Choosing the Best Call Center Services (2025 Guide)

What Are Call Center Services?

Call center services provide businesses with dedicated communication infrastructure and personnel to manage customer interactions via phone and other channels. A call center service provider is typically a software tool, offering solutions from basic call handling to sophisticated omnichannel customer experience management.

A study by Invoca found that over two-thirds of adults prefer to contact businesses by phone. People spend far more time on smartphones than ever, meaning they’re always connected and expect prompt service. To cater to growing customer needs and meet customers where they are, you need call center services.

As companies grow, more leads need to reach the customer service team. This means telephone inquiries increase, which, if you’re unprepared, could impact response times and personalized responses.

Call center services offer scalable solutions to enhance your customer experience as your company grows. But, with hundreds of call center software providers in the market, choosing the best call center services is hard.

This guide walks you through the process, discusses the top call center services to choose from, addresses common pain points, and offers insights to meet your needs.

What Are the Different Types of Call Center Services?

Before you choose a call center provider, first understand the different types of call center services available.

Type	Primary function	Best for	Key benefits
Inbound call centers	Handle incoming customer calls	Customer service, technical support, order processing	Improved customer satisfaction, reduced wait times
Outbound call centers	Make outgoing calls to customers or prospects	Sales, lead generation, market research	Increased revenue, expanded customer base
Blended call centers	Handle both inbound and outbound calls	Businesses needing comprehensive communication solutions	Operational efficiency, flexible resource allocation
Virtual call centers	Remote-based agents handling calls	Businesses seeking cost efficiency and flexibility	Lower overhead costs, access to global talent
Cloud-based call centers	Hosted in the cloud rather than on-premises	Companies wanting scalability without infrastructure costs	Rapid deployment, easy scalability, reduced IT burden

Inbound call centers

Inbound call centers handle incoming calls from existing customers and new prospects. They manage a variety of customer inquiries, including appointment scheduling, customer care, after-hours calls, support, and order fulfillment. Inbound services are the first point of contact for your customer service team, ensuring your customers get prompt assistance and don’t have to wait too long on the phone.

From product inquiries to tech support, working with inbound call center services gets you a team of highly trained call center agents equipped to handle your customer issues. This frees up your in-house staff to focus on other critical tasks and better address customer needs, especially when peak volume increases.

Outbound call centers

Outbound call center services make outbound calls for cold-calling, cross-selling, marketing, or survey purposes. Outbound call centers are powerful tools for companies looking to expand by generating leads and improving their offerings through customer feedback and market research from global consumers.

Effective outbound call centers use sophisticated dialing technologies and skilled call center agents to engage potential customers and gather market intelligence. Outbound call center services improve your sales pipeline and offer insights that help optimize your products and services, which is valuable for product launches and connecting with new leads.

Blended call centers

For companies that need a more versatile solution, blended call center software offers the best of both worlds. This software manages both inbound calls and outbound calls, optimizing customer interactions and sales efforts within a single program.

Blended centers work best for businesses with fluctuating call volumes or seasonal demand patterns. During low-volume periods, agents can shift to outbound calls, maximizing productivity and ensuring continued customer engagement. Flexible call center services enhance efficiency across your customer lifecycle.

Virtual call centers

Virtual call centers employ remote agents who work from home or distributed locations rather than a central office. This model has been popular since 2020, offering flexibility and access to talent regardless of geographic constraints.

Virtual call center software helps achieve cost savings on physical infrastructure while maintaining high service standards through cloud-based management systems and rigorous performance monitoring. Virtual call center services are ideal for businesses looking to maintain great customer service with lower overhead.

Cloud-based call centers

Cloud-based call center services operate on remote servers, eliminating the need for extensive on-premises hardware. These solutions offer superior scalability for businesses to quickly adjust capacity based on demand without big infrastructure investments.

Cloud communications solutions automatically implement updates and new features, including advanced technology like artificial intelligence, so your call center agents always have access to the latest technologies and security measures. This technology integration makes modern contact centers superior to traditional telephone answering service models.

