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As you can imagine, in the 21st century, technology is moving at a very fast pace. The way companies communicate with their customers has changed drastically over the years and it will change even more in 2022. Here are six of the best call center phone systems to consider for your company.
When customers contact for assistance or sales, call center phone systems assist businesses in improving the customer experience. Call center software allows business owners to leverage capabilities like interactive voice response (IVR), integrations, and performance statistics. Contact center services and offerings, on the other hand, vary per supplier. We investigated a number of options in order to find providers with the greatest features, rates, and bundles.
The following are the finest call center phone systems, according to our research:
- Freshcaller; is the best overall contact center software solution for small organizations looking for cost-effective software with custom reporting and call routing options.
- RingCentral; is a better option for businesses looking for workplace efficiency solutions.
- 8*8; A great contact center solution for sectors that demand tight data protection, such as medical or financial services.
- Zendesk: Ideal for enterprises that want an omnichannel solution.
- GoToConnect; is a better choice for firms that need to implement contact center software quickly.
- CloudTalk; is a superior solution for companies with a global presence.
What We Looked For When We Were Evaluating Call Center Phone Systems
Small companies may manage incoming calls more effectively by upgrading to call center services. Call center software is a dependable solution with capabilities necessary to contact centers, such as CRM integration and seamless call distribution (ACD). Other companies provide detailed analytics, call monitoring, and open application programming interfaces (APIs) for bespoke integration.
Freshcaller is our best option for contact center software, with a score of 4.15 out of 5. It boasts a 99.97 percent uptime, complies with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), and includes other features like IVR, ACD, and performance analytics. Furthermore, it is the only service on our list that provides a free version.
20% of the overall score
We looked at the number of plans available and their scalability, as well as the availability of a free version or free trial and the total cost per plan.
30% of the overall score
We looked into features including IVR, ACD, call barge, and monitoring analytics to determine the best options. We also looked at the availability and uptime of CRM connectors.
30% of the overall score
We looked at plans to see whether there were any services that provided on-hold music, performance reviews, or speech analytics. We also verified for HIPAA compliance, which is required by most call centers.
20% of the overall score
We evaluated contact center companies based on how easy they are to use, how popular they are, and how much money they are worth. In addition, sophisticated or unique features such as built-in reporting, call recording, and foreign phone numbers were examined.
Freshcaller
4.15 OUT OF 5
What We Enjoy
- Call recordings may be included in support tickets.
- There are international phone numbers accessible.
- A simple version with basic features such as desktop alerts and incoming caller ID is available for free.
What Isn’t There
- There is no possibility to share your screen.
- The mobile app offers fewer features than the website version.
- When you make a lot of calls, per-minute rates add up quickly.
Pricing
- Sprout is their free service that provides call analytics, personalized greetings, and call notes.
- Blossom costs $15 per month per user for 1,000 inbound minutes, call and wait queues, and voicemail.
- Garden costs $29 per user each month and includes 2,000 inbound minutes, call monitoring, IVR, and custom reports.
- Estate: $45 per month per user for 3,000 inbound minutes, holiday routing, call barge, and a power dialer
- Forest costs $69 per month for 5,000 inbound minutes, speech-enabled IVR, and 5,000 bot sessions per user.
Rates are based on a year-to-year payment. For an additional fee, monthly options are available. Each-minute rates apply, and phone numbers cost an additional $1 to $2 per month.
Freshcaller is a cloud-based private branch exchange (PBX) with advanced call center functionality. It offers a variety of cheap programs, including one that is completely free for an infinite number of agents. Call center analytics, notes, and personalized greetings are all included in Freshcaller. The sophisticated features offered on subscription plans, including call queues, call recording, and warm transfer, are appreciated by many businesses.
The software is less costly than competing contact center phone systems, and it comes with a 30-day free trial and 24/7 email assistance. Companies with a significant amount of incoming calls, on the other hand, may select GoToConnect’s unlimited calling package.
