Customer service matters now more than ever. And with ever-evolving circumstances to contend with, brands must rethink best practices and build new strategies to deliver the best service possible.
When customer service falls short, it can have devastating effects — 86% of consumers have stopped buying from a brand after just one negative experience. But when done right (like through eCommerce customer service outsourcing), your customer service choices can pay dividends — a great experience can drive nearly the same percentage of consumers (80%) to recommend your brand to others. To succeed in today’s competitive landscape, you must take your customer service choices and strategy seriously — which is why choosing the right customer service outsourcing company is critical.
What is customer service outsourcing?
Customer service outsourcing is achieved by going through a quality-driven decision process to access specialists who understand customer service trends, increase customer retention rates and reduce costs. There are many providers that offer these benefits, however with so many options on the market, narrowing your choices down can be a challenge.
To help, we’ve compiled a comprehensive list of this year’s best customer service outsourcing companies. We’ll provide an overview of the key features that each outsourced customer service company offers, as well as some pros and cons of partnering with each service.
Ready to compare the best customer service outsourcing companies today? Let’s go!
Odondo
Let’s start with our company. Odondo is a UK-based, outsourced customer service provider with a distributed, pay-as-you-go approach to scalable, omnichannel customer service delivery. We take pride in having re-imagined the traditional outsourced customer service model, providing a quality, flexible and cost-efficient solution.
Service offerings
- High-quality agents – Because our distributed service model allows for remote working and flexibility, we attract a range of high-quality agents that aren’t restricted by geography or personal circumstances — they’re typically more experienced and educated to a higher degree. We don’t operate a shared service model, so agents work for a single brand and are matched based on their experience.
- Flexibility – Our clients benefit from unlimited flexibility as they can scale services up and down to match demand. This is particularly useful for businesses that experience seasonal surges — for instance, the eCommerce space during the Christmas period or travel companies during the summer holiday season.
- Low costs – Odondo’s pay-as-you-go model means no fixed-term contracts and you’ll only ever pay for what you use. The ability to create a bespoke customer service model where you choose which services you use and in what quantities means you can precisely control your budget on a monthly basis. Furthermore, our distributed model means the overheads attached to traditional contact centres don’t apply to us, and as such, these costs are not passed down to you.
Pros:
- Quality, UK-based agents available 24/7, who will learn the specifics of your business, with multilingual options available
- Flexible model, with full control over spending, no fixed-term contracts and the ability to scale resources up or down
- Will work as a fully outsourced function, or support existing in-house teams
- Best for medium-sized businesses in areas like eCommerce, but the flexibility and scalability make Odondo a good fit for businesses of all sizes
Cons:
- Odondo may not be the best option for companies looking for a one-size-fits-all approach to outsourced customer service, or those seeking agents to provide highly-specialised product support, such as biotech businesses
Sykes
UK-based Sykes has more than 54,000 agents and has been providing customer service support since 1995.
Service offerings:
- EU, UK and US-based agents – Sykes recruits its agents based on traits such as background, skills, education and brand affinity.
- A secure platform – Sykes is HIPAA-compliant and PCI-certified, meaning it can deal with various types of sensitive data.
- Multichannel communications – Agents are prepared to handle phone, email, chat, social channel, smartphones and more. However, 70% of their services are voice-based.
- Strategic advice – Sykes’ team can advise on customer loyalty, CX, lead nurturing and more.
Pros:
- Agents from a number of geographic locations
- Focused on the holistic customer journey
- Flexible and scalable
Cons:
- Mainly voice-based communication channels
Ascensos
Ascensos is a boutique contact centre with a focus on enhancing the customer experience.
Service offerings:
- Omnichannel customer solutions – Ascensos provide a seamless experience to customers across the customer journey through voice, social, text, web chat, video chat and more.
- Multilingual customer service capabilities – They deliver pan-European, multilingual customer engagement with the goal of providing world-class support to your company’s worldwide marketplace.
- Customer insights & analytics – Ascensos draws data at scale from multiple sources to create insights that businesses can use to deliver improved results and meet their objectives.
- Bespoke services & outcomes – They offer bespoke solutions to meet each individual client’s needs.
Pros:
- Multilingual capabilities make it a good fit for brands with a diverse, global client base
- Provides bespoke services
- Provides customer service across various channels
Cons:
- A mix of home-based workers and traditional contact centre workers might not make Ascensos the best choice for brands looking to benefit from an entirely home-based team
VoxPro
VoxPro, powered by Telus International and headquartered in Ireland, provides multilingual customer and technical support solutions.
Service offerings:
- Multilingual customer support agents – VoxPro can provide support via email, phone and chat to customers around the world in 15 languages.
- Dedicated gaming solutions – VoxPro’s parent company, Telus, serves some of the largest game titles in the world with player support, content moderation and games analytics.
- Proprietary chatbot – The TELUS International Assistant chatbot enables brands to enhance their CX operations.
- Help with telesales – VoxPro offers both inbound calls and outbound support.
Pros:
- Technology offerings, such as the proprietary chatbot can enhance customer experience and lower costs
- Multilingual support is a plus for pan-European and global brands
Cons:
- Their speciality is within the gaming and media industry
LiveOps
LiveOps is a cloud-based contact centre headquartered in the US.
