These top 5 call center service provider for SMEs will show us why offshore outsourcing is better.

There are a lot of things to consider when looking for the perfect call center service provider for your small business. 

• What is the most affordable?
• Do BPO companies have a minimum?
• Can you just get a small team for your call center service? 

All these questions and more bother most business owners when outsourcing.

In this article, we will discuss the  top 5 US-based call center service providers for SMEs. We will also site some reasons why some small businesses are hesitant to work with them.

Contact Communication

Contact Communication is a US-based call center service provider for SMEs. They specialize in inbound call centers and have been in business for more than 20 years. 

The best thing about this inbound service provider is their seven-day, no obligation free trial. This should be a must for all BPO companies offering their assistance to SMEs. Some of these small businesses do not have experience outsourcing. 

Therefore, they have no idea what will be the outcome when they outsource. Having this kind of option will give them an overview of what’s coming when they consider your service.

Their pricing is also exceptional which starts at $40 per month. Although this is not the most affordable we’ve seen, it is still cheaper compared to most on this list. On top of that, this company is also a HIPAA Business Associate Compliant. It means they will guarantee privacy towards the phone conversation between your business and your clients.

It’s almost like Contact Communication has no flaws whatsoever. So what’s the catch? Well, they have the highest call increment of all companies in this list. They will random every excess call after a minute to 30 seconds. This could significantly increase what you’re paying per month.

Another pain point of this company is their limitation with their service. As an SMEs looking to outsource, you’re looking for a company that can do anything for you. Unfortunately, Contact Communication is not built for flexibility. They’re only focus is inbound call center service.

Signius Communications

Signius Communication is an inbound call center service provider with more than a decade experience  servicing SMEs. Unlike the first on the list, they will charge you per minute. Their rate starts at $0.82/minute depending on your plan.

When you outsource with them, they will not charge you for the basic plan. Besides that, their contract is very flexible as you can change it as your call volume increases or decreases.

They also have a HIPAA compliant certificate for data privacy. Although, they also have few services to offer which are just limited to inbound call centers.

Despite the “no charge” promo for setting-up the basic accounts. There is no option to personalize the service. You need to pay extra if you want to update your agents into an integrated customer relationship management (CRM).

They also have a 12-second increment for their service. Although not as big as the 30-second for Contact Communication, remember that your rate is per minute. Meaning you will definitely pay more unless you control your average handling time (AHT). But, controlling your AHT will result in a horrible customer service experience.

Five Star Call Centers

Among the five call center service providers on this list, Five Star Call Centers has the most versatile service to offer. They’re also the longest running business with more than 35 years of experience under their belt. 

This company offers both shared and dedicated service for SMEs. The pricing of their shared agents cost $0.80-$0.90 per minute. Meanwhile, if you want agents to focus on your brand alone then you can opt for dedicated service. Five Start’s dedicated agents cost $26 per hour.

They have a lot of accolades and awards. Most of them are about being the fastest growing company which is odd when you think how long they are in the business. In addition to that, they also don’t have any information about certification from standardization bodies like HIPAA and ISO.

Despite the flexibility, they have one of the most expensive services in this list. The greatest weak point for this company is their $3,000 monthly minimum. This is not a great start if you’re a start up business with limited funds for outsourcing. 

Besides that, you still need to pay for some services that are normally included in the package. Considering how large their monthly minimum is, this is already a big red flag. For example, you have to pay $26 for training of your dedicated call center agents.

Another unfair trait of this call center service provider is their annual contract. Although, you have a 90-day-opt-out clause which has no cancellation fee. But, imagine if you decided that the price is too much after the opt-out-clause? So maybe this company is not for SMEs that have very little budget for outsourcing.

TeleDirect

If you want to outsource only during peak season then TeleDirect is the perfect company for you. They have no long-term contracts which is great if you only want to use them during times when your call volume is not manageable.

They have a prepaid package of minutes. Their minimum package is 300 minutes for $387 or $1.29 per minute. You can get a refund worth 80% of your remaining time if you choose to cancel your subscription.

TeleDirect is almost 30 years in business. Thus, they manage to provide versatile service to their clients such as inbound and outbound call centers. They also have certification from ISO and HIPPA which is a great attribute especially to ensure safety of your information.

However, you need to maintain a usage of 29 minutes per month to keep your account active. This is not advisable if you have an erratic volume of phone calls which is common for SMEs.

In addition to that, you also need to pay extra if you want to avail some core features that are normally included in the base price. Such core features include phone monitoring and quality assurance. This trait is similar to Five Star Call Centers’ exclusion on their package.

