Outsourcing is a common and highly-scalable business practice these days, but the partner you choose to shoulder part of your company’s workload will have a direct effect on your bottom line. Even more important, though, the contact center partner you choose will directly affect your customers’ experience with your brand. The upside can be tremendous, but so can the risk.

You need a partner who shares your vision, and you need deep data to track ongoing results.

Why Shared Vision Matters

Trusting a third party with a critical operational component of your business is a big deal. It is typically the Big Fear that makes companies hesitant to outsource something as critical as customer contact. A partner you can trust will provide ongoing, clear communication, explicit accountability standards, and reporting that keeps you in the loop at all times.

That means you need to help your provider understand your company’s vision and values and make sure they speak your language. They must be able to understand your business behind the scenes and interact with customers in your voice (which includes language and overall demeanor). They must function as a seamless extension of your company.

“It is all about the brand,” notes Fred Weiner, CEO of The Connection. “When we take on a new partner, we live and breathe their brand and wind up becoming experts in their culture.” But, it is not enough to talk the talk.

Why Data-Driven Results Matter

You would expect any vendor to provide a consistent, measurable level of service because quantifiable outcomes define how well your relationship is working. Often, they will write service guarantees into the contract, but you can also dictate the terms of acceptable performance. Seriously consider that, because the metrics you use should be aligned precisely with your specific contact center goals, not some “average” formula.

But the right call center metrics are not enough, either. You need access to your performance data in real time, 24/7, in order to monitor progress and make best-informed business decisions. Here at The Connection, clients have "anytime access" to an online dashboard that provides a clear, detailed picture. Reporting everything from the average call time to the number of abandoned phone calls, the dashboard provides an easy-to-understand look at how The Connection is performing.

Going One Step Further

Because the most valuable providers understand their clients from the inside out, they can focus on much more than competitive pricing. They know that your wins are their wins, and that your challenges are their opportunities. They help you in both ways, because when you do well and grow, they do, too.

They stay up-to-date on the latest regulations, rules, technologies, and trends so you don't have to. They inform you of relevant items that could impact your business, including which trends to embrace and fads to avoid. A truly strategic partner has enough experience in your corner of the market that they can leverage lessons learned from serving clients with similar goals and challenges to benefit your business.

In short, they provide not only valuable data collection and analysis but process improvement strategies that can help refine your focus and fuel your growth.

For example, at The Connection, we help clients minimize the number of contact center staff they need as they grow, which controls their overhead costs. If your revenue doubles, you will not have to double the size of your contact center, because we can address many customer issues through web chat, social media, and other digital tools. That enables our clients to expand immediately and seamlessly, without having to invest in expensive new infrastructure or training.

All that builds further trust as well as business opportunities.

The Ultimate Successful Relationship

Strategic outsourcing allows you to expand your vision as well as your team, leveraging external talent and experience to help achieve your goals. But it also requires real-time, comprehensive tracking and reporting that provides detailed data. With that, you can achieve your #1 goal – continuously improving customer experience.