Contact Centre as a Service (CCaaS)
We have expertise in Contact Centre as a Service (CCaaS), and an in depth understanding of the capabilities and features available between the various cloud contact centre solutions. We can provide consultative and project managment services to support your needs. If you’re considering replacing or upgrading your existing contact centre solutions, whether they are on-premise, privately hosted or a cloud solution, we can help you assess your requirements, document your strategy, engage the contact centre partners and CCaaS solution providers, identify the best solution to meet your needs, and support you in delivering a successful end to end transition project.
If we can help please get in touch.
Below are some standard questions we receive from our clients:
* What is CCaaS?
Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS):
CCaaS is a cloud-based solution specifically tailored to meet the needs of customer service and support operations. Unlike UCaaS, which focuses on internal communication and collaboration, CCaaS is designed to optimise customer interactions and enhance the overall customer experience. CCaaS platforms offer a range of features and capabilities, including automatic call distribution (ACD), interactive voice response (IVR), omnichannel support (voice, email, chat, SMS, video and social media), workforce management, reporting and analytics.
The primary objective of CCaaS is to empower organisations to deliver superior customer service and support by streamlining contact centre operations, improving agent productivity, and enabling personalised customer interactions across multiple communication channels. With CCaaS, businesses can efficiently manage inbound and outbound customer communications, track and analyse customer interactions, and optimise contact centre resource allocation to meet service level agreements (SLAs) and performance targets.
CCaaS is a cloud-based solution specifically tailored to meet the needs of customer service and support operations. Unlike UCaaS, which focuses on internal communication and collaboration, CCaaS is designed to optimise customer interactions and enhance the overall customer experience. CCaaS platforms offer a range of features and capabilities, including automatic call distribution (ACD), interactive voice response (IVR), omnichannel support (voice, email, chat, SMS, video and social media), workforce management, reporting and analytics.
The primary objective of CCaaS is to empower organisations to deliver superior customer service and support by streamlining contact centre operations, improving agent productivity, and enabling personalised customer interactions across multiple communication channels. With CCaaS, businesses can efficiently manage inbound and outbound customer communications, track and analyse customer interactions, and optimise contact centre resource allocation to meet service level agreements (SLAs) and performance targets.
* What are the differences between CCaaS and UCaaS?
When discussing modern day business communication methods two key acronyms are references, CCaaS (Contact Centre as a Service) and UCaaS (Unified Communications as a Service. While both are cloud-based solutions designed to enhance communication and collaboration within organisations, they serve distinct purposes and cater to different aspects of business operations. The key differences between CCaaS and UCaaS are:
- Focus
CCaaS is geared towards optimising customer interactions and enhancing the customer experience, while UCaaS focuses on internal communication and collaboration among employees.
- Features
CCaaS platforms provide features specifically tailored to contact centre operations, such as ACD, IVR, and omnichannel customer support. In contrast, UCaaS platforms offer a wide range of communication and collaboration tools, such as voice calling, video conferencing, and instant messaging.
- Users
CCaaS is utilised by customer engagement and support teams to manage customer interactions, whereas UCaaS is used by employees within an organisation, to facilitate internal communication and collaboration.
- Objectives
The primary goal of CCaaS is to optimise customer service operations, improve customer satisfaction, and drive business growth through superior customer experiences. Whereas, the use of UCaaS is to improve internal communication, enhance collaboration, and increase productivity among employees.
- Focus
CCaaS is geared towards optimising customer interactions and enhancing the customer experience, while UCaaS focuses on internal communication and collaboration among employees.
- Features
CCaaS platforms provide features specifically tailored to contact centre operations, such as ACD, IVR, and omnichannel customer support. In contrast, UCaaS platforms offer a wide range of communication and collaboration tools, such as voice calling, video conferencing, and instant messaging.
- Users
CCaaS is utilised by customer engagement and support teams to manage customer interactions, whereas UCaaS is used by employees within an organisation, to facilitate internal communication and collaboration.
- Objectives
The primary goal of CCaaS is to optimise customer service operations, improve customer satisfaction, and drive business growth through superior customer experiences. Whereas, the use of UCaaS is to improve internal communication, enhance collaboration, and increase productivity among employees.
* Which are the popular CCaaS solutions?
Here is a list of some popular CCaaS (Contact centre as a Service) solutions:
- 8x8 provides a cloud-based CCaaS platform with voice, video, chat, and contact centre capabilities. It offers advanced features such as analytics, collaboration tools, and CRM integration.
