Too Many Calls, Not Enough Time? Overflow Call Center Services Explained
How much business are you losing due to your inability to always answer the phone? Each call is an opportunity for new business. Phone calls are the lifeblood of a company. Without them, many companies would decline and cease to exist. According to HubSpot, 58% of callers want to discuss pricing, and 54% want to learn how a product or service works on the first call.
These statistics point out why answering each call is critical to the success of your organization. At the same time, making sure every single call is addressed effectively can be incredibly challenging. Many calls go unanswered outside of business hours, which contributes to missed opportunities. Setting up overflow call center services helps ensure that each caller receives a live, friendly person who follows your protocols when call volume explodes, boosts customer service, and protects your brand and your company’s profitability.
We’ll answer some common questions about overflow call center services, like:
What Is a Call Overflow Center?
Businesses set up overflow call center services to support organizations when call volume surges and agents get overwhelmed. Poor agent response hampers customer service, damages brand reputation, and reduces profitability.
Patient calls at a medical center, for instance, can surge at any point during the day. Not answering these calls can disappoint patients and cost doctors business.
With a call center on board, those calls would automatically be forwarded to a live agent, ensuring that you never miss another important inquiry.
What is overflow in a call center?
Call overflow refers to customer calls being routed to a call answering service or outsourced call center during high call volume, call spikes, or after-hours.
How Can Call Centers Help Manage Overflow?
How can a call center manage overflow? Let’s say your company’s marketing department hits a home run. It launched a robust marketing campaign that’s bearing fruit.
As hoped for, the phone begins ringing off the hook. Unfortunately, you didn’t anticipate such a response, which is overwhelming your staff. Callers are getting busy signals, or they get put on hold. That’s when you begin to need a call overflow solution.
Call centers can help you handle this flood of calls by providing instant scalability.
When the surge is over, you can cut back on the call center services. It’s a win-win for everyone—you, your staff, and your patients. It’s a key reason why overflow call centers are great fits for many businesses.
Do I Still Pay Once Volume Drops?
To operate a profitable business, you need to watch every penny you spend. Call centers help you control your costs. If your team is handling all the calls and no calls are forwarded to the service, you shouldn’t have to pay.
Unfortunately, with some answering service plans, the company charges a usage fee whether it takes your calls or not.
If you’re working with the right answering service and have the right plan, you’ll be charged only for the services you use.
What is the 80/20 rule in call centers?
The 80/20 rule means answering 80% of telephone calls within 20 seconds. When increased call volumes make that difficult, overflow management and virtual receptionist services help handle overflow calls.
The Cost of Overflow Call Handling
If you are considering an overflow call center service, it is important that you understand the different pricing models.
These are the most common pricing models for call centers:
- Pay Per Call
- Pay Per Minute
- Tiered Pricing
- Monthly Fee or Subscription
Below is the average pricing from providers for the call center industry:
| Cost Per Minute | Quality | Note |
|---|---|---|
| $0.00 – $0.70 | Low Quality | Expect this pricing for high-call volume or for simple services like message taking. |
| $0.70 – $0.80 | Low – Mid Quality | Higher call volume or priced for simple services like message taking. |
| $0.80 – $0.95 | Standard Market Rate | This is the typical price range for call volume of 500 to 5000 minutes. |
| $0.95 – $1.00 | Standard Market Rate | This is the typical price range for call volume under 500 minutes |
| $1.00+ | Specialized Services | Calls that require specialized agents or the use of third-party software. |
Determining Whether You Need Call Center Overflow Solutions
Savvy businesses rely on overflow call center solutions anytime calls become overwhelming, or an emergency happens, to avoid missed calls. The benefits of such services include:
- Improved call quality
- Reduced hold times
- Reduced call abandonment rates
- Boosted customer satisfaction
- The availability of a 24/7/365 service
- Guaranteed business continuity
- Increased sales
How does call overflow differ from a full-time answering service?
A call overflow service only handles calls when your team is unavailable or when call volume exceeds capacity. A full-time answering service, on the other hand, manages all inbound calls as your primary call-handling solution.
Ensuring Quality Communication When You Set Up a Call Overflow Answering Service
The key to setting up an overflow call center is helping you stay connected and optimizing the customer experience through the provision of relevant, tailored information.
Many businesses experience periodic overflow as part of normal business operations. Your overflow call center helps you handle seasonal or situational overflow smoothly and seamlessly, making sure every call is addressed quickly and professionally.
How does the service know when to take a call? Two scenarios cause your phone calls to forward to the service.
- Alternate Answer: If the call isn’t answered after a specified number of rings, the phone call will be forwarded to the service.
- Busy Call Forwarding: If the phone line is unavailable, the call will forward to the call center. This scenario is typical when there are limited phone lines.
Work with your phone provider and the call overflow answering service to make sure this is in place. If you’ve set up the options above and your phones go out, calls will automatically forward to the service.
Also, make sure your call center can handle emergencies. They can endanger staff, customers, and business assets. Typical emergencies your overflow call center may need to include:
- Threat Situation
- Natural Disaster
- Building Evacuation
- Office Emergency
- Network Outage
- Equipment Failure
- HAZCHEM Emergency
- Meeting Notifications
- PR Crisis
When a crisis occurs, you need two-way communication. One-way communication just doesn’t cut it. Make sure your overflow call center is set up to provide that. Contact methods available include:
- Text Message
- Phone Calls
- Fax
Overflow call centers also ensure that agents follow all your protocols during a crisis, live agents respond to all calls, and you’re available to handle calls 24/7/365, boosting customer service and helping you grow your business.
An overflow call center can also ensure that you can manage and complete critical tasks, including:
- Setting appointments
- Scheduling operations
- Taking orders
- Customer support
- Location referrals
- Messaging staff and customers
Plus, you’ll get reports like alert histories, alert details, and call history that can help you make critical decisions during an emergency.
Often, it takes only an hour or so for your provider to set up emergency services so you can receive calls and respond to customers and staff.
Are You Getting the Most Out of Your Call Overflow Call Center Service?
Overflow call answering makes sense in lots of scenarios. The benefits, however, are heavily dependent on choosing the right service provider.
Start off by making sure you know exactly what your service entails.
Take the time to evaluate everything you’ll be getting out of the service to confirm you’re leveraging all its capabilities and getting the most out of your plan.
Your provider can work with you to make sure you have the right service plan in place that includes overflow call management — a plan that fits your needs specifically.
If you have very specific or industry-centered needs, the right provider can help you create a custom service plan to handle key overflow activities or situational emergencies.
Setting up the right call plan guarantees you get the most out of your service, protects your brand’s reputation, and produces a good return on investment.
Get in touch to learn about our overflow call center service and request a quote.
