What B2B Call Center Is, and the Role of Inbound and Outbound Support Plays In It

Unlike the quick and straightforward transactions in business-to-consumer (B2C), the stakes are higher in the business-to-business (B2B) space. Selling to other businesses involves multiple decision-makers, tighter budgets, long sales cycles, and long-term contracts, making trust and relationship-building essential to success.

Such complexities can quickly overwhelm your in-house team, leaving them with little time to deliver the personalized, human connection that B2B dealings require.

That’s where B2B call centers come in. They provide the expertise and dedicated support needed to maintain consistent, professional communication at every stage of your business relationship.

What Is a B2B Call Center, and How Does It Work?

A B2B call center is a specialized service you leverage when you want to build and secure high-value, long-term relationships between your and the client’s companies.

Here, you rely on agents to communicate with prospects and clients’ key decision makers, where they’ll:

• Answer their inquiries
• Help troubleshoot their issues
• Provide them with the resources they need
• Complete B2B transactions

More often than not, however, agents primarily push the conversations forward from the first interaction to won deals and beyond.

For these reasons, a B2B call center requires:

• Skilled, knowledgeable agents
• Consultative communication styles
• Industry-specific expertise
• Strong data handling and compliance practices

Many companies like yours outsource this function to external providers like Logix BPO. It’s an advantageous, convenient strategic move, considering that B2B calls involve multiple stakeholders and longer sales cycles. These providers will take over your inbound and/or outbound calls, enabling you to:

• Manage complex communications well
• Provide a high-quality, personalized service experience
• Build long-term trust and reaffirm client relationships
• Focus on core business operations

What Services Do B2B Call Centers Offer?

B2B call centers offer a mix of inbound and outbound call services.

Let’s define what each of them is before diving into the types of services you can get from each. We’ll also look into the metrics you need to monitor to ensure successful communication with your B2B buyers.

What Is a B2B Inbound Call Center?

A B2B inbound call center is a service where the agents receive calls from your existing customers and appropriately respond to their needs. The more satisfied they are with the help your agents provide, the more likely they’ll continue engaging with your business.

And for this service to be effective, you need agents who can make customers feel heard and valued.

Types of Inbound Call Center Services

• After-hours answering service – entertains customer inquiries after regular business hours
• Appointment scheduling – manages customer appointments, bookings, and cancellations
• Call routing – directs customers to the appropriate agent or department
• Customer service – takes care of a wide range of customer inquiries
• Dispatching – relays customer requests to the appropriate personnel for resolution
• Emergency call handling – delivers the critical information or assistance the customer urgently needs, preventing or minimizing potential disasters 
• Interactive voice response (IVR) – acts as a virtual receptionist and uses pre-configured call menu prompts that guide customers to the best available option
• Order taking – records and processes customer orders
• Overflow call handling – takes over the extra load of call volumes to prevent frustrated customers and an overwhelmed in-house team
• Technical support help desk – advises and guides customers on how to resolve technical issues

KPIs to Measure Inbound Call Center Success

• After-call work time (ACW) – the average time it takes agents to complete post-call activities after the interaction is over
• Agent utilization rate – the percentage of time agents spend handling customer calls out of their total work hours
• Average handle time (AHA) – how long it takes for an agent to handle a call from start to finish, including ACW, talk time, and hold time
• Average speed of answer (ASA) – how long it takes for a call to get answered by an agent, starting from being placed in a call queue
• Call abandonment rate – the percentage of inbound calls that are abandoned by customers before reaching an agent
• Call transfer rate – the percentage of calls transferred to other agents, managers, or departments
• Cost per call (CPC) – the average cost of each incoming call handled by agents
• Customer effort score (CES) – measures how much effort is required for a customer to engage with your business and get their issue resolved
• Customer satisfaction score (CSAT) – measures the level of satisfaction and customers’ perception of the service they received
• First call resolution (FCR) – measures the ability of agents to resolve customer issues during the first interaction
• First response time (FRT) – how long it takes for a customer’s initial contact to receive a response from an agent
• Net promoter score (NPS) – measures how many customers are willing to recommend your brand to others
• Percentage of calls blocked – how many calls receive a busy tone or are sent straight to voicemail
• Repeat call rate – the percentage of calls made by customers regarding the same unresolved issue
• Schedule adherence – measures whether or not agents adhere to their assigned schedules during their work hours
• Service level – the percentage of calls answered within a set time limit

What Is a B2B Outbound Call Center?

A B2B outbound call center is a service where agents proactively call prospects or clients for sales, lead generation, market research, or follow-up.

For it to be effective, your agents must know how to persuade people and handle objections.

