Every company that has a call center needs to interact with call center software to some degree. Knowing how to get this on your budget, no matter how tight that budget might be, can save your company hundreds or even thousands of dollars every single year.
That’s why today we’re going to be taking a look at our top 8 tips for getting call center software on a budget. With our tips, you have a good chance of being able to save a lot of money on the software that you need anyway.
1. Do Your Research
The easiest way to save money on anything is to do a lot of research before you get into the actual purchasing step of it. The internet is your best friend for this part of the process, there are all sorts of information available about this on the internet.
Whether you check in well-known spots like Reddit or less well-known spots, like an obscure forum on LinkedIn, finding the right information can make your search a lot easier. There are all sorts of places to get this information online, so this should be pretty easy.
2. Shop Around
Different companies offer software for different prices. If there’s one thing to keep in mind, the only thing the price tag says is the price. Some companies have really good products for cheap, and some companies have really ok products for a lot of money.
Shopping around is the only way to make sure that you’re getting the best possible price for what you’re looking for. You can’t tell what the price of a product means unless you actually look at what others are offering.
3. Only Pay For Services That You Need
A lot of companies make the same mistake: paying for services that they don’t need. Having many different pieces of software to help keep everything straight can be good, but you don’t want to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars a year on something that you don’t need.
This is one of the reasons why doing your research first is important. You’ll have no way of knowing exactly what you’re getting yourself into if you don’t research which pieces of software you’ll actually use in your daily operations.
4. Negotiate With The Company
When you do B2B transactions, there is almost always a portion where negotiations happen. This usually happens before you start signing any paperwork, and in many cases, before contracts are even draftedeither company that’s involved with the transaction. This allows for the price you agree to to be part of the contract.
So, use this to your advantage. Talk with the salesperson before you agree to a contract and see how low they can make the price before you agree. Negotiations take a bit of skill to ensure that you’re actually getting a good deal, but it can work out well.
5. Ask About Discounts
Many companies offer a lot of different discounts for a lot of different things. All you have to do in many cases is just ask about them. This would happen during the negotiation process, and the worst thing they can say is that they don’t offer discounts.
6. Consider Having A Sales Member Handle Negotiations
Your sales team is around to help close deals, and you might be able to use them to help close a better deal on your call center software. It’s their job to negotiate, so this would just be having them be on the other side of negotiations. Odds are, you have someone who would be willing, especially if you offer a bonus for it.
7. Ask Around
Ask your friends that work in the same industry about what software they use. Some people might not be able to tell you, but some might. Either way, if you have friends in the industry, they’ll be able to help you out at least a little with your search.
8. Go To Networking Events
Most industries, especially call centers, have summits and other networking events. These are great opportunities to meet other people that are in your industry and talk shop so you can find new ways to do things.
It’s also a great place to meet companies that sell call center software, andnetworking, you might just meet someone important at a company that might be willing to work with you to get you a better deal than you might have otherwise.
Get the Best Possible Deal
There’s a lot of money in the call center world, and potentially even more depending on what you’re a call center for. That being said, making sure that you’re getting the most bang for your buck is important so you can use more of that money to grow your business instead of spending it on call center software.