The analyst firm surveyed almost 2,300 UK adults in July this year and found that even many of those who had never used an overseas call centre had a negative perception of them.
Outsourcing firms are aware of the perception and, according to Harris Interactive, had hoped that customer concerns would be allayed once they had experienced the service. But this is not the case, apparently.
According to Harris Interactive, organisations that outsource call centres overseas may have to contend with damage to their brand and reputation.
The survey found that 47% of adults have less respect for companies that outsource call centres overseas and 50% do not trust giving their details, such as financial details, to overseas call centres. This may harm productivity as well as reputation, says Harris.
Only very small percentages said that overseas call centre staff were more friendly (4%) or more helpful (2%) than UK call centre staff.
Almost a third of respondents (31%) claimed that they have either refused to give their business to or have switched away from a company that outsources overseas, suggesting that short-term cost savings could turn into long-term losses.
"Call centres have become part of every day life but outsourcing call centres has caused some controversy. It represents the biggest change in the industry since the introduction of ‘Interactive Voice Response (IVR)’ menu-based systems," said Frances Green, research director for Harris Interactive. “Companies need insight into the impact of the decision to offshore on brand perception and reputation, as well as the financial metrics.”
