Asterisk has revolutionized TDM and VoIP telephony in the last decade. It is fair to say that we have no realistic count of the number of Asterisk based PBX, gateways and other VoIP applications running currently around the world. It is certain that this will be a mind boggling number. We are not totally aware of the number of call centers around the world which use Asterisk in some form or the other. Overall it is safe to assume that Asterisk telephony represents a significant percentage of the contact center technology platform as well.
Bandwidth considerations while setting up distributed Asterisk-based call centers
Recurring infrastructure costs become an important consideration while setting up distributed and multi-site contact center operations. This is especially true when you have an MPLS network connecting the different sites. Day to day operations require great degree of centralized control over the call center ACD setup and the bandwidth costs will increase dramatically unless the infrastructure is designed optimally. We will discuss some of these considerations below.
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Distributed Multi-site ACD and Contact Center Setup
The availability and growth of Internet and IP network access has changed the landscape of the contact center industry. Its positive impact is seen in the growing acceptance of SIP and VoIP as well as the expansion of Cloud based infrastructure. This in combination with the ease of access and falling bandwidth cost has created a significant opportunity to re-look at the way multi-site distributed call centers are setup and managed. Continue reading “Distributed Multi-site ACD and Contact Center Setup”
End of line for Predictive Dialing?
Predictive dialing has been an effective tool for telemarketing for the last two decades. For those who may not be familiar with it, it is an automated algorithmic dialing where the predictive dialler software will dial more number of lines (phone numbers) than the number of agents available to handle the calls. The purpose of the algorithm is to minimize the wait time between calls there by increasing the productivity. Should more number of calls connected be more than the available agents, the excess calls will be dropped.
Considerations while selecting Cloud contact center technology
The primary considerations in setting up managed hosted and cloud based contact centers are Technology, Cost and Deployment. The rapid advancements in the use of VoIP coupled with the growth of Asterisk makes the choice of technology more critical. Most systems available in the market are closed Black Box systems with limited flexibility. Deployment as well as growth and flexibility are very costly and painfully limited. Therefore your design and architecture not only impacts the immediate needs but has an effect on your growth, effort involved in future expansion and the on-going cost of running the service.
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Unified Communications from Q-Suite
So often, technology changes usher new products and services that dramatically lower cost and drive out well entrenched, higher-priced competition. We are certainly seeing this trend within the contact center software and technology industry, impacting those whose business model thrives on expensive licensing for in-premise and managed cloud based call center services. The shift introduced by Asterisk in telephony is being carried into the unified communications with the availability of quality ACD software for Asterisk. Contact center industry is the direct beneficiary of this technology change and cost savings.
Managed IP Call Center Service Platform
Managed call center service often referred to as the contact center in the cloud, is gaining market share. Capital cost and the technological complexity of managing call centers are some of the reasons behind this trend. Voice and data service providers see call center as a service, as an opportunity for growth. The confluence of voice and data along with increased use of SIP trunking has created this unique opportunity for voice telecommunication service providers to step in and offer managed IP call center service.
Setting up Managed Hosted Contact Center Service
The expansion and evolution of managed hosted data services and SIP trunking has contributed to the growth of call center as a service. Businesses want to avoid capital investment in purchasing technology platforms to run their call center software. The cost of managing such sophisticated infrastructure is not cheap. The new generation telecom providers who provide SIP trunks and internet services are eagerly capitalizing on this opportunity to offer ACD and Dialer solutions to expand into call center services. The hosted data center providers also see this as a chance to expand into a new service area and offer contact centers on demand.
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Detailed Call Reporting for Asterisk based Contact Centers
Contact center operations demand all sorts of reporting. Though broadly classified as real and historical reporting, it is the level of details that decides the comprehensiveness of the reporting. Starting with CDR (Call Detail Record) for every call, the internal data points of a call center activity database should collect information on call history, agents (contact center representatives), queues and campaigns. These reporting requirements are for more extensive and elaborate compared to what is available for a PBX. Continue reading “Detailed Call Reporting for Asterisk based Contact Centers”
Handling Web Leads through ACD Skills based Routing
Web lead generation through Internet is an important source for customer acquisition. It is critical to assign these leads to suitably skilled agents for callback at the earliest available opportunity. Advanced call center ACD software with skills based routing provide Web services API that allow the leads to be inserted into queues for callback through Skills based Routing.
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