Features
- Reporting on your own terms: Choose from pre-built reports or build your own, then schedule them to arrive in your mailbox automatically. Conversation analytics, team analytics, and call or agent summaries are among the reports available.
- Oversight from a supervisor: Make sure you’re fulfilling service-level requirements by listening in on discussions and interjecting when necessary. Conversation monitoring software helps teach or support team members during or after a call, while service-level measurements provide real-time insights.
- Freshcaller’s call routing engine includes speech-enabled IVR and automated replies to frequently asked inquiries. Team-based, time-based, and intent-based call routing are all available. Users may also change their routes to accommodate different business hours and holidays.
RingCentral
3.77 OUT OF 5
What We Enjoy
- Customizing reports is simple.
- Provides skill-based routing options.
- Custom integrations using an advanced API
What Isn’t There
- Only a bespoke quotation is available for pricing.
- Salesforce integration assistance may be required.
- It’s possible that the implementation will take longer than for other services.
Pricing
- Inbound voice only, IVR, ACD, and team messaging are the most basic features.
- Sophisticated features include inbound voice and omnichannel, advanced IVR, and automatic call distribution (ACD).
- Inbound, outbound, omnichannel, and agent scripting are all options.
- Pricing for RingCentral MVP (Message, Video, and Phone) begins at $19.99 a month for up to 20 people.
Prices are subject to change depending on a personalized quotation.
RingCentral’s voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) services are well-known. It does, however, offer outstanding help desk software. From IVR to omnichannel tools, it has a lot of contact center phone system capabilities. Its workforce optimization features, on the other hand, set it apart. Leaders may use the admin dashboard to arrange agent schedules, track agent performance, and make the work experience more fun.
Supervisors may also give real-time coaching or criticism, as well as examine call specifics for coaching opportunities. Voice, video, and team messaging capabilities are included in contact center plans, and pricing is accessible through a bespoke quotation. Freshcaller offers three options with the “Bring Your Own Carrier” (BYOC) capability for corporate customers who wish to maintain their current VoIP service.
Features
- Intelligent routing: Use skills-based routing to direct customers to the correct agent, and use artificial intelligence (AI) to comprehend incoming communications. RingCentral also has voicemail routing, which allows callers to get a callback as soon as possible.
- Supervisory tools include the ability to record screens and phone conversations in order to monitor and assist agents. Supervisors can notice trends and patterns using tools like voice and text analytics while monitoring assessment scores allows for timely counseling.
- Callers may acquire basic information and select whether to wait for an agent or get a callback using IVR self-service options. RingCentral also provides call deflection, which allows callers to choose an alternative communication mode with a lower wait time.
8×8
3.72 OUT OF 5
What We Enjoy
- Has a wide range of security features
- Companies have the option to mix and match programs.
- Provides standalone contact center software as well as all-in-one communications solutions.
What Isn’t There
- There is no available API.
- When compared to using a web browser, the mobile app has fewer features.
- Call center services are more costly than alternative solutions.
Pricing
- IVR, CRM connectors, call recording, and analytics are all $87 per user, per month.
- Social media, chat, email, and SMS interactions cost $107 per user, each month.
- Advanced: $146 per month for voice analytics, screen recording, and multiscreen monitoring for each user.
- X6: $112 per month per user for basic contact center capabilities and VoIP services.
- X7: A VoIP system with omnichannel contact center functionalities costs $131 per user, each month.
- X8 costs $170 per month per user for VoIP with comprehensive contact center analytics and auto-dialing.
The price is based on yearly payments. Customers may mix and combine programs to meet their own requirements.
Small company VoIP services and virtual contact center solutions are available from 8*8, a unified communications provider. It is a scalable solution for organizations because of its low-cost VoIP packages mixed with more costly sophisticated contact center alternatives. Because 8*8 offers both PBX and SIP trunking, you may mix and match plans to get the most out of your budget as your requirements vary.
8*8 is noted for its extensive security procedures, which include various third-party security and compliance certifications including HIPAA, Customer Proprietary Network Information (CPNI), and the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA). As a result, these security standards would be most beneficial to organizations in the medical and financial sectors.
