How to Outsource Customer Support to the Philippines

With nearly three million college graduates joining the workforce each year and an English literacy rate of nearly 94 percent, the Philippines fits the bill for many companies' call center outsourcing needs. With research and thoughtful consideration about your own company's service and economic goals, you may find it more profitable to outsource customer support to the Philippines as well.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Lawyer or attorney
• Call center scripts
• Call center statistical data

Outsource Customer Support to the Philippines

1. Review your company's goals and resources. Outsourcing customer support to the Philippines may be less cost-effective than other offshore outsourcing resources such as India. However, its large, fluent English-speaking population may be able to provide higher quality customer service.
2. Research outsourcing firms doing business in the Philippines through directories such as OffshoreXperts.com (see Resources below). You should look for firms which specialize in your specific industry, whether it be technology, retail or manufacturing.
3. Ask for copies of sample call center scripts. After reviewing, confirm whether the outsourcing call center service provider is able to customize the scripts to accommodate your company's individual needs.
4. Confirm the different levels of customer support which may be provided by the offshore call center. Having access to your company's own statistical records regarding the percentage of level 1 through level 5 customer support queries received each year may help you determine if the call center in the Philippines is properly equipped to deal with the level and volume of calls typically received.
5. Talk to the call center service provider about any quality monitoring system they have in place. Ideally, you should be able to monitor calls randomly to confirm that your customers are receiving the level of service consistent with your company's brand and history.
6. Review any contracts with your own company's legal team before accepting a partnership with a call center in the Philippines. Considerations such as duration of contract, consistency of cost as well as quality of service monitoring must be addressed and should meet your company's needs before any contract is agreed upon.

Tips & Warnings

• The Philippines was ranked third in knowledge and information-based jobs in a 2002 Global Technology Index report. For this reason, outsourcing technology-related call center or customer support to the Philippines can be a good fit.
• Talk to your call center service provider about employee retention. A high level should indicate that your customers will receive consistent care throughout the duration of your contract.