How To Start a Call Center (7-Step Guide)

Starting a call center doesn’t have to be expensive or complicated. Yet, finding a clear starting point can be challenging at times.



There are several key factors to consider, such as the types of calls you’ll handle, the technology you need to put in place, and the regulatory requirements you must be aware of.



With this guide, we aim to give you all the information you need to run a productive and profitable call center.



Let’s start with identifying the type of call center (or contact center) you want to start.



What Type of Call Center Do You Want To Start?



Deciding on the type of call center starts with working out whether you’re best suited to an on-premises, virtual, or omnichannel call center. This first section runs through the costs, pros, and cons to help you make an informed decision.



1. On-premises call center



An on-premises call center operates from a physical location that houses your agents and equipment. It relies on in-house servers and software to support the underlying infrastructure.



This type of call center requires a high initial investment. Not only will you need a building for agents to work from, but you’ll also need to purchase hardware, furniture, and everyday supplies. Your staff will need at least desks, chairs, laptops, and a phone system.



On top of this initial infrastructure cost, you must factor in maintenance, utilities, and IT support costs — these will be ongoing costs needed for the lifetime of your call center.



If you need to add more staff (seasonally or permanently), you will also need to buy the associated hardware and software licenses.



While the upfront costs may be alarming, there are some clear pros to choosing an on-site call center.



Pros Cons Total control over your call center High upfront capital investment Often easier to onboard and train agents Lack of flexibility when scaling Total control over infrastructure Extra hardware needed when new features become available



2. Virtual call center



Virtual call centers  enable call center agents to work from anywhere, often from their homes, using cloud-based call center software.



By accessing a phone and call center setup via the Internet, agents can log in to make and receive calls without being in a physical office. Agents may have either a desk phone or a softphone with a headset.



Cost-wise, your initial investment is lower, as there’s no need for physical office space or on-premises hardware to run the call center. Instead, cloud-based software equips call center agents for accepting incoming calls at scale.



Pros Cons Scalability for seasonality or expansion Reliance on agents’ home Internet connections Lower setup costs Reliance on agents’ home power supply Talent acquisition  from anywhere  Potential collaboration challenges if agents are not used to working from home









3. Omnichannel contact center



A second form of cloud contact center is an  omnichannel contact center . This is similar to the cloud call center, with the addition of extra communication channels, such as email, web chat, SMS, and social media.



Using the same or similar interface, agents handle inbound inquiries from the channels you choose to support. You can choose these channels based on customer behaviors or profiles.



For example, millennials are  more likely  to use text messaging than wait in a call queue. Likewise, if your business serves the elderly, it’s a safe bet that they’re less likely to contact you via social media channels than making a phone call.



No matter which channels your customers choose to contact you on, an omnichannel contact center ties together all interactions so agents have a holistic view of all interactions with each customer. 



So, when Mary calls to renew her online magazine subscription but also sends an email to say she cannot access her account, support reps can access records relating to each communication, allowing them to see that she has completed the payment, and they can reactivate her account. There’s no need to ask for details, unnecessarily frustrating the customer. 



If you opt to support more channels, you will need to pay to support them. Unlike a call center, where there is only one communication channel, some omnichannel contact centers increase in price based on add-ons or provide an overall omnichannel license.



Pros Cons Improved customer experience by offering multiple touchpoints Extra training for handling multiple channels Preferred channel choice for customers based on their own schedule Higher complexity in managing and integrating different channels  Better customer data collection and analysis opportunities Requires more highly skilled agents who can handle multiple modes of communication



What Kind of Calls Will Your Agents Take?



Once you know what type of call center you need, it’s time to work out which calls your agents are going to take.



We typically classify call centers into groups:




Inbound



Outbound



Blended




Let’s take a look at the major differences to help you identify which is most suitable for your business.