Service offerings:
- A virtual flex model – LiveOps’ distributed workforce of independent contractors is a good alternative to the traditional call centre. Their average agent has 15 years of professional experience.
- Flexible pricing model – Billed costs are calculated on a per-minute basis.
- Omnichannel customer service – LiveOps agents are available to connect with customers via telephone, email or online chat.
- Disaster recovery support – Services can be scaled up quickly in the case of unexpected demand.
- Quality assurance – LiveOps’ quality assurance team scores every agent interaction to ensure a great customer experience.
Pros:
- Flexible cost models make sense for many businesses
- Focus on building an experienced workforce and consistent quality assurance can help businesses maintain peace of mind
Cons:
- Agents are all US-based, which might not be the right fit for European brands
UpCall
UpCall focuses on engaging and converting leads through phone, email and text conversations.
Service offerings:
- Sales and lead nurturing capabilities – A team of professional, US-based Upcallers perform sales calls, lead generation and market research on your brand’s behalf.
- Analytics – Intuitive software allows brands to monitor the results of the calls and make future improvements.
- Flexible pricing – A flexible pricing model starting at $1,000, with plans from basic to enterprise.
Pros:
- Potentially a smart choice for SaaS and other service-based industries that are looking for assistance with nurturing leads
- Flexible pricing model
- Provides analytics
Cons:
- Not suitable for brands looking for traditional customer service functions in addition to sales support capabilities
- A US-based brand which may not be ideal for European companies
Arise
Arise is a US-based platform with a 25-year history in the industry.
Service offerings:
- Domestic customer service team – The Arise Platform provides seamless access to over 60,000 work-from-home customer service agents, who are based in the US, Canada and the UK. Their typical agent is 38 years old, college-educated and has significant professional experience.
- Scalability – They offer on-demand support for unplanned volume spikes, ramping up as much as 400% to meet demand. The platform also supports planned flex for annual seasonal spikes.
- Enhanced security – They utilise a tiered security approach, studying best practices, compliance standards and regulatory requirements to enhance their security as technology evolves.
- Omnichannel support – Arise’s agents can provide services via phone (75% of services), text and email, live chat and social media.
Pros:
- A large number of domestic, work-from-home agents
- Flexible services that can scale up or down depending on the need
- Provides omnichannel support
Cons:
- Because they are US-based, they may not understand the European market as well
Sensee
Sensee has been an outsourcing partner for brands in numerous sectors across the UK for the past ten years.
Service offerings:
- An omnichannel services team – The team consists of over 700, home-based UK service agents who are available 24/7 to assist customers via call, email, chat, text or social media. Workers are on full employment contracts, not zero-hour or ‘gig’ contracts.
- Single-brand focus: Advisors work for a single brand, which enables them to get to know more about the products and services and provide expert answers to customer inquiries.
- ISO accredited – Sensee has been approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to provide financial services.
Pros:
- A ‘boutique’ and ethical customer service outfit, with a focus on delivering optimal customer service
- Potentially a smart choice for small businesses and those within the financial industry (such as credit card companies)
Cons:
- Might not be a good fit for large companies or those with more complex needs
Teleperformance
Teleperformance is an omnichannel contact centre headquartered in France that provides tech support, customer acquisition and care, social media and other services.
Service offerings:
- A global customer service workforce – Teleperformance has 330,000 agents in 80 countries, who speak a combined 265 languages and dialects.
- A strong emphasis on omnichannel communication – Agents provide service via phone, email, social media and chat. Teleperformance also offers additional professional services, such as sales support, back-office functions and content moderation.
- Focus on analytics – Teleperformance uses analytics to gain insight into customer behaviour and enhance its services.
Pros:
- A diverse workforce
- Vast language abilities could be a draw for businesses with diverse and global customer bases
- Provides omnichannel support
Cons:
- Might not be the right fit for companies seeking a more personalised approach
Working Solutions
Working Solutions provides customer service representatives from across the US and Canada with a focus on client culture.
Service offerings:
- Multichannel CX – Working Solutions’ on-demand agents offer professional service and support, personalising care to revolve around customers’ issues through email, chat, video, social and phone.
- Sales expertise – They also offer tailored business-growth solutions to maximise the impact of communications channels.
- Analytics – Working Solutions focuses on measuring performance — agent performance is monitored and improved through a proprietary portal.
Pros:
- Might be suitable for service providers with specific or sensitive requirements (existing clients include a care home locator service and a major tutoring chain)
- Provides analytics capabilities
- Provides customer service across various channels
Cons:
- Geared toward big businesses, so might not be the right fit for medium or smaller-sized brands
- Representatives are US and Canada-based so again may not be the right solution for a European brand
Capita
Capita delivers multichannel customer engagement services, focusing on the telecommunications, retail and utility sectors.
Service offerings:
- Seamless multichannel customer experiences – Capita’s 14,500 agents engage in over 100 million multichannel conversations per year from UK-based call centres.
- Customer experience transformation – Based on behavioural science principles, Capita helps clients transform the broader customer journey.