Go Answer

This call center provider is hard to rate because of the limited information available on their website. There’s no telling how many years they are in the business and what affiliations they have. However, some of their features are hard to resist. That’s why we still include Go Answer on this list.

For starters, their shared agent packages are on monthly subscription. On top of that, they have a 30-day, risk-free trial. This is the longest free-trial on this list considering all of these companies provide service for SMEs.

Another good thing about their service is their dedicated agents. They have the most affordable pricing amongst the companies here at $14.50 per hour. They also don’t have tiered service. It means regardless of the package, you can get all the service available for your operation.

In spite of this, you may find their outbound call center service a bit rocky. It is because they need first to study the demographics of your clients before providing an outbound agent for your campaign. Thus, it defeats the purpose of a fast onboarding process and the 30-day trial.

Moreover, they have a requirement team of five dedicated agents working an eight-hour shift before setting up your operation. So, their per-minute usage rates only become competitive if you have a higher call volume.

Also as mentioned, their website offers limited information about any affiliation or certification. Therefore, you need to get all the information you want by calling them over the phone. They don’t have a live chat service that you can contact. Meaning it might take time to evaluate them especially if you are just in the research phase.

Final Verdict

According to the data above, all of the call center service providers mentioned have their own strengths and weaknesses. Depending on the needs of your business, you might need to assess them further or look for other providers.

Call Centre Services Company: Onshore vs Offshore?

All companies mentioned above are US-based call center providers. Hence, prices are naturally higher compared to those outsourcing overseas. 

SMEs outsourcing with US or onshore outsourcing aims to localize the identity of the company. Accent and English-language is a major issue if you offshore your service.

That might be true if you outsource your business in India. They have a proficiency score of 496 which is considerably low in world standards. They ranked 50 out of 100 countries in the world and top 8 in Asia. This country is popular because of the large number of BPO employees. 

Currently, they have more than 4 million BPO workers and most of them are in the IT industry. There are very few agents who work in any voice account because of their thick accent and unconventional cadence when speaking English language.

Meanwhile, if you want a quality service with an affordable price then go to the Philippines. After all, they are the Call Center Capital of the World. They have a high proficiency in English language with a score of 562. They are also top 2 in Asia and top 27 out of 100 countries surveyed.

This data shows that you don’t have to compromise your quality just to get an affordable service. Filipino call center agents are also perfect for customer service because of their patience and empathy towards your customers. 33% of customers abandoned a company because of the agent’s lack of personality.

Call Center Support Services Trends This 2021

If you have a plan to outsource your small business then you need to start immediately. According to a survey, demand for call center companies will go up in 2027. In fact, the estimated revenue during that year will balloon to $500 billion.

This figure came after businesses realized the importance of remote work and customer service during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many corporations tend to find solutions on how to manage remote work while cost-cutting due to lower demands on some products. Thus, they turned to outsourcing as their way of hitting two goals with one action.

The volume of the calls coming might be not attainable in the future. So, many are also shifting into automated processes. The current estimated cost of an IVR technology in call centers is roughly around $930 million. This price could possibly go as high as $3.1 billion in the next decade.

Chat support is also an in-demand service for many SMEs. This industry could potentially grow by 87% next year. As such, you need to find a partner BPO company to assist you before the demand goes up. Make sure to get a third-party service provider with an exceptional chat support agent.

The Best Provider of Call Center Services for Small Businesses in the Philippines

If you’re looking for the best call center service provider for small businesses then try Magellan Solutions. We guarantee that we’re better than the aforementioned top call center companies. Here’s why:

• Pricing. – Our service is SMEs friendly. While those top companies either have a minimum figure or start up price, we will base the pricing of the service on your business needs. We offer shared service which is way more affordable than what Five Star and Go Answer offers.
• Services. – SMEs are normally outsourcing to maximize their potential. Therefore it is not efficient if you partner up with a call center provider with limited service. In Magellan Solutions, we have inbound and outbound call centers to offer. Besides, you can also outsource your back-office function. In fact, you run your business comfortably while we do all the heavy lifting.
• Tenureship. – We have more than 18 years of experience assisting SMEs. While this is not as mature as Five Star and TeleDirect, we have several experiences working with different industries worldwide.
• Affiliation. – We have several certifications from different standardization organizations such as ISO and HIPAA. In addition to that, we have various safety protocols to secure your information. Our technical team is ready for any data breach or phishing scheme.

Contact us today to get a 60 minute consultation with our Business Development Managers with zero charge! On top of that, you can get our risk-free 7 day trial to assess our call center service. Please fill out the contact us form below.