- Amazon Connect is a cloud-based contact centre service from Amazon Web Services (AWS) that offers omnichannel communication, self-service options, and analytics capabilities. It provides scalability, security, and integration with AWS services and third-party applications.
- Cisco Webex Contact Centre (WxCCE) is a cloud-based contact centre solution that offers omnichannel routing, workforce optimisation, and analytics capabilities. It provides integration with Cisco collaboration tools and business applications.
- Five9 is a cloud-based contact centre platform that provides inbound and outbound call routing, IVR, predictive dialling, and workforce management (WFM) capabilities. It offers integration with CRM systems, business applications, and telephony providers.
- Genesys Cloud CX is a cloud-based contact centre solution that offers omnichannel routing, workforce optimisation (WFO), analytics, and automation capabilities. It provides scalability, flexibility, and integration with CRM systems and business applications.
- NICE inContact is a cloud-based contact centre platform that offers omnichannel routing, workforce optimisation (WFO), analytics, and automation capabilities. It provides scalability, reliability, and integration with CRM systems and business applications.
- RingCentral Contact Centre is a cloud-based contact centre solution that offers voice, chat, email, and social media channels, as well as workforce optimisation (WFO) and analytics capabilities. It provides integration with RingCentral's UCaaS platform and other business applications.
- Talkdesk is a cloud-based contact centre solution that offers omnichannel communication, AI-powered automation, and analytics capabilities. It provides customisation options, scalability, and integration with CRM systems and business applications.
- Twilio Flex is a programmable contact centre platform that allows businesses to build customised contact centre solutions using APIs and pre-built components. It offers flexibility, customisation, and scalability for businesses of all sizes.
These are just a few examples of CCaaS solutions available in the market. When selecting a CCaaS supplier, it's essential to consider factors such as features, scalability, reliability, security, integration capabilities, and pricing to choose the solution that best meets your requirements.
- 8x8 provides a cloud-based CCaaS platform with voice, video, chat, and contact centre capabilities. It offers advanced features such as analytics, collaboration tools, and CRM integration.
- Amazon Connect is a cloud-based contact centre service from Amazon Web Services (AWS) that offers omnichannel communication, self-service options, and analytics capabilities. It provides scalability, security, and integration with AWS services and third-party applications.
- Cisco Webex Contact Centre (WxCCE) is a cloud-based contact centre solution that offers omnichannel routing, workforce optimisation, and analytics capabilities. It provides integration with Cisco collaboration tools and business applications.
- Five9 is a cloud-based contact centre platform that provides inbound and outbound call routing, IVR, predictive dialling, and workforce management (WFM) capabilities. It offers integration with CRM systems, business applications, and telephony providers.
- Genesys Cloud CX is a cloud-based contact centre solution that offers omnichannel routing, workforce optimisation (WFO), analytics, and automation capabilities. It provides scalability, flexibility, and integration with CRM systems and business applications.
- NICE inContact is a cloud-based contact centre platform that offers omnichannel routing, workforce optimisation (WFO), analytics, and automation capabilities. It provides scalability, reliability, and integration with CRM systems and business applications.
- RingCentral Contact Centre is a cloud-based contact centre solution that offers voice, chat, email, and social media channels, as well as workforce optimisation (WFO) and analytics capabilities. It provides integration with RingCentral's UCaaS platform and other business applications.
- Talkdesk is a cloud-based contact centre solution that offers omnichannel communication, AI-powered automation, and analytics capabilities. It provides customisation options, scalability, and integration with CRM systems and business applications.
- Twilio Flex is a programmable contact centre platform that allows businesses to build customised contact centre solutions using APIs and pre-built components. It offers flexibility, customisation, and scalability for businesses of all sizes.
These are just a few examples of CCaaS solutions available in the market. When selecting a CCaaS supplier, it's essential to consider factors such as features, scalability, reliability, security, integration capabilities, and pricing to choose the solution that best meets your requirements.
How will CCaaS increase customer satisfaction whilst reducing operational costs?
CCaaS is pivotal in streamlining communications, seamlining customer interactions. CCaaS tools enable the elevation of customer satisfaction whilst reducing operational costs.
CCaaS consolidates various communication channels, including voice, video, instant messaging, email, and collaboration tools, into a single platform. By consolidating these channels, they facilitate efficient communication and collaboration among employees and customers, irrespective of their geographical locations or devices. This consolidation not only enhances communication but also extends its benefits to customer interactions, thereby significantly impacting customer satisfaction.
