Peter has over 15 years of experience in customer service, contact centers, technology and operations spanning startup, growth stage and enterprise organizations globally.
Knowing which call center phone system to invest in is critical for any call or contact center. The right phone software can support improved agent performance, optimized call center efficiencies, and a better customer experience.
With so many options available–with all different functions and features–it can be challenging to cut through the noise and figure out which call center system will move the needle for your business.
To make this process easier, we’ve compiled a list of some great call center software and systems for all business sizes and needs.
Some popular call center phone software features include:
Call routing directs incoming calls to the most appropriate agent or department within a call center. This can be done by:
Call center analytics can track metrics including wait times, call durations, first call resolution rates, customer satisfaction scores, and more. This data can be used to identify areas for improvement and optimize call center operations.
Call center reporting features generate detailed reports of this call center activity, helping contact managers make data-driven decisions to improve efficiency and service.
Call recording allows businesses to record and store conversations between agents and customers. Supervisors can monitor calls to ensure that agents deliver excellent customer service and adhere to company policies. Additionally, recorded calls can be used as training materials for new hires for compliance and legal purposes.
With speech analytics, calls can be transcribed and analyzed for customer sentiment, common issues or complaints, and agent performance. Similarly, text analytics can analyze chat logs, emails, and other written communication to provide valuable insights into customer behavior and preferences.
Advanced analytics makes it possible to track individual rep performance across multiple metrics, giving agents the real-time feedback they need to build their skills and be successful. For example, the Operative Intelligence analytics platform provides call centers with engaging, real-time dashboards that make it simple to identify areas for improvement based on customer needs.
Customers expect immediate help when they contact customer service, demanding the fastest solution no matter what time it is. However, heavy call volumes can make it impossible to respond to all queries promptly, resulting in a poor customer experience and overwhelming demands on agents. Fortunately, call center software offers a professional solution that works 24/7 to manage every type of query, from ticket support and sales to appointment setting and technical issues, ensuring that all clients' requests are fulfilled seamlessly.
Some call center phone systems provide self-service options. For example, customers can use an automated system to check their account balance or make a payment without speaking with a representative. This saves time for both the customer and the representative, who can focus on more complex issues that require human interaction.
Call center systems can help businesses collect and analyze customer and agent data to improve their services and products. For example, if the average call duration is too long, it might indicate that the agents need more training to handle calls quickly and efficiently. Or if customers are waiting on hold for extended periods before being connected with an agent, it might suggest that there aren't enough agents available to handle the incoming calls.
By analyzing this data regularly, businesses can make informed decisions about hiring new staff members, providing additional training to existing employees, or even making changes to the product.
This list includes various call center software options that provide insights, intelligence, CCaaS, VoIP capabilities, and more. However, it’s important to note that while this list covers many call center software platforms, it doesn't include every option on the market.
Operative Intelligence is a customer demand Intelligence platform that delivers targeted, actionable insights that help call and contact centers prioritize the highest-impact opportunities every day. It assesses 100% of customer conversations at scale and accurately identifies the root cause of the customer's contact, enabling you to quantify and track your customer drivers over time.
Rather than relying on keywords like other call center software, Operative Intelligence directly captures and uses phrases from customer speech to accurately represent their queries. The platform also provides visibility into query volume, cost, and sentiment to help you identify which changes will make the greatest impact on customer experience and frontline performance. This information can enable businesses to not only improve customer service operations but also opportunities for company-wide change, including modifying products and services and organizational policies and procedures.
Features:
Learn more about Operative Intelligence.
Amazon Connect is a cloud-based contact center service offered by Amazon Web Services (AWS). It enables businesses to set up a virtual call center and deliver customer service at scale. Amazon Connect offers tools for managing and analyzing customer interactions, including real-time and historical metrics, call recording, and sentiment analysis.
Businesses can engage with customers across multiple channels such as voice, chat, and email.
Features:
Pricing: Amazon Connect is a pay-as-you-go cloud contact center. Contact them for detailed pricing.
Genesys is an all-in-one cloud contact center solution designed to manage and analyze omnichannel interactions throughout the customer journey. It helps organizations create tailored, one-to-one conversations with customers to improve engagement. Employees can access a single tool that can handle all communications including voice, chat, email, text message, and more.
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Thrio is a CCaaS platform designed for enterprises of all sizes, featuring robotic process automation, inbound and outbound voice engines, a suite of digital channels such as email, chat, SMS, and social media, and several built-in AI tools. Thrio is an API-first architecture that works well for businesses operating in complex and high-volume environments.