- Remediation, collections services and complaints management – Capita specialises in these services, as well as UK TV Licensing management.
Pros:
- Might be the right fit for brands seeking experts in remediation, complaints and collections
- Could be a good fit for businesses within their speciality sectors
- Provides support across multiple channels
Cons:
- Probably not the right fit for brands that fall outside of their specialist industries
- Brands seeking to benefit from the expertise and flexibility of a totally remote workforce might not be the right fit
Sitel
Sitel is a US-headquartered company that provides outsourced customer service, sales, technical support and other business processes, focusing on large companies and enterprises.
Service offerings:
- Flexible, end-to-end customer experience services – Sitel provides performance management, chat, email and voice-based contact centre solutions.
- Tech tools – They offer chatbots, automation and interactive voice response. They also deploy an AI-enabled data and analytics platform to fine-tune their approach.
- Consulting – Sitel offers customer experience (CX) consulting, process optimisation consulting and data consulting.
Pros:
- Scalable and can be tailored to individual needs
- A streamlined, tech-focused solution
Cons:
- Although they offer flexibility, the company seems much better set up to serve large businesses than smaller ones
- Not as focused on the human element of customer service
Serco
Serco is a UK-based company that operates in public sectors, including health, transport, immigration, justice, defence and citizens services.
Service offerings:
- UK-based customer service centres – 2,000 customer service agents offer 24/7 support.
- Deals with confidential and secure data – Serco handles nearly 10 million calls per year on behalf of government agencies.
Pros:
- Offers 24/7 support
- A diverse workforce
- Good for the public sector
Cons:
- Not likely to be a good fit for organisations in the private sector
- Human-focused with little emphasis on technology
Ventrica
Ventrica is a UK-based customer contact centre, with staff either working from a central location or home.
Service offerings:
- Inbound and outbound calls – Ventrica has both a 24/7 inbound centre and an outbound call centre so that they can provide both customer service and lead nurturing functions.
- Carefully selected customer agents – Ventrica seeks the best ‘brand advocates’ by assessing staff for their suitability, personality and enthusiasm for the products or services. They supplement their assessment and onboarding processes with ongoing training specific to your brand.
- Social media management – Ventrica bills itself as ‘socially savvy’, meaning they focus heavily on managing customer interactions and complaints on all major social media platforms.
Pros:
- Might be a wise choice for those seeking a more personalised approach
- Focus on social media is a plus for digital-first brands
Cons:
- Its focus on social media may not provide the personalised customer service needed to provide a seamless customer experience
Supportyourapp
Supportyourapp was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Kyiv, Ukraine.
Service Offerings:
- Amazon customer support – Supportyourapp provides full-service Amazon Seller support, from Amazon Messages and feedback responses to product listings.
- Inbound and outbound call centres – Supportyourapp offers both inbound customer service and outbound lead nurturing for SaaS and other industries.
- Instagram and social media support – A team of dedicated professionals will engage with your audience, answer and react to messages and comments, moderate comments and help grow follower numbers.
- Variable pricing models – Pricing depends on your needs, but all plans include 24/7 email support and your own team of professionals.
Pros:
- Pricing is flexible
- Provides support on various social media platforms
Cons:
- Does not offer many of the same tech tools and benefits (chatbots, analytics) as others on the list
- Support agents are not UK- or US-based, and they do not operate on a distributed model
Rising above the competition
Choosing the right provider can be a challenge, but we hope this list of the best customer service outsourcing companies has helped you gain some insight into the industry and what is on offer.
Ultimately, it’s about finding the right long-term fit for your business and goals — and often this means seeking a partner who provides scalable, agile services, as well as keeping up with customer service trends. At Odondo, we strongly believe in offering total flexibility to all of our clients, meaning you can scale contracts up and down on demand and only pay for what you use. We’re just as flexible about matching customer needs — we are committed to learning how to communicate on your behalf and providing friendly, knowledgeable agents with the most appropriate backgrounds.
Contract flexibility + Agent flexibility = One of the most agile customer service packages on the market.
Book a meeting today to speak to one of Odondo’s founders to start enhancing your customer service today:
Customer service outsourcing is achieved by going through a quality-driven decision process to access specialists who understand customer service trends, increase customer retention rates and reduce costs.
No! Although these terms are often considered interchangeable, they are actually very different. You can have in-house offshore operations and outsourced onshore partnerships.
Fundamentally, customer service outsourcing is about delegating business functions in order to streamline internal operations and take advantage of specialisation and economies of scale.
Scalability, flexibility, cost-efficiency and high-quality agents.
Correctly executed, outsourcing provides more benefits than costs with the right partner. However, different types of businesses have more to gain from outsourced customer service partnerships alongside in-house teams.
Odondo has been recognised by DesignRush as one of their Top Call Center Companies
Aamir Baloch
Aamir is one of the Co-Founders at Odondo, where he obsesses over the details to deliver a strong and compelling proposition for each of his clients.
Prior to Odondo, he was CTO at one of the UK's largest price comparison websites, with contact centres in the UK and India. In his spare time, he loves reading, politics, tennis, and playing the piano (badly).
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