UK adults hostile to outsourced call centres

Four out of five UK adults feel 'negative' about offshore call centres

UK adults are becoming increasingly hostile to companies that outsource call centre operations overseas, research published today has found.

According to an online study conducted by Harris Interactive between 21 and 26 July 2005, four out of five UK adults feel 'negative' about the growing trend of offshoring call centres, and 55 per cent feel 'very negative'.

The poll of 2,292 adults warned that customers who have experienced an overseas call centre are far more likely to feel 'very negative' towards this trend than those who have not experienced an overseas call centre.

Many adults have negative perceptions despite never knowingly having used an overseas call centre.

Organisations that outsource these services may hope that the concerns are allayed once consumers have experienced the service provided.

However, the survey showed that while 36 per cent of adults who have not dealt with an overseas call centre perceive UK call centres to offer a better service than those overseas, this figure rises to 49 per cent among those who have used an overseas call centre.

"Organisations that outsource call centres overseas may also have to contend with damage to their brand and reputation," said the Harris Interactive study.

"Nearly half (47 per cent) of adults have less respect for companies that outsource call centres overseas, and a slightly larger percentage (50 per cent) do not trust giving their details, such as financial details, to overseas call centres. This may harm productivity as well as reputation."

Only very small percentages said that overseas call centre staff were more friendly (four per cent) or more helpful (two per cent) than UK call centre staff.

The study went on to describe the potential cost savings to organisations that outsource call centres as "huge".

However, with over half (54 per cent) of consumers believing that companies that outsource call centres will lose customers, and almost a third stating that they have either refused to give their business to or have switched away from a company that outsources, these short-term cost savings could turn into long-term losses.

Frances Green, research director at Harris Interactive, said: "Call centres have become part of every day life but outsourcing call centres has caused some controversy.

"Companies need insight into the impact of the decision to offshore on brand perception and reputation, as well as the financial metrics.

"In addition, the research underlines the need for overseas call centres to match the service experience provided by UK call centres, since a good service experience could redress negative perceptions."

Green added that organisations that have chosen not to outsource their call centres because of fears of a negative impact in customer perception have an opportunity to exploit the perceived benefits of this approach.