Top Call Center Service Providers

Once you know what type of call center service you need, consider some of these best call center software to improve customer service and drive better results. First, here’s a quick comparison.

Provider	Key features	Best for	Key differentiators	Pricing starts at
Nextiva	Unified customer experience management, cloud communications, VoIP, omnichannel support	Growing businesses needing scalable solutions	Comprehensive integration capabilities, award-winning customer service	$60/user/month
Five9	Cloud contact center, AI-powered solutions	Enterprise businesses with complex needs	Advanced AI capabilities, extensive customization options	$119/month
NICE CXone	Omnichannel routing, workforce optimization	Large enterprises	Complete suite of workforce optimization (WFO tools), global presence	$71/month
Talkdesk	Cloud-based, AI-enhanced solutions	Businesses prioritizing innovation	Industry-leading uptime, rapid deployment	$85/user/month
Genesys	Multimodal communications, AI solutions	Midsize to enterprise businesses	Robust cloud migration support, sophisticated analytics	$75/user/month
8×8	Unified communications, global coverage	International businesses	Global reach, combined UCaaS and CCaaS offering	Custom pricing

1. Nextiva

A comprehensive VoIP call center and contact center solution that delivers a unified customer experience with industry-leading reliability for both large and small businesses.

Key features:

• 99.999% uptime reliability guarantee
• Unified platform for voice, video, SMS, and team collaboration
• Advanced analytics and reporting dashboard
• Powerful CRM and helpdesk integrations for tracking customer issues
• Award-winning customer support with dedicated agents and success managers

Best for: Growing businesses requiring scalable customer communication solutions without complex IT infrastructure.

Pricing: Inbound services and sales call center plans start at $60/user/month. Full-fledged enterprise contact center solution plans start at $129/agent/month.

G2 rating: 4.5/5

2. Five9

Enterprise-focused cloud contact center specializing in AI-powered customer experience solutions.

Key features:

• Intelligent routing with predictive AI models for incoming calls
• Comprehensive workforce optimization suite
• Advanced omnichannel capabilities including email response management
• Extensive customization options
• Robust integration ecosystem with enterprise applications

Best for: Enterprise businesses with complex workflows and high call volume requiring sophisticated automation.

Pricing: Contact center plans start at $119 monthly pricing with additional costs for premium AI features and advanced integrations. Requires a 36-month contract but offers easy monthly payments.

G2 rating: 4.1/5

3. NICE CXone

Market leader for large enterprises offering comprehensive workforce optimization alongside core contact center functionality.

Key features:

• CXone unified cloud platform
• Advanced analytics and quality management
• Automated workforce scheduling and forecasting
• Global voice carrier infrastructure
• Extensive compliance certifications

Best for: Large enterprises requiring sophisticated workforce management and global service delivery capabilities.

Pricing: Plans start at $71/month. Add-ons cost extra.

G2 rating: 4.3/5

4. Talkdesk

Modern, cloud-native platform known for reliability, rapid deployment, and innovative AI applications.

Key features:

• Industry-first 100% uptime SLA
• User-friendly agent interface requiring minimal training
• AppConnect marketplace for pre-integrated solutions
• Rapid implementation
• Enterprise-grade security and compliance

Best for: Businesses prioritizing innovation, rapid deployment, and superior uptime guarantees.

Pricing: Contact center plans start at $85/user/month. Some integrations and add-ons cost extra.

G2 rating: 4.4/5

5. Genesys

Established provider offering both cloud and on-premises solutions with sophisticated customer journey management.

Key features:

• Advanced multimodal communication capabilities
• Industry-leading predictive routing technology
• Strong cloud migration support from legacy systems
• Sophisticated analytics for customer journey insights
• Flexible deployment options (cloud, hybrid, on-premises)

Best for: Midsize to enterprise businesses, particularly those transitioning from legacy systems to cloud solutions.

Pricing: AI-powered contact center plans start at $75/user/month.

