This may be opening a can of worms, but how important is the location of the call centre? Is it better to go for cheap overheards or pay for quality? What about regional accents?

Hi William.

Very good question. In my experience, it's always best to pay for quality - low overheads, whilst obviously very useful, are nothing if the primary function of the call centre is jeopardised by an unsuitable or under-skilled workforce. Obviously, it's not as 'cut and dried' as this (having shades of grey inbetween) but it is a tradeoff that does crop up from time to time.

As for accents - this can colour your perception of an organisation, and whilst it's important not to discriminate against any regions, ethnic groups or sex, ultimately the person on the telephone is a representative of your company and you want them to be intelligible, coherent and knowledgable. Some accents lend themselves to clear, distinct speech andthat may be something worth considering. However, it's one consideration amongst many.

Hope this helps,

John

Many years ago whilst undertaking my studies in Direct Marketing I learnt about the interetsting aspects of Geodemographics and Phycographics as they relate to targeting suitable prospects. The surprising factor was how people of a like mind and lifestyle will gravitate to the same locations to live.

If you follow the well quoted "people are the most important factor" theme, then this concept of "the right type of staff (based on a structured recruitment profile)can be achieved by targeting the matching geogemographic location. Any assistance you can find in attracting the right people to your Centre is of value.

The other major consideration that location plays in the decision to set up your Call Centre is its impact on the ongoing operational costs. Often organisations look at the short sighted costs of establishing their Call Centre rather than the costs that will continue to repeat year in year out. When planning the right location for your Call Centre it pays to have a good understanding of these ongoing costs.

Staff make up your largets component so finding a source of the right type who are motivated by your offer of employment is a plus. Add to this the benefits your location play in creating ongoing staff satisfaction and you will be working down the right track to keeping your operating costs in check (not to memtion acheiveing something more important "happy & satisfied staff").

We must not forget that these rather complex operation also rely on good communication links, efficient and reliable technology support, access to experienced managment, vendor support for the range of consumerbles and facilities needed to maintain the ongoing delivery of operational functions and not the least quality training services. Location plays a part in achieveing all of this.

Regular studies (both formal and network gossip) would suggest that those operations which did not spend sufficient effort in planning their Centre's now experience more problems. The assessment of a location in relation to supporting the planned operational model and expected organisational aims, goes a long way to achieveing a successfull and sustainable Call Centre operation.

I would be happy to share with you some of my own personal experiences from setting up some 20 Call Centres throughout Australia. The benefits many of these organisations achieved in giving carefull consideration to the best location are still paying off years after their decision.

I can also send you a copy of one of my location assesment reports which outlines the important criteria you should be thinking about in making the location decision.