7 differences between a call center and a contact center and which is better?

The main difference between a call center and a contact center lies in the communication method and overall experience. But before getting into the specifics, start by understanding what these terms actually encompass.

What is a call center?

Call center is an office setting where agents handle incoming, outgoing, or combined telephone calls. Historically, they had on-premises hardware, tightly coupled to the telecommunications infrastructure to send and receive high-volume calls. These calls are most often directed towards taking orders and providing customer service.

In this framework, call centers have been around since at least the 1960s – and perhaps earlier – after the invention of the first automatic call distribution (ACD) systems, which allocated incoming calls to multiple agents based on availability or expertise.

Call centers have traditionally focused on reducing costs by reducing the number of agents. They encourage agents to complete calls faster and answer more calls per day. In some cases, Call centers have installed interactive voice response (IVR) systems, but IVRs are often focused on preventing customers from talking to a live person. These factors cause frustration and lead to poor customer experience (CX).

What is a contact center?

Like a call center, a contact center handles incoming and outgoing calls, but also serves customers through digital service channels. Contact centers provide all the same benefits as Call centers, but they are more likely to use cloud services and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) to allow people to communicate on the channel of their choice. These channels often include text messaging, web chat, email, and other digital options.

Additionally, all of these channels are part of the same integrated system. So, while customers can engage according to their preferences, they can also switch to new channels without disrupting service. Contact centers create a consistent brand image, no matter where the conversation begins or ends.

The industry's shift from call centers to contact centers didn't happen overnight. It's been a slow evolution as consumers demand less service over the phone and more through digital options. But the shift has become more pronounced over the past decade and continues today.

However, simply adding channels other than voice calls is not enough to start calling your customer service office a contact center. So with these concepts in mind, here are Seven key differences in Call center vs. contact center.

1. Voice vs. Voice Service Channels Digital

As mentioned above, the number one difference between a call center and a contact center is the customer service channel. Call center agents communicate mostly by phone, while contact center services can include text, web chat, video chat, social media, email and more.

Each of these channels is supported by advanced technology and can be operated from each agent's desktop. For example, programs like SMS Assistant allow customer service representatives to type texts on their computers that are sent to a person's mobile device. As demand for telephone services declines and demand for other channels – especially text – is on the rise, these digital solutions offer much better CX.

2. Predictive and Proactive Customer Service

With new tools and analytics, customer service can do more than just answer incoming requests. Paying attention to buyer behavior makes it possible to reach out and answer questions even before the call comes in.

While this can be done in a Call center, in practice, it doesn't work very well. Outgoing messages from Call center agents are sent via telephone. If the agent has someone's house number, they may leave during the day. Plus, cellphone users are increasingly wary of answering unknown numbers, so outgoing voice calls are often ineffective.

Contact center solutions allow customers to choose how they want to stay in touch, making proactive communication an effective way to reduce costs and increase loyalty.

3. Empowering Self-Service

The differences do not end with agent interactions. Many call centers and contact centers use automation through IVR. IVR functions as a digital assistant that operates over the telephone via vocal commands or keypad entry. While Call center IVR designs make it difficult to talk to live agents, contact centers design their IVRs with their brand and CX in mind. This helps predict the caller's intent and direct the caller to the best agent, or resolve the caller's needs without involving a human representative at all.

In the contact center, self-service can also be carried out via two-way text messages, keyword-based or with chatbots. Whatever the method, self-service decreases the time agents spend on the phone, which reduces costs and wait times.

4. More Engaged Customer Service Representatives

Everyone wants to feel that their work matters. In a Call center, that's not always the case when frustrated customers start screaming or making rude comments. By cutting wait times and letting people interact on the channel of their choice, the experience will be more enjoyable for consumers and, therefore, for agents.

Clients who invest in easy-to-use, intuitive self-service channels like their website or IVR will find that agents need to respond to fewer basic questions. However, that means the average inbound call becomes more complex. Providing dynamic agent scripts, integrating with CRM or backend systems and building a knowledge library can arm agents with the answers they need to make it a great experience for customers.

And in some cases, workforce engagement management tools track employee behavior and assist in the hiring process, ensuring the best people are on the front lines for your business.

5. Individual Customer Profile

Every time a customer contacts your business, they share personal information about their preferences and behavior. If that interaction occurs over the phone in a Call center, agents can track that data, but digital channels make it much simpler.

Contact center software aggregates all customer data from all channels into a single customer view, which businesses use to offer predictive services or suggest new products. Customers engage differently on each channel, so with more channels comes more data. This data is available every time a customer connects with your contact center, enabling exceptional service during every interaction.

6. Advanced Routing to the Right Agent

With that customer information, it's easier to direct customers to the most appropriate representative or group. This is possible for Call centers and contact centers. The difference follows from point number 5 above. Contact center software pulls data from multiple channels, making it easier to predict where calls, texts, web chats, etc. are going. Furthermore.

Nobody likes to spend extra time explaining their problems. They also don't want to be moved multiple times during the same call. Contact center software enables faster and more accurate business routing than ever before.

7. Better and Consistent Customer Experience

Lastly, with effective employee training, customer profiling, and CX strategies, exceptional experiences are possible with Call centers and contact centers. When customers pick up the phone or go online, they expect a certain level of service from whoever responds.

In the contact center, where interactions come from phone calls, texts, and a variety of other sources, some might think that creating consistency is impossible. But contact centers consist of interactive solutions that are truly connected in a comprehensive technology ecosystem. The system remembers interactions within one channel, even if the customer chooses a new channel at a later time. It gives customers much more freedom than with a Call center model, and every interaction becomes part of a larger customer journey.

Call Center vs. Contact Center: Which is Better?

The main difference between a call center and a contact center lies in the name. Call centers allow customers to call, while contact centers keep you connected through any customer service channel.

With these seven differences, you can become an expert in the call center vs. customer service debate. contact center and ensure your business has the best communication solutions for your customers.