The Two Most Important Factors in Selecting a Teleservices Vendor

For the last couple of years, the buzz in our business has been on the demand creation side.  Conversion is sometimes lost in the conversation given the advent of new tools to experiment and validate the power of Search. Recent focus on performance and ROI may shift this paradigm back to conversion.

As Google integrates phone numbers into Search algorithms, a phone call through online is now just a click away. And for many companies, that 800 number routes the call to a teleservice vendor.   Picking the tele partner can mean difference between getting the pay off for your hard earned - hopefully wisely spent - marketing dollars, and having to answer for poor program performance results. 

Over the last 15 years, I’ve built telechannel programs for companies such as Xerox, ADP and Merck. I’ve helped companies like Lilly and IBM assess their own programs.  Prior to that work, I was in the business of outsourcing call centers.

What I’ve learned over that time is that of all the variables that can be used to evaluate vendors there are two (actually two and half), that matter most: 1) Senior Management Engagement and 2) Corporate Culture & Core Competency.

Senior Management Engagement

Program performance of a teleservice provider is directly impacted by the engagement of the leadership team in client service delivery. Often times, the senior management team is involved early in the sales process but then “throws” the account over the “wall” to the execution team when the account is won.  

As a result, what gets promised and what gets delivered can differ and negatively impact the program performance.  To help ensure that you are selecting the right vendor, ask the senior executives to define their role(s) in managing client programs and not just the clients themselves.  Be prepared to ask them specific questions related to the KPI’s of your program to test their knowledge of your industry, customers, and products. 

Keep in mind, that if you are targeting a larger partner, the more likely you will not see that CEO again. There was a time when bigger was better, but that is not necessarily the case today. Instead, focus on vendors who are tightly aligned to your industry, customer segment, and the specific task you are outsourcing.  

Corporate Culture & Core Competency

Teleservice vendors often provide multiple lines of service to clients.  This a natural progression of evolving core competencies to match and align to emerging client needs. 

Providing service “adjacencies” such as the customer service group expanding to handle a help desk program is common and can be executed at a high level.   Where vendors struggle is developing new services that require different workflows, hiring profiles, and performance metrics.  An example would be an inbound customer service vendor trying to provide outbound telesales services.    

As a client, you want to match your needs with a vendor’s core competency.  Complete a site visit as part of your due diligence process, it is the most important step in the evaluation process. 

For more information on finding a vendor visit the American Teleservices Association.   For additional research on the industry please click here.