Employing the services of customer support outsourcing services companies is a smart move for retail businesses.
The retail industry is one of the most competitive markets almost anywhere in the world. The average annual retail industry growth rate from 2018 to 2022 is projected to be approximately 3.58%. This is due to the total retail sales worldwide rising from $23.56 trillion in 2018 to a $26.69 trillion forecast in 2022.
In retail, there is almost no off-season, not even the most challenging times like the global pandemic can stop it from thriving. In fact, there was a digital sales boom, especially for online retail businesses in 2020, when people looked for ways to get their needs without leaving the comforts of their own homes. The trend where consumers use the internet for all their shopping needs will continue to strengthen and grow the promising online retail business industry, especially with its potential to cater to a larger audience globally.
To stand out from the rest and continue to prosper their business, most successful brands invest in capable and competitive customer service outsourcing companies to handle clientele requests and complaints, margin pressures, and peak seasons. Many retailers have opted to outsource their customer support team.
Outsourcing customer service offers many benefits to business owners. They can save on costs, leverage multiple channels of communication, and their service can give more coverage, 24/7/365. Startup companies need to free up as much time and energy, as they can now focus more on growing their business.
While there are many pros to customer service outsourcing a team to handle support, there are also some pain points to watch out for that can make or break the business. With the right offshoring strategy, these cons to outsourcing can be addressed.
On-brand Customer Care
Your company’s idea of customer care quality may differ from what your outsourced customer care provider offers, this means that some approaches may not be aligned with your brand’s core values and policies. Depending on your industry, some customers both old and new may have high preferences, expectations, and certain sensitivities.
To get ahead of this challenge, make sure that you lay down your brand’s non-negotiables, especially in terms of your vision, identity, and goals. Get an outsourcing solutions partner from the Philippines who has your company culture in mind when recruiting resources for your business. Look for a provider with an offshore model that goes beyond traditional outsourcing in the level of control you have over your offshore team. You deploy your processes and manage resources, running it just like your other remote teams.
Collaboration Setbacks
Working with a team in a different location or country is not the easiest route. Brand disconnection is inevitable. In the beginning, you can struggle with turning your outsourced team into a strategic partner who collaborates and goes beyond the duty of just taking orders or listing down complaints from clients.
Offshoring encourages a culture of cultivation which results in creating a team invested in your company. Hiring intermediary managers can empower you to gain more control over your remote team. The right leadership and training can shape an offshore team into high-performing, productive, and collaborative members of your business working towards a common goal.
In addition, choosing offshore companies in the Philippines will give retailers access to the latest technology and robust infrastructure at a more cost-efficient rate compared to local rates.
Language Barriers
One major concern when outsourcing from other countries is the language barrier. Some employees whose first language is not English may still have minor difficulties understanding colloquial conversations as they are only well-versed in using the language for business communication.
Thankfully offshoring customer support teams in the Philippines is a smart and reliable solution. The Philippines is one of the largest English-speaking nations in the world. A lot of highly-educated Filipinos speak English fluently, they also have a neutral accent that makes it easier to be understood by international clients. The Philippines is the third largest English-speaking country in the world, proving it to be ahead of its neighbors and competitors.
There are pros and cons to all the decisions you make in your business. What matters is you understand the ins and outs of your chosen trade and you make a choice based on a well-calculated resolution. Despite having risks in outsourcing a customer service team, it is proven that there are ways to turn it around.
Satellite Office is your premium outsourcing solutions provider, and the trusted partner of many companies in successfully establishing, building, and managing a dedicated offshore team. Our offshoring model also suits positions across various functions in Customer Service Outsourcing & Sales, Digital Marketing, Creative Design & Content, and IT & Software Development.
Stay ahead of the competition and get in touch with us for a free assessment.
