How to Build a Virtual Call Center Community
Many companies offer telecommuting as an option for employees. Telecommuting, or working from home, is a staffing strategy that lets employees complete their duties at home rather than at a central office. Call centers increasingly offer telecommuting as an option for employees because it allows the business to lower infrastructure costs and the employee to avoid lengthy commutes. If your business makes use of telephone-based support, marketing or polling operations, it might benefit from having a virtual call center community.
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Things You'll Need
- Telephones
- Data entry software
- Call center management software
- Telephone headsets
Instructions
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Instruct all employees working outside your office to set up a separate telephone line for work.
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Instruct all employees working outside of your state to provide you with billing information from their phone company. That will allow you to cover their long-distance charges or offer some kind of compensation above what you pay the workers at your office, especially if your out-of-state employees call long distance extensively.
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Purchase software and equipment for your telecommuting employees. Call center data-entry software is usually sold wholesale. If you intend to charge your employees for their tools, your business should possess the inventory. Purchase software that has a chat feature because it will be difficult to speak with employees over the phone if they handle a high volume of calls.
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Adjust shifts for time zone differences. Whether you do a political poll, marketing campaign or customer service contract, your workers need to be available at the key hours in the calling locations.
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Maintain constant communication with your employees. A call center can function only if its people work as a team. Use chat and email to keep in touch with employees working in different time zones.
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Tips & Warnings
This procedure applies to organizations using volunteers as well as to businesses. If you conduct a political campaign or poll, use the same procedures for call center management as you would to run a business.
References
- Photo Credit phone. image by Alexander Lukyanov from Fotolia.com