G2 rating: 4.3/5

6. 8×8

Integrated platform combining unified communications with contact center capabilities for easy internal and external communications.

Key features:

• Global voice network with a presence in over 35 countries
• Combined UCaaS and CCaaS on a single platform
• Advanced analytics spanning all communication channels including text messages
• Built-in team messaging and collaboration tools
• Comprehensive compliance and security certifications

Best for: International businesses requiring reliable global voice quality and unified internal/external communications.

Pricing: Tiered per-agent pricing with options for contact center-only or combined with unified communications. Pricing details aren’t available on the website. Requires a custom quote from its sales team.

G2 rating: 4.2/5

When Do Businesses Need Call Center Services?

When exactly do you know you need a call center service? Below are some signs to watch out for:

• Higher call needs: As your business grows and your market presence increases, so does the need for call center support. Your internal call center team may not be able to keep pace, leading to long wait times and frustrated customers, negatively impacting your brand’s reputation.
• Increasing hold times: Long wait times are one of the main causes of customer frustration and damage customer loyalty. When customers living in different time zones are on hold for long periods, they feel undervalued, become impatient, and eventually hang up. All this translates to abandoned calls and lost business.
• Rising customer complaints: If you’re seeing an increase in customer complaints, social media mentions, or escalations to management, it may be that current customers aren’t reaching the right people in your team to effectively resolve their concerns.
• Existing phone systems can’t scale: Your traditional phone system struggles to keep pace with the growing need for advanced features like interactive voice response and scalability a rapidly growing company requires. Call center software providers like Nextiva offer flexible and scalable call center solutions to address this concern.
• Limited hours of availability: If your business is open during normal business hours but your customers need support outside of those hours, a call center service with live chat can provide extended or 24/7 coverage.
• Increasing operational costs: When managing internal customer support becomes expensive, using contact center software is more cost-effective and provides low-cost alternatives to in-house solutions.
• Lack of specialized expertise: Some customer service inquiries require product knowledge or language skills difficult to maintain internally, especially in smaller businesses.
• Difficulty tracking performance metrics: Without advanced call center software, it’s difficult to monitor key performance KPIs, like first call resolution rate, average handle time, and customer satisfaction scores.
• Seasonal fluctuations in call volume: If you experience fluctuations in the number of customer inquiries throughout the year, a call center service can provide the flexibility to scale inquiries as needed.
• Need for omnichannel support: Modern customers expect to reach businesses through multiple channels (phone, email, chat, social media). If you’re struggling to provide consistent service across all these touchpoints, consider omnichannel, professional call center services.

Features to Look for in a Call Center Service

When considering call center services, look for the following features that’ll simplify your business process and improve the customer experience.

Essential features

• Interpretive voice response systems (IVR): Guides callers through menus to the appropriate agent or offer self-service options.
• Automatic call distribution (ACD): Intelligently routes incoming calls to available agents based on predefined rules and their skills.
• Skills-based routing: Routes calls to agents with the required expertise for the caller’s request.
• Call recording and monitoring: Enables quality assurance, agent training, and problem resolution.
• Call Queueing: Allows callers to retain their place in the queue while agents become available for other calls.
• Real-time analytics and reporting: Provides insights into call center performance, agent productivity, and customer behavior.

Advanced features

• Customer relationship management (CRM) integrations: Provides quick access to customer history and data, enabling personalized interactions.
• Computer Telephony Integration (CTI): Integrates phone systems with computer applications, providing agents with customer information and tools instantly.
• Omnichannel communication support: Integrates multiple communication channels (voice, email, chat, social media) for a unified customer experience.
• Predictive dialer: Automates outbound dialing and connects agents only when a real person answers, increasing the efficiency of outbound campaigns.
• Workforce management tools: Optimize agent scheduling, forecasting, and performance management.
• Quality management features: Evaluate agent performance, provide feedback, and ensure consistent service quality.
• AI-powered features: Include sentiment analysis to understand customer emotions, call transcription for documentation, and virtual agents for handling routine inquiries.
• Self-service options: Enable customers to find answers and resolve issues independently through knowledge bases and portals.

