Building A Virtual Call Center

Building a virtual call center is a transformative and highly-profitable process that will turn a standard office environment into a dynamic and collaborative effort that has access to nearly every corner of the world through optimized communication for your virtual call center agents.

What Is A Virtual Call Center?

A virtual call center is a cloud-based contact center solutions practice that requires zero specialized hardware and provides a team of agents the luxury of being spread across the world. 



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Why Does Your Business Need Virtual Call Center Software?

For those familiar with traditional call centers, a virtual call center has no major differences regarding agent work ethic, responsibility, or performance. 

 

The glaring difference is that agents can now assist customers from anywhere in the world using web-based tools and software such as a voip phone system

As the world shifts to a fully remote-working style, industry experts claim virtual call center software integrations will be employed and will continue to overshadow their in-person, on-premise counterparts by maximizing technical support, customer retention, and phone calls

Benefits of Starting Up A Virtual Contact Center

  • Significantly Wider Customer Base & Reach
  • Better Knowledge of Market Demands Per Region
  • Less-Stress For Agents Due To Preferred Working Location
  • Customer Support Offered 24/7 
  • Take Advantage of Different Time-Zones
  • Less Physical Hardware Due To Cloud-Based VOIP Software
  • Fully Rented, Expensive, & Renovated Office Space NOT REQUIRED

Whether a small business or a massive enterprise, implementing these benefits will dramatically increase profits, improve customer satisfaction, and optimize proper workflow metrics.

Benefits of Remaining A Standard Call Center

Benefits For Staying A Standard Call Center:

  • Ability for agents to have more opportunities to interact with each other
  • Less security risks
  • All agents & managers are located in the same building/location
  • Significantly easier for supervisors to manage and monitor agents

Counterpoints For Going Virtual:

  • Using a VPN to decrease internet security risks (scams, cyberattacks, phishing attempts, breaches)
  • Using a virtual meeting platform allows agents and managers to collaborate and communicate as if they were in an office setting; microsoft teams or google voice
  • Significantly more freedom for all employees in a remote-style environment
  • Easier to provide 24/7 customer support using dispersed team in various locations
  • Less costs & expenses than standard call center

Obviously, there are some excellent benefits for working in an office environment, however, there are significantly more benefits going virtual that outweigh the standard in-office counterpart. 

The major benefit is the freedom and flexibility that employees feel with the elimination of commuting and in-office stress. 

Now, employees are more likely to stay employed, increase their productivity, and have more positive interactions with their customers. 

Process of Starting A Virtual Call Center

The process may seem daunting and overwhelming but it doesn’t have to be.

To put simply, there is a checklist of questions and qualifications as an organization that must be thoroughly analyzed before embarking on the journey of transforming your standard call center into a virtual cloud contact center

Changing a call center virtual will dramatically improve every single aspect in a matter of moments once implemented. These easy steps will take a few moments to grasp, but once understood, you can easily begin the process to set up your virtual call center solution

Excluding the most obvious difference, being the shift from physical in-office agents to remote employees, the changes should feel fast, easy, and natural. 

With a new form of call center solutions at the fingertips of your virtual agent, it will give them the ability to reach customers dispersed all over the world.

The entire start up process should be extremely exciting as there are a growing number of companies making the switch to a virtual workforce environment. 

What Is Your Purpose For Starting?

Identifying the purpose, objectives, and goals of the organization is the very first step you must take before making the shift to virtual call centers and a remote team

Countless businesses fail to launch properly without a clear goal in mind on how they want this software to change and elevate their business. 

First, ask yourself the following questions:

  • Why are you making the switch? 
  • What is your purpose?
  • What are the goals of the organization?
  • How do you intend to achieve those goals using virtual software and a remote team?
  • How large (or small) is my business?
  • What industry are you working in?
  • What are the goals and demands of my customer base?
  • How do I create new relationships to grow my customer base?

After answering these important questions, you must distinguish between which call center model you want to follow based on your needs. 

  1. Inbound Call Centers: designed for incoming calls made by customers to answer questions, resolve problems, or assist with order or product issues. These types of calls focus on creating lasting customer relationships and providing an unrivaled customer experience. These call centers are designed primarily for larger businesses.

  2. Outbound Call Centers: specifically made by your call center agent to your clients or customers. The sole purpose is to increase sales or spread awareness about a particular product or service. 

