

Call centers are often put under the same bracket as contact centers. However, the truth is somewhat deviated from reality and shouldn’t be used interchangeably. In reality, call centers are part of a bigger set, namely, contact centers.
Call center agents are trained to primarily handle inbound and outbound calls. Inbound calls are mostly about technical support, complaints, inquiries, delivery related issues, and general customization-based requests while outbound calls focus on cold calling or telemarketing, lead generation, scheduling sample demonstrations, customer retention, and fundraising for charitable institutions.
Call centers aim to provide reliable and timely customer service through a widely perceived channel – the phone.
Contact center agents are part of a bigger system that offers a wide range of services outside of just inbound and outbound calling. From indulging lengthy interactions to catering personalized support and requests, a contact center agent juggles multiple responsibilities across different channels. The channels include phone, email, social media, live chat, and more. Agents are assisted by advanced contact center software, an all-encompassing platform through which they can handle conversations requests pouring in from separate channels.
Contact centers aim to provide an omnichannel customer experience through strategically planned operations.
This new-age era demands every customer to be educated and be aware of the sources that are present for their help. Here’s a list of key differentiators that will lead you to make informed decisions in the future.
Additionally, given the different environments and set-ups, call center agents and contact center agents must be well-versed in certain areas. Call center agents offer customer service via the phone. This is why they should possess good verbal communication skills, a pleasant demeanor while interacting, and presence of mind for tricky situations. Contact center agents provide customer service through text-based mediums such as email, live chat, and social media engagement. Therefore, contact center agents must be good in written communication, possess a sound knowledge of the product/service they are trying to assist about, social media etiquettes, and multitasking.
In recent years, many contact centers include a call center, handling communication through all kinds of digital channels, such as social media, email, live chat, WhatsApp, text messaging, and more. With multiple channels, organizations can collect more data and offer the customers to interact with the brand in their chosen way. Having established that, it is important to note that both call centers and contact centers work towards achieving the same goal which is – improved customer experience.
Authorname Lastname lorem ipsum dolor sit amet
Recent blog posts: