In our world today, all things are digital and phone support places a crucial role in customer service. The bottom line is that if you want to support your customers, you need to have solid call center software in place. Recent studies have shown that 47% of customers say they like to communicate with companies on the phone instead of over online channels. 75% say they enjoy the human interaction when needing support.

Call centers aren’t just large corporations anymore, because modern technology has made it possible for any type of business to set up a call center. Because our modern software powers most call centers and businesses today, more and more people are able to utilize this type of software option.

What is Contact Center Software?

This type of software allows most companies to manage high volume calls from customers across a wide range of channels. From inbound to outbound calls, customers can be assisted as quickly as possible by a suited employee. Call center software focuses mostly on managing cals based on the number called and databases that are involved with the handling of instructions.

Contact call centers are most likely part of a company’s overall customer relationship strategy. Many call center softwares can track and store caller data, making it easy to access previous call histories. This can reduce all average handle times and the small amount of time spent inputting customer data into the database. This type of software is ideal for small, medium and even large businesses and call centers. There are two different types of systems that businesses can utilize.

Cloud-Based and On-Premise Solutions

The first type of system is cloud cased. Within this system, there are two main deployment options that include cloud-based and on-premise. Cloud platforms have become popular, and offer the advantages of outsourcing software and maintenance costs and being easily accessible from anywhere with an internet connection.

On the other hand, more traditional on-premise solutions are usually hardware-based and require either upgrades or maintenance expenses every few years. The benefit of on-premise contact center software is that they are typically located on the same site as the company and are highly customizable.

Omni-channel Contact Center Software

Many products that are found in a contact center are mostly omni-channel, or multi-channel ones. These products are typically cloud-based and have expanded their abilities beyond traditional call center activity. Omni-channel software has the capabilities to handle and integrate customer communications across all potential systems and channels. These can include voice, VoIP, email, fax, video chat, SMS/text, and social media platforms.

Benefits of Utilizing Contact Center Software

There are many benefits of using contact center software, but the ones listed below are the most important.

1. Reductions in average handle time (AHT)
2. Eliminating manual searching
3. Allowing agents to access customer data histories quickly and easily
4. Multi-channel integration which is the ability to collect, store, and share customer data across communication channels. These channels include voice (phone), email, fax, SMS/text, video, live chat, and social media,
5. Intelligent call routing that uses machine learning to connect calls to the correct agents based on previous interaction data and statistics.
6. Digital agents that act as Chatbots, that are enabled with machine learning. They are used to handle more routine or simpler customer requests.

Choosing the Best Call Center Software For Your Business

As we have mentioned, all center software is extremely versatile for any type of business. Today, there are so many different features and benefits at your disposal when choosing this software, but with all of these options, how can you possibly know which one is best for your company in the long run?

There are several factors that you and your business should evaluate when making your decision. Here a list of a few things that you can look into before moving forward with your call center software choice.

Omnichannel Support

If your business is in the market for this type of software, you are most likely communicating with customers across other channels as well. You need to think about if you want to integrate those communication tools like email, live chat, and social media into your call center software, making your business a one-stop-shop for all your customers needs. This will allow your agents to better serve the needs of your customers throughout each stage of the support process.

Call Center Type

What type of call center do you have? By looking at your call logs, do you need software to support inbound calls only? Or do your employees need outbound dialing capabilities?  The purpose of looking over these calls will play an important role on the software you choose. There are certain options that are better for sales, while others are better for customer support, troubleshooting, and ticketing, it solely depends on what you need it for.

Integrations

The best call center software will integrate with your CRM solution, making it easy to make the change and carry on with business as normal. Some options have their own full service CRM system as well, so by choosing one of these providers, you can get an all in one solution for your business.

Pricing

Before choosing a software for your call center or business, it’s important to have a clear understanding of how you will be billed. It gets tricky because not every company lists their prices online. Some service providers will offer free trials of their software, and then will have paid versions which are typically subscription based. Basic cloud-based packages typically start at $10 to $20 per employee per month, with more inclusive plans fluctuating between $50 to $200 per month.

In most cases with most service providers, you’ll pay based on a combination of usage and features. The majority of call center solutions have different plans for different features you need, so you need to make sure to find one that best fits your needs and budget.

Just so you are aware, on-premise contact center software products usually include a one-time licensing fee and subsequent software upgrade and maintenance costs. Most of these service providers do not openly disclose their prices but offer a quote upon request, so it will take a bit of research.

The Best All-in-one Contact Center Software Program

This list that we have come up offers programs with cloud-based solutions, the ability to work from anywhere, and plenty of employee perks.

Five9

This program is an all-in-one contact center solution that is used by big brands like Lululemon, Expedia, Carfax, Omaha Steaks, and DHL. This service provider has been providing cloud-based solutions to businesses for roughly 20 years. Its 2,000+ business customers worldwide manage 5+ billion calls each year. Five9 is completely customizable because it’s built to meet the needs of your business, regardless of your size or industry. The software that is offered delivers crystal clear voice, strong security, and a 99.99% uptime rate.

The top features and benefits of an all-in-one contact center software include CRM integration, call routing, omnichannel support, self-service tools, analytics and predictive dialing. The Five9 contact center is fast, reliable, affordable, and easy to use which is why this is one of the best inclusive software programs.

Call Center Software is Worth the Investment

For every business that provides constant phone support for customers can benefit from this type of software. From startups to large businesses, and all types in between, call center solutions are well worth the price you pay for me. There are so many options out there, but getting in touch with your business can help you choose immensely. By understanding what this software does, and what features you are most in need of, choosing a provider that will increase your business is the best road to go down.