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Modern call centers can be focused on outbound calls, inbound calls or a combination of the two. In the case of outbound call centers, organizations may be looking to reach out to the public for telemarketing, taking of surveys, requesting donations, collecting old bills or debts, or similar tasks. The idea is that calls are heading out to contact specific people who are often part of some pre-defined group. Such calls may also be made on behalf of a specific business or client.  This is in contract to inbound call centers, where organizations themselves receive calls from the public for support issues or to answer any variety of questions from consumers.

If a business is on the market for an outside call center provider, there are a few things they need to remember.

Of course, outsourcing outbound call centers service can lead to lower costs. But there is more to the story. Each individual call center agent conveys an early impression of the organization. If the agent is not professional, courteous, articulate and thoughtful – the image of an organization may be hurt. How many people will want to donate to a non-profit if the person asking for the money sounds unreliable?

Flavio Martins, vice president of Customer Support at DigiCert, Inc., explains in an article on Business2Community.com, that there are other key factors businesses should consider before selecting an outbound call center service.

To ensure high-quality agent performance, call center service providers need professional management teams, he said. They need to be able to supervise the professionalism of the agents during their conversations with customers. Tasks need to be clear to the agents, managers should be aware of the time period in which calls are completed.

Agents also need to be evaluated on their performance. Among the metrics to look at is customer satisfaction. Organizations may also want their service provider to only utilize agents who have experience in the field. Other possible criteria include revenue earned by the agent, total calls made and tasks completed in specific time periods, and cost per call.

Of course, the outbound call center service provider should have experience. Among the most important element to this experience is business process outsourcing (BPO), Martins said. It may be worthwhile to speak to other clients and get their impression of the third-party provider.

Also, check to see the technology and facilities used by the service. That means things like number of telephones lines and quality of Internet connections, amount of data storage and backup, availability of data mining facilities, and locations of data centers where data can be restored if crashes occur, Martins said.

Finally, do not be afraid to ask about rates for the service. It should be competitive with other providers.

Going to an outside provider for outbound call center service may certainly make sense for a business. Just proceed with caution.