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Pricing:
Per agent per month
Per agent per minute
Concurrent
RingCentral is an omnichannel solution designed to offer customers different modes of communication, including voice, chat, social media, SMS, email, and other options. These tools include IVR (Interactive Voice Response) and self-service features that are integrated with routing functionality. The platform also includes tools for staff scheduling, call center efficiencies, surveying customers, and more.
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Nextiva is a communication platform that integrates business applications, intelligence, and automation into a platform. The platform combines communication channels including voice, video, collaboration, SMS, chat, and surveys, into a single location for businesses to access the information they require to achieve their desired outcomes.
Additionally, the platform is designed with built-in intelligence and automation, allowing businesses to focus on addressing customer needs.
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Talkdesk is a cloud-based call center solution that utilizes interactive voice response (IVR), automatic call distribution (ACD), and skills-based routing to connect callers with the most qualified agent based on customizable data.
The system displays relevant customer information including name, image, contact information, purchase history, and contact history, in real-time to enable personalized conversations. Talkdesk integrates with a variety of programs, including InfusionSoft, Salesforce, Zendesk, and Shopify.
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Five9 is a cloud-based contact center software that offers features for inbound, outbound, blended, and omnichannel contact centers. The platform is powered by Practical AI and offers communication channels such as phone, email, chat, mobile, and social media.
Five9 offers four adjustable dialing modes to maximize agent talk time by skipping no-answers and busy signals. Its IVR system with speech recognition handles common customer inquiries to free up agents' time.
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Pricing:
Twilio is a cloud communications platform that allows software developers to make and receive phone calls, send and receive text messages, and perform other communication functions using its APIs. Twilio's APIs are used by businesses and developers to build their own communication applications and services without having to invest in their own infrastructure.
Features:
Pricing:
Twilio's pricing varies based on individual needs for its different services. Some of the services and their starting prices include:
Dialpad is a communication platform that provides businesses with voice, messaging, and video capabilities. It offers a range of features, including a business phone system, video conferencing, messaging, call center analytics, and integrations with third-party applications such as Salesforce and Zendesk.
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GoTo Connect is a unified communications and collaboration platform that enables remote teams to communicate and work together. The platform allows users to make and receive calls, collaborate in real time, and switch between communication channels. It also offers voice and video conferencing, messaging, screen sharing, and file sharing.
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Avaya is a technology company that specializes in digital communication products, services, and solutions. The company provides communication systems for enterprises, including voice, video, data, and web communication solutions. Their products and services include unified communication and collaboration (UC&C) solutions, contact center solutions, and networking solutions.
Features:
Pricing: Avaya does not provide public pricing.
Verizon UCCaaS is a cloud-based solution that facilitates unified communication and collaboration for organizations. It is a hybrid platform that provides voice and video communication features that can be integrated with Microsoft Outlook, as well as ERP and CRM applications like SAP and Salesforce. Verizon UCCaaS also offers Cisco functionalities such as Cisco Jabber, Cisco Expressway, and Cisco Emergency Responders.
Features:
Pricing: Verizon’s pricing is not publicly available.
Spectrum is a comprehensive platform that offers call center management tools, including automatic call distribution (ACD) control, real-time queue statistics, and call back list of abandoned callers to small businesses and large enterprises. With Spectrum, agents have access to Unified Communications with Webex and can collaborate and connect with team members to enhance customer support.
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Pricing: Pricing is not listed publicly.
Hippo is a business solution that aims to enhance customer experience by providing conversational support and customer engagement automation across various channels such as emails, SMS, push notifications, WhatsApp, and more. It also offers in-app customer support features such as chatbots, live chats, phone calls, audio/video calls, and others.
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Grasshopper is a virtual phone system designed for small and medium-sized businesses seeking to separate their personal and business calls. With Grasshopper, users can add a business line to their device and choose from a local, toll-free, or vanity number, or port their own number. Grasshopper’s mobile and desktop apps enable communication with clients through voice or text and allow users to forward calls.
Features:
Pricing:
All plans contain unlimited users and are billed annually.
There are lots of call center phone software to choose from and the best solution ultimately depends on your team’s needs and goals. Do you need a better call routing system? Are you looking for call recording and speech analytic capabilities? What about improving productivity and efficiency in your entire call center?
If actionable insights and improved customer experience are a priority, Operative Intelligence is the best choice. This platform can be implemented along with any of the other call center software on this list to provide valuable insights into your customer base. Operative Intelligence analyzes 100% of inbound interactions and shares the root causes of overall inquiries using the customer’s actual words. These insights can help drive changes within a call or contact center as well as improve company-wide policies, products, and services.
Ready to drive impactful changes at every level of your business?
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