Self-service key to BPO

By Staff Writer for Consology
Johannesburg, 04 Sep 2007

South African contact centres must carve out specialist niche markets for themselves if they are to compete successfully in the international call centre outsourcing market, says Consology.

"Over the past few years, SA has seen many of its traditional selling points eroded by low-cost competitors in India and other parts of the developing world. Many call centre operations in those countries now operate 24 hours a day, which makes the fact that SA shares a time zone with Western Europe irrelevant," says John Ziniades, CEO of self-service company, Consology.

While SA cannot compete against rivals such as India on pure cost in the call centre market, it can outdo competitors in niche markets, such as assisted service, by offering high-quality services, he says.

"In addition, most Indian graduates speak excellent English, which neutralises yet another of SA's traditional competitive advantages. To stay in the game, local call centre operations need to look for new ways to differentiate themselves."

Niche identified

Ziniades says assisted service is one growing niche market where South African contact centres can compete effectively.

"Assisted service complements electronic self-service channels by giving customers the human support they need to manage their own accounts, perform transactions and interact with companies online."

Says Ziniades: "Companies are moving more and more basic customer interactions over to self-service channels such as the Web and IVR, with the goal of deflecting routine calls (such as bill enquiries, address changes and so on) away from their contact centres."

He says the role of the contact centre is being redefined. "Call centres will increasingly exist to support self-service channels and to cater for complex, high-value customer interactions. South African call centres should position themselves at the forefront of these trends."

Ziniades adds that SA has a number of advantages in the global call centre outsourcing market: a stable economy and political environment, solid infrastructure, excellent English language skills, a sound legal system that respects privacy and intellectual property rights, and a business culture similar to First World countries.

"If we blend those strengths with a focus on specialised and high-quality services for niche markets, the country could enjoy great success as an off-shoring destination."