Key Factors to Consider When Choosing Call Center Services

After you’ve determined which call center service best fits your customer service goals, the following factors will help guide your decision:

Criteria	Things to do
Service needs	Define your needs (inbound, outbound, mixed) and make sure the provider’s business hours align with the times your customers need support.
Industry expertise and cultural alignment	Look for services with experience in your industry, which understand your customers’ needs and whose service philosophy aligns with your brand’s values.
Technology and infrastructure	Make sure the service has modern, reliable technology with CRM integrations and strong systems that support your business.
Scalability and contract flexibility	Choose a call center service that can easily adapt to fluctuations in your business needs with flexible contract terms.
Cost structure and pricing models	Understand different pricing structures (hourly, per minute, per call, per agent) and assess which best fits your calling needs and budget.
Agent expertise and quality assurance	Inquire about agent training programs, qualifications, and turnover rates, and how the provider monitors and maintains service quality.
Performance metrics and reporting	Evaluate tracked KPIs, reporting transparency, and analytics capabilities to gauge service quality.
Multilingual support and cultural sensitivity	Make sure the provider offers support in all required languages with culturally competent agents for your diverse customer base.
Security, compliance, and business continuity	Review compliance with industry regulations, data protection measures, and plans for uninterrupted service.
Reputation and trial opportunities	Research customer reviews, request references from similar companies, review case studies, and, if possible, choose a provider that offers a demo or trial period.

Best Practices to Choose the Right Call Center Service

The following best practices provide additional insight into selecting the right contact center service:

Understand your provider’s growth strategy

Don’t just compare basic features. Go deeper into your call center provider’s innovation roadmap. Ask about their plans to integrate new technologies like advanced AI, proactive customer service tools, and changing communication channels. Choosing a future-oriented partner keeps your call center strategy up-to-date and adapted to future customer expectations.

Choose a partner not just a provider

Assess the level of partnership and collaboration offered. Look for a call center service that sees itself as an extension of your team and is willing to actively participate in strategic planning and improvement initiatives. A partner is committed to your success and proactively offers solutions to optimize your customer experience.

Understand exit strategies and data portability

Consider your exit strategy and data portability from the outset. While you strive for a long and successful partnership, understanding termination terms and ensuring a smooth data transition when needed is a must, but overlooked, aspect of due diligence, which ensures long-term business continuity.

Prioritize data security and compliance

Go beyond basic certifications and learn about the measures in place to protect sensitive customer data and follow relevant industry regulations. A strong security concept is essential to maintaining customer trust and avoiding costly data breaches.

Growing Businesses Choose Nextiva

For growing businesses and small businesses alike, Nextiva’s cloud-based customer communication services provide a solid foundation for delivering exceptional customer experiences.

Nextiva ticks all the boxes we’ve discussed in this article. With advanced features like call routing, call queuing, IVR, real-time analytics, voicemail, and seamless integration with popular CRM and help desk software, Nextiva helps businesses deliver some of the best customer experiences possible.

For instance, Benefit Harbor saw huge positive results from Nextiva’s call center service.

As an HR software company, it experienced rapid growth in clients going from paper to digital. 

However, their original on-premises PBX call center, a phone-only solution, took weeks to answer client tickets. This led to significant call center productivity issues and missed business until Benefit Harbor partnered with Nextiva and saw a significant improvement in customer satisfaction and operational efficiency. 

“Nextiva was willing to deliver what we needed. We had a lot of asks that maybe were outside of the box. I was very appreciative of the Professional Services Team being able to jump in from the get-go.”

~Jennifer Strand, Benefit Harbor’s Contact Center Director

If you’re ready to deliver outstanding customer service, you must explore Nextiva’s VoIP call center solutions. Check out Nextiva’s cloud call center and learn more with a personalized consultation.

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