The Advantages of Outsourcing to Call Centers in the Philippines

“How can I give better service at less cost?”

If you’re in business you know that there’s hardly a day that goes by that you don’t ask yourself that exact question. You know that technical advantages in products and services are fleeting at best but companies who give outstanding service will always have a competitive advantage and remain profitable.

Companies worldwide are discovering that outsourcing here to the Philippines is just ‘smart’ resource allocation. The Philippines recently became the number one country globally in call center operations and there’s good reason for it……

Why pay somebody in one country to do something that somebody in another country can do just as well? Couldn’t those savings be used on other items…on something will generate more sales?

The answer is probably……”Absolutely!”

But first…what are a few of the things that go on in call centers in the Philippines?

Actually, it would almost be easier to list what we can’t do in a call center, but we’ll go ahead and list some of the things we’re already doing anyway:

• Lead generation
• Collections
• Sales
• Customer Care
• Verification Calls
• Surveys
• Help Desk functions
• Data Entry
• Fax Broadcasting
• Market Research
• Website Promotions
• Tech Support
• Fax broadcasting
• Telemarketing
• Market Research
• Email Support
• Appointment Scheduling
• Customer win-back calls
• Customer reactivation calls
• Cross-selling
• Up-selling
• Customer services
• Sales follow-up,
• tech support
• …and more

That’s right….whatever skill you need, we’ve got it or we can find it locally.

The Philippines is a heavily ‘wired in’ country. Although the average Filipino home is not as well connected to the internet as in some other countries (i.e. S.Korea), major cities in the Philippines are well connected….and getting better almost daily.

That makes the Philippines not only a natural trade hub for SE Asia and the Far East but also the most likely source of well trained, English speaking call center workers and staff.

There are many advantage in outsourcing your call center operations to the Philippines but they fall generally into three areas…Technical, Financial and Cultural.

Technical advantages:

The experts are already here…..you don’t have to worry about finding them. When sudden opportunities arise for you to expand, we can quickly design and activate complete call center programs based on your specific needs.

Multi-tiered support structure means that your customers are more likely to get the appropriate service faster. You won’t have your company Sales Manager answering a call from a customer who needs some extra sales brochures.

24/7/365 resources at your disposal means that no matter what time of day or night, the customer who needs some extra product spec sheets for a suddenly scheduled sales trip……he can call up and get them sent out immediately.

We’re already fully equipped. We’ve got everything we need to do the job that you need done. In other words, if you have an opportunity arise that you’re not equipped for…..we’re already able to do it with the latest technology. All you need to do is get the contract!

Have you made a big sale and suddenly have a HUGE service personnel requirement that could be outsourced? We’re instantly available to ‘fill the gap’ so your revenue doesn’t miss a beat!

And don’t forget that not only can you scale up with call center outsourcing…..you can scale down too! All the more reason to make call center outsourcing an integral component of your method of operation.

But let’s talk the language that ‘bean counters’ understand…..the language of money and expenses. How can outsourcing to Philippine call centers make and save you money?

Financial benefits:

• Save time with simpler budgeting and cost control
• lower pay scales than comparable skill in other countries
• Save your big bucks for your front line local salespeople and local service staff….i.e. only pay in US dollars for the people who need to be there while you pay us in our currency at our Cost of Living levels for what we can here.
• Less costly to add specialized functions
• Lower you cost of hiring….we’ve already got the staff here.

Yes, it’s true. By outsourcing more of your call center operations to the Philippines you enjoy a positive cost/quality ratio not available in your home country.

Cultural:

The Philippines has long been a crossroads of the Pacific but it also happens to have the largest number of well educated, English speaking workers and managers in Asia.

Young people in the Philippines are closely attuned to American and Western culture and values because of the country’s early colonial history, close relations with the United States during WW2, and the fact that the United States governed the Philippines from 1898 until 1946.

And that’s not to mention the fact that more and more Americans and Westerners are retiring in the Philippines because of our easy-going lifestyle and low cost of living.

The traditional values of Philippine culture make Philippine call center workers and managers perfectly suited for call center work. Philippine workers have both pride in our country’s history and a friendly disposition towards foreigners and guests.

The Philippines is a country with a healthy attitude towards education too. That means that our workers are and will continue to be highly trained and trainable.

Comparatively high salaries in the call centers for staff and managers makes call centers a very desirable place to work. Thus Filipino call center workers tend be more highly motivated and of more agreeable disposition than call centers workers in India.

Philippine call center workers appreciate their jobs and are not unionized. Labor problems are almost non-existent in the Philippine call center industry.

Future Trends for Philippine Call Center Industry

What are some of the trends that will likely continue to make the Philippines the global leader in call center operations?

The Philippine IT industry is the fastest growing industry in the country and an intense source of national pride. We’re proud that we’ve become the call center outsourcing destination for the world.

More and more companies are outsourcing and using call centers. In America, over 75% of companies outsource at least a portion of the customer resource management…..and the majority of that work goes to Philippine call centers.

The record speaks for itself and the trend is obvious. Recently the Philippines surpassed India as the leader in both call center revenues and outsourcing revenues….a trend likely to accelerate even further due to the growing potential for instability in the Indian subcontinent and neighboring area.

As the entire global economy becomes more delicate, cost control and quality control become more critical than ever before for companies of all sizes. Modern technology means that by understanding and using the professional call center services available in the Philippines smart companies can not only stay competitive but also prosper for the present and into the foreseeable future.