  3. Hybrid-Based: use a hybrid model if you want to incorporate both inbound calls and outbound style calls with your call center. 

Inbound and outbound calling are two separate styles of call center and will depend on the direction which your company wants to focus but both will dramatically improve overall call flow, call center analytics, and productivity of call center representatives while simultaneously transforming a traditional call center into a world-reaching powerhouse.

Setting Goals & Matching Expectations

In order to properly accomplish your goals and match your expectations in this new and exciting industry, it is important to identify 5 key benchmarks your organization needs to keep track of. 

First Call Resolution (FCR)

A benchmark which measures the agent’s ability to solve issues and problems throughout the original call with the customer

First Response Time (FRT)

How long a customer has to wait before they are connected with an agent

Average Handle Time (AHT)

Indicates how long it takes for a team or agent to handle a call by measuring the time when an agent picks up until the call is disconnected.

Average Abandonment Rate (AAR)

The rate of abandoned calls from customers due to long wait times.

Customer Satisfaction (CSAT)

How your customers feel about your services

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Identifying Your Budget

In order to set up any type of business, you need plenty of resources and financing beforehand. What are a handful of the most important expenses when running a call center business

Tools You Must Invest In:

  • A powerful, stable, and high-speed internet connection
  • Salaries for each agent
  • Standard equipment (PC, headset, microphone)

Of course, there will eventually be other expenses you will have to invest in to maximize real-time performance-based metrics

Picking The Perfect Technology

Choosing a voip software which integrates your desired CRM is the perfect starting point as it will give you the foundation to start your journey. Incorporating these solutions will catapult a standard business phone system into world-class virtual contact center software

Here are some common software features an inbound call center should have:

  • Interactive Voice Response
  • Call Routing
  • Call Queuing 
  • Business Hours
  • Caller ID
  • Call Forwarding
  • Voicemail

Here are some common software functions an outbound call center should have:

  • Click To Call
  • Call Monitoring 
  • Call Recording
  • Various Sales Dialers (Auto, Power, Progressive, Predictive, etc.)

Implementing these contact center software features will boost your agent’s performance and productivity more so than using standard telephonyThere are various pricing plans and options available depending on the goals of your business.

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Identifying Potential Talent

Due to everything being virtual, your potential agents can be dispersed all over the world with no borders or boundaries. 

Obviously, the majority of people prefer a remote-style work environment without the stress of commuting. Thus, there will be plenty of potential talent to select once you hone in one the desired traits for your agents.

Choosing patient, knowledgeable, and personable people will dramatically improve overall sales and performance. 

Once you identify those traits in your agents, the process of onboarding will take place to set them up for success. 

We recommend hiring people with the following qualities:

  • Ask Questions
  • Deals With Stress & Pressure Well
  • Commitment & Dedication To Work Remote
  • Excellent Communication Skills
  • Kind, Patient, & Understanding
  • Talented With Tools & Software

It is important to consider that not everyone should work in a remote environment. You need to identify a few qualities that will ensure your agents will mesh well with the virtual working style.

Look for employees with these qualities:

  • Has the ability to self-manage, self-motivate, and work independently
  • Excels in written and verbal communication
  • Performs during a high-flexibility management style
  • Never afraid to ask questions or find answers; no matter how difficult

Improving Virtual Agent Integration Through Training

The performance of an agent is the single-most important aspect of running a virtual call center

 

Agents should understand company culture and the dedication required to creating a positive customer experience at all times. For some businesses, creating a guide to customer service for agents to review before beginning their journey may play a positive role in the outcome of their success rate. 

 

Since agents are fully-remote, and working remote call centers, there will be no office spaces for them to gather and communicate. 

 

Using a virtual phone based communication software tool, such as Microsoft Teams, will allow agents to communicate with each other through video conferencing and touch base on any issues that may be presented to them.

 

Virtual contact centers need the highest-level of personalized training for each individual agent in order to be successful. 

Training can revolve around the way an agent speaks to a customer, what questions should be asked or answered, how to resolve a situation with an angry customer, or when to end a conversation.

Training new hires takes patience, hard-work, and dedication. 

Although it may seem daunting, you will need a foundation to help with the onboarding materials. Here’s how you can help future employees get a grasp on the industry and ensure they hit the ground running.

