There comes a time in every growing business when the need for a call center becomes necessary to handle the large volume of calls both coming in and going out. Understanding the differences between inbound and outbound call centers will help you determine the best option for your business, ensuring you choose the most efficient option for your needs. Here are the main things that set these two types of call centers apart.

Inbound Call Center

Just as the name implies, inbound call centers handle mainly inbound phone calls from customers and potential customers. Given the nature of these calls, this type of call center tends to be more customer service-based, focusing on answering questions and helping find solutions for customers in need of help. Inbound call centers also deal with complaints from customers, making it imperative that these representatives are very well-versed in company policy, polite, and helpful, since they are the only contact many customers will ever have with your business.

Outbound Call Center

Contrary to inbound call centers, outbound call centers tend to make more calls than they receive. While representatives at outbound call centers also must be helpful and knowledgeable, their main focus is on reaching out to customers and potential customers to make a sale and spread the word about your business. Representatives in these call centers typically work from lists of current or potential customers, allowing them to focus on helping upgrade a service, calling interested customers back to try to make a sale, or cold calling potential customers to earn their business.

The Difference Between the Two

Inbound and outbound call centers are both very important in their own right, and are practically opposites in all functions, the biggest difference being the way calls are handled, whether they are incoming or outgoing. When more than half of the calls within your call center are incoming, your call center will be referred to as an inbound call center, whereas when more than half of your calls are outbound, it’ll be referred to as an outbound call center.

It’s important to identify the needs of your business and determine which type of call center is right for you since the type of call center you have will determine if any special technology or call monitoring is necessary. Inbound call centers can benefit from the use of IVRs (interactive voice response) and ACDs (automatic call distributors), while outbound call centers benefit more from the use of an auto dialer and access to no call lists to avoid unnecessary fines and fees.

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