Types of Outbound Call Center Services

• Appointment setting – schedules meetings between prospects and your sales teams
• Customer follow-up – tracks and revisits significant customer interactions, checking in on their status, whether they’re satisfied with the service, have resolved their issues, or need additional support
• Customer support – lets customers know of any product or service updates you have, or functional issues you discovered, and the measures they’ll take to prevent these from escalating
• Debt collection – facilitates payment collection from customers with overdue accounts or who have yet to respond to initial reminders
• Lead generation – reaches out to prospects who might be interested in your offers
• Market research – gathers prospects and customers’ needs and preferences for product or service improvements, market analysis, or marketing campaigns
• Promotional campaign – informs prospects and customers about the new offers or discounts available, or upcoming events you’re hosting
• Telemarketing – promotes your offers to prospects with the intent of closing sales deals

KPIs to Measure Outbound Call Center Success

• Abandoned call rate – the percentage of callers who hang up, or abandon the queue, before connecting with a live agent
• Agent occupancy rate – the time an agent spends actively handling calls or post-call tasks
• Average dropped call rate – the percentage of calls dropped due to interruptions before the conversation is completed
• Average handle time – the average call duration of all outbound calls
• Average talk time – the average time agents spend talking to prospects
• Calls per agent – the number of calls each agent handles during their shift
• Call connection rate – the percentage of calls where the agent connected directly with prospects
• Call-to-sale ratio – the average number of calls per agent required to close a single sale
• Contact rate – the percentage of leads reached, out of your total leads
• Cost per acquisition (CPA) – the total cost of converting prospects into customers in a campaign
• First call close – the percentage of calls ending in a successful sale during the initial contact with prospects
• Lead conversion rate – the percentage of calls resulting in a successful sale or transfer
• List closure rate – the percentage of prospects that successfully converted during the entire campaign
• Pause or wait time – the time the agent takes to rest between calls
• Speed to lead – the time it takes agents to contact prospects from the moment they enter your pipeline

What Is the Difference Between B2B Inbound and Outbound Call Centers?

There are many aspects where a B2B inbound call center differs from an outbound one. But if you want to easily distinguish the two, you only need to look at two aspects:

• The party that initiates the call
• Your business objective in making the call

Here’s an overview that summarizes the difference between them:

Which Industries Use B2B Call Centers?

Any industry that needs to constantly engage with its B2B buyers will certainly use call centers. Here are some of them:

How Do You Choose the Right B2B Call Center Partner?

Finding the most suitable B2B call center partner is a critical decision. It takes companies over 6 months to research and evaluate partners before sealing the deal; less if a trusted colleague or reputable firm has referred them.

So, for you to get the most value out of your money and this partnership, consider these criteria in your evaluation:

• They have relevant experience in your industry.
  Questions to ask:
  • What common challenges in your industry have they successfully handled?
  • How familiar are their agents with the industry products or services?
  • Can they share case studies or results from past or existing clients and client references?
• Their services match well with your operational needs.
  Questions to ask:
  • Can they customize scripts, processes, and SLAs to fit your business operations?
  • Which of their services directly address your specific goals and workflows?
  • How do they integrate with your existing tools or systems?
• They’re compliant with data security and industry regulations.
  Questions to ask:
  • What certifications or compliance standards do they follow?
  • How do they protect sensitive company and customer data?
  • How often do they conduct audits or risk assessments?
• They employ highly skilled and well-trained agents.
  Questions to ask:
  • What’s their average agent retention rate?
  • What is their hiring, screening, and training process?
  • How much training do their agents receive before handling accounts?
  • How do they monitor quality assurance and performance?
• They offer scalability.
  Questions to ask:
  • How quickly can they ramp up or down during peak seasons?
  • Can they expand the team across time zones or languages if needed?
• They offer flexible contracts and transparent pricing.
  Questions to ask:
  • What pricing models do they offer?
  • Can you scale services up or down without incurring penalties or additional fees?
  • What are the contract terms and exit clauses?
• They have a clear communication and reporting structure.
  Questions to ask:
  • What metrics and dashboards are included in reporting, and how frequently?
  • Who will be the dedicated point of contact or account manager?
  • How do they handle feedback and continuous improvement?
  • What escalation procedures are in place for urgent issues?

Build Lasting Relationships with Quality B2B Call Center Services

Communication between businesses is a complex maze. The effort and resources required to manage client relationships can strain even the most skilled customer service and sales teams.

But you can resolve all that and more by partnering with a provider known for its B2B call center services, like Logix BPO. They have the expertise and technology you need to maintain professional interactions, control costs, and most importantly, drive your business forward.

If you need a strategic ally to help you build stronger relationships and close more deals, reach out to us today.