Author: FarmOut Central

TeleResources (News - Alert), Inc. recently published the white paper, “Understanding Telemarketing: A Quick Start Guide to Telemarketing Success.” In this report, the company provides key basics that are important for every call center that performs outbound or telemarketing services.

One of the first things to consider when designing a call center that will perform telemarketing services is the design. This is not to say the design of the building, but the design of the center.

Will it be a traditional brick and mortar building or will it be a virtual center supporting home-based agents? Will it be onshore, nearshore or offshore? And, will it only conduct outbound calls? Clearly defining the design of the call center helps to determine the correct approach to other elements within the center.

Next, the center must consider its most important asset – its agents. The center must be able to clearly define the type of individual they are looking for to fill the role of the agent; the duties that will be assigned to the agent; and what tools the call center will provide to ensure that the agent is able to perform his or her job well.

The call center also needs to consider technology. Whether it is viewed as a blessing or a curse, technology is now essential for the call center. It can help to reduce time and costs, while improving productivity and customer service.

Metrics are very important in the call center arena. A complete understanding of practical metrics and how they are effective is essential to success. The center must also be able to explain the practicality of the offer and the demographics of the market that it is being marketed to in order to be effective.

Costs are also an important consideration in the call center. The organization must be able to figure its return on investment, which is easily the most important aspect. It must also know its telemarketing costs, quality assurance practices, and effective reporting.

Without clear and close attention to these aspects, the telemarketing practices could easily get out of control and cost the organization more than the benefits they are established to provide. Such a contradiction can also lead to unhappy customers that eventually lead to the loss of business.

Susan J. Campbell is a contributing editor for TMC (News - Alert) and has also written for eastbiz.com. To see more of her articles, please visit Susan J. Campbell’s columnist page

Hosted contact center solutions provider Five9, Inc., has announced the appointment of a new President and CEO in a bid to sustain the company’s success as it gains market share in the on-demand call center software market.

With more than eleven years of experience as a CEO, Mike Burkland has joined the Five9 team as President and Chief Executive Officer. Burkland served as CEO for several leading software companies prior to this appointment. Most recently, Burkland ran the Strategic Advisory Practice at ICN, a firm specializing in providing leadership and strategic advisory to high technology companies.

Holding an MBA and BA degree from the University of California at Berkeley, Burkland brings to the hosted contact center solutions provider a proven ability to drive growth and a strategic focus on operational excellence.

“After 3 years of growth enabling Five9 to be recognized by Inc 500 as the twelfth fastest-growing private software company in the nation, Five9 is an established leader in the hosted call center software market with tremendous potential,” commented Burkland in a statement to the press.

“This is a very exciting time for Five9 and I look forward to helping accelerate the growth of the business.”

Source:http://www.tmcnet.com/channels/hosted-contact-center/articles/19557-hosted-contact-center-solutions-provider-five9-appoints-new.htm

Employees in Switzerland are required to work for 2 months before they can leave their current job. Both Singapore and Hongkong, limits this period to only 1 week. Taiwan requires 20 days. Both Austria, China and the Philippines require 30 days/1 month.

Vietnam requires 45 days. European countries like Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland and Luxemborg including Ukraine must give longer notices!

Carol S. Dweck at Stanford University did a study with 400 fifth-graders. Half were randomly praised as being “really smart” for doing well on a test; the others were praised for their effort. Then they were given two tasks to choose from: an easy one that they would learn little from but do well on, or a more challenging one that might be more interesting but might also produce more mistakes.

Two underwater telecommunications cables were damaged Wednesday in the Mediterranean Sea. Sketchy reports say that it was probably caused by the anchor of ships that had drag and then cut the cables.

Estimates say that it may take over a week to restore the service as there is a current weather disturbance in the area. This internet outage has a severe impact on Indian call centers similar to what happened to the Philippines when an undersea earthquake hit undersea cables and cut the links to the US.