American corporations have been outsourcing their IT, customer support, software development, and many other essential business tools to offshore companies as a means for spending fewer resources on these critical infrastructure components.
The goal is to preserve the company’s bottom line while allocating their finances towards other departments that are working to develop the product or service offered to the public. But the internal operational support apparatuses for these businesses are no less important, yet so many US-based corporations are putting these trusted tools in the hands of overseas contractors.
Unfortunately, some issues and problems can sometimes emerge from these arrangements.
They may actually present significant obstacles that can disrupt your business and make the customer less inclined to do repeat business with your organization. Some of these obstacles may include a breakdown in communication due to language barriers, time zone issues, and cultural disparities that could leave your business high and dry through no fault of your own. These are just some of the potential problems that could stand in the way of your business succeeding and thriving.
As a result, more American companies are turning to a better alternative in the form of onshore or domestic outsourcing. This business model takes a more straightforward and simple approach for providing internal support apparatuses that companies rely on to perform their most basic operational functions.
Domestic outsourcing places these crucial systems in the hands of US-based IT services companies that have the skills, the knowledge, and the quality of their offshore counterparts, while still enjoying lower costs of service.
Companies that are actively seeking solutions to their customer support, IT systems management, business analytics, quality assurance, regulatory affairs, enterprise applications, and business intelligence software and analysis, along with many other fundamental business tools would be well-advised to seek out domestic outsourcing options to manage these operations. Domestic outsourcing is cost-effective and reliable while providing higher levels of efficiency. All of this leads to greater productivity for your business and a marked increase in company growth.
The Many Benefits of Onshore & Domestic Outsourcing
US-based companies that are turning to domestic companies for vital business support are finding they can enjoy the same level of quality services at a similar cost, but without many of the obstacles and headaches that can often come with leaving these business solutions in the hands of overseas entities.
The benefits of dealing with domestic outsourced IT support means you are reaching your business goals while bypassing many of the pitfalls that are inherent in offshoring your IT needs. Onshore alternatives to your outsourcing needs bring with them a wide array of benefits to help your firm succeed.
Consider the following advantages to onshore outsourcing that can make your company more efficient and more productive over the long term:
Improved Standards for Communication
Consistent and clear communication is the lifeblood of any organization. When it comes to doing business, excellent communication between your company and your customer base can sometimes make all the difference between success and failure. While that may sound somewhat hyperbolic, consider all of the ways in which your clientele may feel stymied or frustrated in performing the very simple function of attempting to contact your business. The customer may be trying to inquire about your product or service, place an order for the same, or reach out to resolve a problem in the use of that product or service or address any matter that may have arisen from a transaction.
When the customer needs to discuss these things with your firm, their inability to communicate with one of your representatives can have a negative or detrimental impact on your ability to satisfy them. The customer will most likely grow irritated with these obstacles to clear communication and decide to take their business to your competitor.
Domestic outsourcing solves this elementary conundrum. Working with a team of US-based contractors increases your capability for clear and direct communication by eliminating the language barriers that can sometimes become an issue. When your representatives are fluent in the language of the country in which you do business, customers find they have an easier time of getting their problems and concerns addressed by working with a native speaker.
This is true for many of the most important functions you depend on for operating your business, from sales to customer service to order fulfillment.
Communication barriers don’t always lie solely with a lack of fluency in the language; they can sometimes come as a result of the incompatibility of time zones around the world. Your support structures may need to be strategized much more carefully with respect to the time zone differences that might exist between the part of the world where you do business and that where your contractors are located. Response times can be slower should you require immediate attention.
One last thing to keep in mind with respect to communication barriers is the potential for cultural differences to interfere with the flow of information between the customer and your representative. Outsourcing your company support solutions to foreign contractors has the potential to bring about difficulties in communication due to the cultural disparities that may exist.
A contractor in another country might have a different schedule for the observance of holidays that could leave you without a support team in place at a time when you need them most. Possibly more disadvantageous than holiday schedules being out of sync is the potential for cultural mores and manners that could hinder good communication.
Some countries take a different approach to directly speaking with one another, and these aspects of cultural etiquette may prevent your representative from giving crucial information to the customer in a manner that is informative and unambiguous. When you turn to domestic outsourcing to handle these delicate affairs, you know your representatives are working with customers in a manner that reflects well on your company and works towards solving the problem without having to tiptoe around the matter for fear of either party in the conversation becoming offended.
Increased Capabilities for Controlling Your Business
Domestic outsourcing allows for you to have a more robust handle on the quality control of your business. You will have a much easier time of training or consulting with contractors through in-person meetings and demonstrations of services and how they operate. This keeps your business flowing a lot smoother because there are fewer barriers to understanding these sometimes complicated components of your infrastructure.
Additionally, receiving deliverables that could be crucial to the functional efficiency of your infrastructure could be delayed due to international shipping and the processes through which items need to pass just to go from point A to point B. The geographical distances that exist between an American company and overseas contractors could pose more problems.
Domestic Outsourcing is A Lot More Affordable
For years, American companies were turning to overseas outsourcing solutions because the workforce was often far more affordable due to the cost of living in the countries where these contractors were based.
But today, there are plenty of IT support solutions, analytics teams, and software development companies operating in cities throughout the United States where the cost of living and worker wages are lower than you might expect. The foreign outsourcing trend was born from an increase in costs that came from the industries centered around information technology residing in large metropolitan cities where the cost of living was much higher, and the competition for attracting talent meant paying higher wages. The result was that US-based companies were left paying more for the services of IT and software development firms, and when corporations discovered they could receive the same quality of service at a lower price, they shipped these jobs to overseas contractors.
However, this is no longer necessary. Not with so many top-quality IT contractors located in smaller cities where the costs of living are not as high. Consider where your company resides at the moment. Perhaps you are headquartered in New York City, San Francisco, or Houston. Hiring a team of designers or a customer support hub in one of these American cities can be very expensive.
But when you outsource these services to a contractor located in a smaller city located in Nevada or Ohio or Nebraska, your company can receive the same high-quality service at a lower price, and without the challenges that come with hiring overseas employees.
Are you ready to get back in control of your IT? Contact us at Onshore Outsourcing to learn more about how we will partner with you to get the most out of your outsourcing team.
