged in leaps and bounds. The shift was primarily from offline methods to online ones. Call center services were using more of web-enabled software and processes. Reports and statistics could be had online and clients could check up on the sheets whenever they wanted to. Real time reporting was the call of the day.
Technology also advanced to self-service options like Interactive Voice Response Systems. Customers found it easier to look for information through these methods. The customer service department was less cluttered because the customers were looking for specific information and getting what they wanted quickly.
