India and the Philippines: A comparison of call center prices
Thinking of hiring a call center? If you’ve already done your initial research, you’d know that offshore outsourcing your customer service and call center is the way to go. This article will give you a more in-depth understanding and comparison of call center prices in the top two offshore staffing destinations.
Through the years, India and the Philippines have been competing as the top offshore staffing locations. Both countries take pride in their high literacy rates, English proficiencies, strong government support, and established outsourcing reputation.
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As a company looking to outsource your call center operations, it’s important to learn your options. Outsourcing is a business-changing decision, so make sure that you’re 100% ready to take the plunge.
Hiring a call center
Businesses hire a call center for a variety of reasons. It could be because of its cost-effectivity, diverse labor pool, proven and tested processes, efficiency, or other reasons. Even though offshore staffing is relatively cheaper than hiring in-house and nearshoring, business clients are still ensured of the quality and excellent service that these locations offer.
One question people ask about offshoring is why it’s more affordable than hiring in-house, especially if you’re not compromising the quality anyway. Here are various factors that affect call center prices:
Factors affecting call center prices
- Low cost of living. Services in offshore outsourcing destinations are relatively cheaper because employees are paid lower. However, this doesn’t mean ‘modern-day slavery.’ People in these locations have a lower cost of living. In fact, employees can live comfortably on a US$500 monthly salary.
- Wide pool of talent. Since there’s a huge supply of talented professionals ready to work for your company, business process outsourcing (BPO) don’t have a hard time finding suitable employees. They also don’t need to spend much on recruiting and job advertising.
- More employees. Since BPOs typically hire a number of employees at a time, it’s possible they can get discounts insurance packages, office spaces, and other necessary expenses.
India or the Philippines?: A comparison
India and the Philippines are often compared, as they’re often the top two choices when it comes to offshore staffing. It’s safe to say that both countries are equipped with the talented workforce, proper outsourcing processes, and impressive expertise. Considering this, their main differentiator would be their call center prices.
Here’s a comparison of call center prices in India and the Philippines:
Call center prices in India
India, as we know it, is a premier offshore staffing destination. It is the third largest economy in the world after the United States and China, and a huge chunk of its economy is filled by the BPO sector.
India specializes in call centers, software development, and information technology (IT) outsourcing. Since the country was colonized by the British empire, its citizens have high literacy rates and are highly proficient in English. More than 500 companies in India outsource their services to around 66 countries.
When it comes to call center prices, naturally, rates will differ depending on the employee’s prior experience and expertise. To give you a general idea, here’s a table of the call center pricing in India:*
| Call center role | Indian employee’s pricing |
| Agent (1-3 years exp.) | $3,389 |
| Agent (3-5 years exp.) | $5,490 |
| Team leader | $4,879 |
| Operations manager | $10,474 |
*Take note that these numbers are employee salaries only. Your trusted BPO provider will have additional charges for your employees’ equipment, work spaces, training and upskilling costs, and other work-related expenses. Rest assured that these expenses will be broken down and carefully explained to you by your outsourcing provider.
Call center prices in the Philippines
The Philippines started outsourcing and leveraging its talented workforce back in the 1990s. Frank Holz of the Accenture Group created the first call center in the country, and the rest is history. The country has been colonized by Spain and the United States for centuries, and Western culture still has a huge effect on the local culture.
Fast forward to today, the Philippines has become the call center capital of the world. While it specializes in call centers, it’s also home to proficient virtual assistants, social media managers, content writers, graphic designers, IT services providers, bookkeepers, and more. The country’s outsourcing industry has grown past call centers. You can now hire your offshore staff to perform virtually any role.
As of 2020, the Philippines’ outsourcing industry already has 1.2 million employees – and counting. As mentioned above, their salaries, and of course call center pricings, will depend on their previous relevant work experience, educational background, and expertise.
As a general idea, here’s the call center pricing in the Philippines:*
| Call center role | Philippine employee’s pricing |
| Agent (1-3 years exp.) | $3,337 |
| Agent (3-5 years exp.) | $5,175 |
| Team leader | $7,152 |
| Operations manager | $14,665 |
*Take note that these numbers are employee salaries only. Your trusted BPO provider will have additional charges for your employees’ equipment, work spaces, training and upskilling costs, and other work-related expenses. Rest assured that these expenses will be broken down and carefully explained to you by your outsourcing provider.
Conclusion
Hiring a call center is a risk. But, it is a proven and tested business strategy. India and the Philippines are both efficient countries to outsource to. With over 1,000 multinational companies outsourcing their operations to these destinations combined, your business is surely safe with them.
If you happen to choose the Philippines as your trusted outsourcing location, the next option is picking a competent offshore staffing provider. Here at SixEleven, we provide a wide range of services performed by highly skilled and experienced professionals and experts in their respective fields. Further, we believe that every business is unique. That’s why we provide customized and scalable outsourcing solutions that are suitable for your business.
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