  • Creates easy-to-follow resources
  • Explain the details of all tools, policies, and procedures
  • Use collaborative software tools to communicate with the entire team
  • Ensure each employee is aware of their position and responsibilities
  • Record virtual training meetings and sessions for future reference
  • Create a positive, encouraging, and low-stress environment for all team members
  • Allow agents to feel open enough to share their feelings about their work
  • Incorporate weekly/monthly meetings with each agent to assess performance and learn from mistakes

Lastly, what will new agents need, at minimum, to perform their duties virtually?

  • Solid Computer
  • High-Quality Headset
  • Softphone

These agents will send and receive calls in various time zones so it’s important to eliminate all background noise to ensure clear communication with every customer to result in 100% call resolutions. Agent training, productivity, and knowledge is critical for performance for all contact center platforms

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IT Equipment Needed To Start?

There is a certain amount of IT equipment needed to work virtually in a call center. 

Having your organization invest in these pieces of technology ensures that agents will constantly stay up-to-date and always on-call during both busy and slow periods.

IT equipment will provide support and quality assurance to your agents, which will ensure it transfers over to your customers.

Here is a list of some necessary IT equipment for a remote-style working environment:

  • A high-quality company-issued laptop w/ built-in apps & tools for performance
  • A charging cord & cable
  • A wireless mouse & external keyboard
  • A dongle for setup (if necessary)
  • Anti-spy privacy screen
  • High-quality microphone for virtual calls & meetings
  • 2FA (Two-Factor Authentication) device

Anything else needed that doesn’t revolve around physical hardware?

  • A solid and reliable high-speed internet connection w/ necessary bandwidth
  • A quiet and comfortable space for making important virtual conversations
  • A location that values privacy where the computer screen in non-visible

Unified Agent Desktop

Our omnichannel contact center solution gives your organization the ability to seamlessly communicate with clients throughout their entire customer journey.

Omnichannel Quality Management

Ensure consistently excellent customer experiences and optimize call center performance with AI-powered OmniQM.

CRM Integration

Track the customer journey with your business on any channel. Integrations with all CRM providers or your own system of records.

Virtual Contact Center Features

No Downtime

Hosting on the cloud means easy setup with high reliability. With Active-Active architecture, experience no downtime no matter what.

Hassle-Free Upgrade

Get access to the latest technology, all at your fingertips. With only an internet connection, gain access to the newest technology.

Omni QM

AI-powered omnichannel quality management allows admins to monitor interactions with live prospects across all channels.

Fully Compliant

High security call center software. Bright Pattern is fully PCI, GDPR, TCPA, HIPAA, and SOC compliant.

Load Balancing

If one call center is overflowing, another call center from across the world can help with the workload.

Global Flexibility

Optimize your contact center operations for your geographic situation, and optimize local and remote resources.

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Quality Assurance for Virtual Call Centers

Boost customer satisfaction, deliver great customer service, and optimize your call center operations.

QM on All Digital Channels

Ensure quality on all channels, like voice, video, SMS, text, instant messaging, messaging apps, social media, and more.

Real-time Access to All Analytics and Data

Get access to call recordings, sentiment data, and CSAT scores instantly in real-time, with no delay despite geographic distribution.

Remote Coaching and Training

Supervisors can easily coach and train agents based on interaction history and data. Ensure high interaction quality no matter where an agent is located.

Powerful Integrations

Microsoft
Zoho
Salesforce
Zendesk
Pipkins
NICE
Aspect
Oracle
Monet

Additional Bright Pattern Features

Frequently Asked Questions

Bright Pattern’s virtual call center software utilizes the power of our cloud technology and omnichannel interactions to power your customer experience and provide exceptional customer experiences. Bright Pattern’s virtual call center solution and call center software is within the cloud. This means that all call center technology and office technology needed to build strong customer relationships and a seamless customer experience are accessible through cloud call center software on a single interface. Customer service teams within a remote call center can work from anywhere and get the job done remotely through a virtual call center software.

With a remote contact center solution as well as an omnichannel virtual contact center solution, Your cloud contact center can power inbound and outbound call center capabilities with ease while being more cost-effective.

