Do you really think a call center is the same thing as a contact center?

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As a career-long direct marketer and operations leader (primarily Direct-to-Consumer), is it just me or do you think there is something incorrect about using the terms “call center” and “contact center” synonymously?

Here are the wikipedia definitions:

A call centre or call center is a centralized office used for the purpose of receiving and transmitting a large volume of requests by telephone. A call centre is operated by a company to administer incoming product support or information inquiries from consumers. Outgoing calls for telemarketing, clientele, product services, and debt collection are also made.

A contact centre or contact center, also known as a customer interaction centre, is a central point of any organization from which all customer contacts are managed. Through contact centers, valuable information about company are routed to appropriate people, contacts to be tracked and data to be gathered. It is generally a part of company’s customer relationship management (CRM) strategy. Today, customers contact companies by calling, emailing, chatting online, visiting websites, faxing, and even instant messaging. This includes supporting social media communication channels.

Do you still think that a “call center” and a “contact center” are the same thing?  If we dive deeper than just the definitions above and crawl under the hood of the two types of operation, here are a few of the significant operational and investment differences that exist between them:

1. Technology & Tools
2. Hiring & Training of Personnel
3. Compensation of Personnel
4. Operational Culture & Workplace Environment
5. Complexity of Processes
6. Cross-Utilization of Workforce
7. Potential to Impact Consumer Experience
8. Database & CRM Analytics Requirements
9. Value Proposition to the Enterprise

Are call center and contact centers related?  Absolutely — and I’m not suggesting one is better than the other.  The purpose of this blog is to highlight that there is a difference, and in many cases a BIG difference between the two types of operations.  The key from an organizational perspective is to make sure to define exactly what you need from a contact strategy perspective — and have an overall CRM strategy so you have clear definition on what you need and are trying to accomplish.  This is for sure:  if you build a call center but expect contact center results & ROI, you will fail every time.  Save yourself the pain, and make sure you know which operational resource you need — and invest appropriately. 

…Just my two cents

Related Articles

• Contact Center Conference & Expo 2011 Commences (prnewswire.com)
• Technical Aspects of Starting a Call Center (enhanceprofit.wordpress.com)
• Contact Center Goals for 2011 (customerthink.com)
• 21st-Century Business: Corporate Culture as Antidote to Contact Center Attrition (fredzimny.wordpress.com)
• Does Your Call Center Produce Revenue? (customerthink.com)
• What’s It Like to Work in an Indian Call Center? (readwriteweb.com)
• What Is Your Contact Center’s Mobile Strategy? (customerthink.com)
• 5 Ways to Maximize Call Center Sales (croweconsultinginc.com)
• Integrating social media into cross-channel customer relationships (rossdawsonblog.com)

~ by Brad Lindemann, MBA on March 28, 2011.