In the past, developing and implementing the many layers of contact centre infrastructure was a costly investment – so much so, you’d probably plan to keep it in place for several years to see a return. At the same time, the ability to make changes along the way was typically limited, at least not without disruption and putting a lot of resources behind it.
The truth is, with technology advancing at such a rapid rate and customers demanding more from call centres – especially after the pandemic – the ‘build it once, set and forget’ approach is no longer cutting it. Fortunately, the rise of cloud-based software as a service (SaaS) solutions is currently revolutionising the way we build and manage our call centres by addressing some of the biggest pain points that have beleaguered call centre managers for years.
How cloud-based SaaS is changing the game for call centres
SaaS delivered via the cloud allows you to design your call centre infrastructure to achieve complete platform independence – an ecosystem of solutions working harmoniously together without relying on one another. In practice, setting up in this way means you’re free to switch providers or make changes to specific tools and solutions without the whole house of cards falling over or initiating expensive, disruptive, and time-consuming development projects as you might with traditional onsite systems.
Because of platform independence, you also don’t have to take an ‘all or nothing’ approach to bring SaaS into your call centre. For example, you can gain the benefit of modernised solutions, such Oration’s cloud-based call routing system, without going to the time and trouble of overhauling your established infrastructure because it can be configured to overlay your existing system. It also means you’re free to make future changes or upgrade your underlying infrastructure without impacting the continuity of your service to customers.
Capital investment is a thing of the past
Designed to ‘plug and play’, the hard (and costly) development work has already been done for you with off-the-shelf SaaS solutions. What’s more, they’re usually delivered on a cost-per-click or per-agent use model, which essentially means you’re free to immediately access some of the most sophisticated call centre tools and features while you only pay for what you use.
By eliminating the need for huge amounts of upfront capital, SaaS is removing one of the biggest barriers to setting up a call centre for many smaller-to-medium-sized businesses. With flexible and proportionate pricing structures, even the smallest of businesses can now establish efficient call centre operations with only a handful of agents. You can also continue to reconfigure and make changes to your call centre solutions as part of your ongoing pricing plan, so you’re guaranteed to evolve with the times without having to dig deep into your pockets.
Increasing competition is keeping call centres up to date and on the pulse
The rise of SaaS has created a more competitive environment in the world of call centre technology – providers are continually developing their tools and introducing features to attract the attention of call centre managers and solve their problems. Unlike traditional onsite systems which are usually only upgraded after several years, SaaS solutions offer peace of mind that you’re always benefitting from up-to-date technology without having to do the work around it or spend additional money.
With so much choice in the market, SaaS also offers a way for call centre managers to find the most suitable solutions for their specific needs. Without any requirement for commitment and being so easy to implement, it’s entirely practical to run trials across different platforms to determine which solutions will lead to the best outcomes.
Passing back control to contact centre managers
In the past, businesses have had to invest a lot of time and resources into managing their internal IT capabilities and infrastructure – resources that could be redirected to more strategic functions and becoming the business they want to be. The knock-on effect of this is that call centre managers often find themselves spending time overseeing IT projects rather than managing efficient day-to-day operations. On top of this, it’s sometimes hard to see the pay-off for keeping all your IT work in-house because when developers leave the business taking their knowledge with them, it suddenly becomes so much harder to make necessary changes to your tools.
By building your call centre around cloud SaaS solutions, you’ll no longer be solely dependent on internal IT teams or technical knowledge to ensure you continue to get what you need out of your systems. Most platforms, like Oration by Convai, come with easy-to-use toolkits, so you can either develop your own applications or configure their functionality in a way that works for you without expert assistance. In other words, SaaS tools are designed to be used in much the same way as you’d drive a car – you can take your call centre to where it needs to be without needing to know what’s going on under the bonnet because all the heavy lifting is being taken care of by your provider.
With Oration, you can be confident that you’ll be gaining all the potential benefits of using SaaS in your call centre – giving you platform independence, the most advanced call-routing technology, and complete management freedom, all at an affordable price and with minimal demand on your IT resources.
To find out more about how how Oration works, watch the demo here.
Every second your agents spend on the phone is a cost to your business. Ensuring the full breadth of customer queries, issues, and problems are dealt with by the most appropriately skilled agent every time will reduce average call handling times. Meanwhile, Oration’s range of automated call flow features can divert more tasks and calls away from agents without compromising the speed and quality of resolutions for customers.