A cloud call center solution and customer service solutions can give your customer service call center access to powerful technology. This includes powerful IVRs for omnichannel routing and intelligent call routing, auto dialer, predictive dialing capabilities, automation capabilities, comprehensive CRM integrations, and communications on all channels like voice, SMS, social media, web chat, MMS, chatbot, voicemail, text, smartphones, and mobile applications. Power a full customer experience with customizable features through just a browser.  All this makes Bright Pattern the best virtual call center company.

Bright Pattern’s call center solution integrates with any CRM. Allow your virtual call center to perform lead management with ease, putting customer information right at your agent’s fingertips on the cloud platforms. Whether they’re on a laptop or on a desktop with a headset, call center agents in your cloud call center can utilize integrated CRM within the virtual call center software for better customer experience and workforce optimization. Through CRM, your agents can utilize key customer information within their own desktop on their customer service solutions to deliver great customer service experience. Empower agents and improve agent productivity while making the workflow more efficient in your contact center.

On Bright Pattern’s cloud call center solution, data centers are utilized to securely store data from the CRM, meaning strong and effective disaster recovery and data protection for a secure overall cloud contact center. Bright Pattern’s cloud contact center platform and software solution let’s your call center agents and sales team in your virtual call center effortlessly lead customers and callers through the CX journey.

OmniQM is Bright Pattern’s quality assurance system. Utilizing AI, OmniQM allows for detailed analyses and analytics of every interaction, ensuring remarkable customer experiences with every interaction. OmniQM makes agent management easy, allowing your call center to ensure that a qualified agent is delivering a good customer experience, employee productivity is high, customer connection is being made, best practices are being followed, customer retention is high, and every service moment is impactful.

With Bright Pattern’s real-time dashboards, get supervisors insight into the agent experience and the performance of various teams, like your remote workforce, remote team, sales team, support team, and others. Ensure that idle time is low, average call duration is reasonable, call volume is being handled, hold time is low, agent uptime is high, and the efficiency of your agents is high. With real-time dashboards and monitoring, your supervisors can even intervene at the right time when an interaction is rated as low, allowing them to make quick decisions at the right time on the spot. Previous interactions and scripts with the caller are saved for agent training and can be utilized to create agent scorecards.

Gain the competitive advantage with the best call center platform, be empowered to make quick decisions during inbound customer service, ensure a smooth agent experience, utilize workforce management tools, and find new opportunities to build strong customer relationships in today’s digital world.

Bright Pattern’s intelligent IVR, or interactive voice response system, can be customized with specific workflows to match any use cases and queries that are requested of it. With legacy contact center technology, self-service can be slow and troublesome. The pain of your system can be felt by customers, leading to a negative customer experience for the caller.

With Bright Pattern’s customizable call center systems and intelligent IVR platform, callers can be led through effortless self-service, powered by natural language processing, AI, and machine learning. Utilize technology like AI and machine learning to route calls and customers with queries through an effortless virtual call center with an auto-attendant. Bright Pattern’s IVR can also perform call routing through the phone system with the auto-attendant when the caller wants to speak with a live agent.

Bright Pattern’s phone support system and IVR system also has advanced call distribution (ACD), allowing for a fair distribution of calls to the next available agent or specific agents. With smart call routing, intelligent IVR, an advanced IVR system, and a user-friendly interface for the agents, Bright Pattern provides the best call center tools and best call center solutions to boost customer engagement and transform your virtual inbound contact center.

Leverage a combination of AI, machine learning, call routing with the phone system, and a powerful cloud contact center platform to beat the competitors and gain benefits in self-service and route calls with ease. Get live prospects through the CX journey faster, reduce hold time, and leverage virtual call center software for an effortless customer experience with an auto-attendant.

Bright Pattern’s incredible convenience makes it the top choice for small businesses. Its virtual contact center exists in the cloud, meaning there’s no need for:

  • Hosting
  • Maintenance
  • Upgrades
  • Security

Bright Pattern handles all infrastructure needs so small businesses can focus on providing quality service. You get industry-leading virtual call center services without the massive operations costs.

And since Bright Pattern’s virtual contact center solution is service-based, it’s highly modular. This means you only pay for services you need and can upgrade without interruption at any time. Its flexibility and easy deployment make it the best value for small businesses needing a virtual contact center.

Virtual call center agents provide over-the-phone customer service for businesses. Unlike traditional agents, they can work wherever they want from a home office (provided they have the right equipment). And because firms don’t have to pay for a facility to base agents, they save massive operational costs.

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