With a yearly purchase, 8*8 contact center software begins at $87 per person, per month. Other contact center systems, such as Freshcaller and CloudTalk, are substantially less expensive per month and provide open APIs that enable customers to incorporate call center services into their current tools.
Features
- Protection: 8*8 offers top-of-the-line security to protect client privacy, financial information, and your network. The Statement on Standards for Attestation Engagements (SSAE) standards are used to audit its completely redundant, geographically different data centers.
- View visualizations of the customer journey to discover and enhance interactions using advanced analytics. Speech analytics offer insights into conversations, allowing supervisors to provide real-time feedback to agents or email agents conversation highlights with annotated notes.
- Service management plans of two, five, or ten hours of service per month are available via 8*8. A dedicated technical point of contact and customer advocate is included in the services. They’ll assist with set-up and number porting.
Zendesk
3.65 OUT OF 5
What We Enjoy
- You don’t have to set up your email server because of the out-of-the-box email integration.
- Answer bots are included in all plans.
- Ticket creation and update operations that are automated
What Isn’t There
- For novice users, the sheer quantity of options might be daunting.
- Dashboards for users are not customizable.
- Some connectors, such as Salesforce and HubSpot, only sync one way.
Pricing
- Suite Team costs $49 per month per user and includes email, live chat, social media channels, phone routing, and up to 50 Answer bot responses.
- Suite Growth: $79 a month per user for CSAT ratings, SLA monitoring, and up to 100 Answer bot responses
- Professional Suite: $99 per month per user for community forums, IVR, HIPAA compliance, and up to 500 Answer bot responses.
- Suite Enterprise costs $150 per month per user and includes contextual workspaces, guided ticket mode, satisfaction projections, and up to 1,000 Answer bot responses.
The price is based on yearly payments. Monthly plans are also available. Plan prices do not include phone lines or minutes.
Zendesk is an all-in-one help desk solution that includes live chat, email, and a built-in support ticket system. Call recording, over 1,000 prebuilt applications and connectors, and a single-agent workspace are all included in the packages.
Zendesk comes with up to five Twitter names and up to five WhatsApp numbers, making it ideal for businesses that provide customer assistance through social media and messaging platforms. Business owners may maintain their current social media channels for marketing while directing consumers to specialized help alternatives with pre-set handles.
Zendesk is an economical option for multichannel assistance in contact centers since omnichannel functionalities are included in all subscriptions. Twitter, WhatsApp, email, live chat, Facebook, phone, and website are among the available methods. With an annual payment, prices start at $49 per user, each month. GoToConnect, which allows unlimited calling and is half the price of Zendesk, is a good option for firms that rely on phone assistance.
Features
- Support center: All Zendesk plans include a knowledge base, with higher levels including numerous help centers and a customer portal. Structured content, a web widget, and mobile software development kits are examples of help desk technologies that propose related topics (SDKs).
- Zendesk offers omnichannel capabilities on all levels, unlike competing for contact center software. Users may customize live chat and message widgets, as well as create Twitter and Facebook support channels and call buttons for their websites.
- Support tickets: Zendesk’s call center bundle includes a ticketing system. Incoming calls, voicemails, and texts create a support ticket automatically. By bringing up a list of recent tickets from a client, agents may attach files to tickets and examine interaction history.
GoToConnect
3.89 OUT OF 5
What We Enjoy
- Deployment in one day
- Customer support responds quickly, with an average resolution time of 30 minutes.
- Calls, both incoming and outgoing, should be monitored.
What Isn’t There
- Only one package offers access to the help center.
- Vanity or toll-free numbers are optional extras.
- The mobile app may be unreliable.
Pricing
- Basic: Unlimited calling, auto-attendant, one ring group, and call queues start at $22 per user, per month.
- Hotdesking, unlimited ring groups, voicemail-to-email, call recording, and real-time statistics are included in the standard plan for $26 per month per user.
- Premium: $39 per month per user for a queuing call barge, agent effectiveness reporting, and real-time summary.