These communications tools empower customer service teams with real-time access to relevant information and resources, enabling them to address customer enquiries and issues more effectively. Organisations aspire to close customer interactions in a single communication, or "First Contact Resolution" (FCR), thereby reducing the operational cost of handling the customer multiple times. With features such as presence status indicators and unified messaging, agents can quickly identify the availability of colleagues with expertise in specific areas, collaborate seamlessly, and provide timely resolutions to customer queries. As a result, the overall efficiency and effectiveness of customer support operations are greatly enhanced, leading to improved customer satisfaction.
CCaaS solutions eliminate communication silos within organisations, enabling cross-functional teams to collaborate effortlessly on customer-related tasks and projects. Whether it's sales, marketing, or customer support, teams can leverage the tools to share insights, coordinate activities, and deliver cohesive experiences throughout the customer journey.
In addition, by consolidating multiple communication tools and platforms into a single solution, businesses can eliminate redundant systems and streamline their IT infrastructure. This consolidation reduces hardware and software costs, as well as ongoing maintenance expenses, associated with managing disparate communication systems. It also optimises resource utilisation and productivity, leading to operational efficiencies and cost savings.
By providing employees with access to the correct tools from any location and device, companies can virtualise the contact centre environment, whilst maintaining oversight of staff activities and productivity. Additionally, with the inclusion of reporting and analytic tools, organisations have the capabilities to gain insights into communication patterns, trends, and performance metrics. By analysing the data, businesses can identify areas for improvement, optimise resource allocation, and make informed decisions to further enhance customer satisfaction and reduce operational costs.
CCaaS consolidates various communication channels, including voice, video, instant messaging, email, and collaboration tools, into a single platform. By consolidating these channels, they facilitate efficient communication and collaboration among employees and customers, irrespective of their geographical locations or devices. This consolidation not only enhances communication but also extends its benefits to customer interactions, thereby significantly impacting customer satisfaction.
These communications tools empower customer service teams with real-time access to relevant information and resources, enabling them to address customer enquiries and issues more effectively. Organisations aspire to close customer interactions in a single communication, or "First Contact Resolution" (FCR), thereby reducing the operational cost of handling the customer multiple times. With features such as presence status indicators and unified messaging, agents can quickly identify the availability of colleagues with expertise in specific areas, collaborate seamlessly, and provide timely resolutions to customer queries. As a result, the overall efficiency and effectiveness of customer support operations are greatly enhanced, leading to improved customer satisfaction.
CCaaS solutions eliminate communication silos within organisations, enabling cross-functional teams to collaborate effortlessly on customer-related tasks and projects. Whether it's sales, marketing, or customer support, teams can leverage the tools to share insights, coordinate activities, and deliver cohesive experiences throughout the customer journey.
In addition, by consolidating multiple communication tools and platforms into a single solution, businesses can eliminate redundant systems and streamline their IT infrastructure. This consolidation reduces hardware and software costs, as well as ongoing maintenance expenses, associated with managing disparate communication systems. It also optimises resource utilisation and productivity, leading to operational efficiencies and cost savings.
By providing employees with access to the correct tools from any location and device, companies can virtualise the contact centre environment, whilst maintaining oversight of staff activities and productivity. Additionally, with the inclusion of reporting and analytic tools, organisations have the capabilities to gain insights into communication patterns, trends, and performance metrics. By analysing the data, businesses can identify areas for improvement, optimise resource allocation, and make informed decisions to further enhance customer satisfaction and reduce operational costs.
* What are the key benefits of using a cloud-based solution over an on-premise solution?
- Scalability
- Cost-effectiveness
- Flexibility
- Reliability and uptime
- Security
- Disaster recovery
- Ongoing maintenance
- Resource optimisation
- Global reach
- Innovation, agility and speed to deploy
- Cost-effectiveness
- Flexibility
- Reliability and uptime
- Security
- Disaster recovery
- Ongoing maintenance
- Resource optimisation
- Global reach
- Innovation, agility and speed to deploy
* What is a typical CCaaS project lifecycle?
The standard project lifecycle involves several stages, from first identifying the requirements or as a minimum a clear problem statement. This is followed by;
- Assessment and planning.
- Design and solution development.
- Service take-on and technology lifecycle management.
- Pilot testing and validation.
- Deployment and migration.
- Optimisation and continuous improvement.
- Assessment and planning.
- Design and solution development.
- Service take-on and technology lifecycle management.
- Pilot testing and validation.
- Deployment and migration.
- Optimisation and continuous improvement.
For additional information refer to our Insight page.