- 14-day free trial
Pricing is based on two to ten users paying annually. Monthly plans are available for a fee, and volume discounts are available.
Support center services, which are included in the Premium plan or available as an add-on package, are among the small business communications solutions offered by GoToConnect. Small company phone systems with CRM connections, IVR, and real-time performance reviews are popular among users.
The support center software also boasts one of the fastest deployment timeframes, lasting just around 24 hours, making it an excellent choice for contact centers looking to get up and running quickly. When paid yearly, prices start at $22 per user, per month, but contact center functionality necessitates the top-tier subscription, which costs $39 per user, per month.
GoToConnect, unlike Zendesk, does not provide multichannel customer assistance. Consider using GoToConnect to integrate help desk support requests or engage with consumers through social media.
Features
- Supervisors may monitor abandoned call rates and hold durations and proactively allocate calls to agents by using real-time call queue information. Supervisors may use the spy tool in the support center to monitor conversations, teach agents through whispering, or take over calls.
- Installation manuals, timely customer support channels, and drag-and-drop flexibility make setting up and deploying your contact center a breeze.
- Advanced ring strategies: For the auto-attendant, GoToConnect includes a simple drag-and-drop dial plan builder. For seamless call routing, users adjust call routing parameters and utilize the “Find me, Follow me” function.
CloudTalk
3.58 OUT OF 5
What We Enjoy
- Salesforce and Pipedrive have two-way synchronized connectors.
- Free agent-to-agent communication
- Geographically or non-geographically coded international phone numbers
What Isn’t There
- Only the Expert package includes CloudTalk phone customer care.
- The Android app is currently in beta and has a few problems.
- Text messaging is not included in the entry-level package.
Pricing
- Unlimited inbound and team calls, ACD, and foreign lines for $20 per user, each month.
- Text messaging, skills-based routing, and real-time client dashboards are all essential for $25 per user, each month.
- Expert: $40 per month per user for Salesforce connection, speech-to-text, and a personal account manager.
- Get a quotation for an unlimited number of outbound calls, a service level agreement, and customized reports.
- 14-day free trial
Yearly payment is required, however, month-to-month arrangements are available.
CloudTalk offers contact center software and international numbers in over 140 countries, while Freshcaller and RingCentral MVP support over 90 and 100, respectively. CloudTalk administrators may route calls to employees’ phones all across the globe and provide customers with local or toll-free numbers.
Unlimited inbound calls and calling between team members are included in the entry-level package. Call recording, a real-time client dashboard, and VIP queuing on higher-tier subscriptions are among popular features.
Interactive voice response service and skills-based routing are not included in the Starter package. To generate customized welcomes, transfer calls, and give callback choices to consumers, administrators may choose the Essential plan.
Features
- Foreign phone numbers: From the administrative dashboard, add international phone numbers and start using them right away. Users may set specific business hours for any phone number and route calls to any agent, no matter where they are.
- Set predetermined rules for call queues, make customized messages, and add on-hold music. Administrators may also provide statistics such as the number of persons in line or the current wait time.
- Agent-to-agent calling with a four-digit extension keeps your distant teams linked for free. Using a three-digit extension number, users may also transfer calls to other agents or place them in a call queue.
Conclusion
Companies may communicate with consumers through desktop computers, mobile phones, or call center phones with the aid of call center phone systems. It has capabilities that help enhance customer service and client assistance across many platforms.
Freshcaller provides low-cost options that include a sophisticated routing engine and supervisory controls. The user interface is simple and does not need much training. Freddy, the AI response bot, is included in all plans and will answer your clients’ basic queries.
Frequently Asked Questions
What phone systems do call centers use?
Microsoft Corporation uses a mixture of their own proprietary systems and Cisco Systems, Inc.
Who has the best call center?
The best call center is the one that has a lot of people on staff and can provide assistance to their customers.
What software do you need for a call center?
A call center requires a large amount of software, including servers and databases. Depending on the type of business that they are running, some may require specific platforms such as Microsoft Exchange or IBM Domino.
