Ecommerce Customer Service Outsourcing (The #1 Mistake Brands Make!)

Imagine providing 24/7 multilingual support across all channels and platforms without scaling your team or renting an office. You'd save time, money, and energy while offering customers a better experience with your Shopify brand.

These are just a few of the benefits of ecommerce customer service outsourcing. After all, there’s a reason why successful brands like Target, Amazon, and Asos use this practice.

But despite its perks, outsourcing isn't a one-size-fits-all solution. Sometimes, it can do more harm than good, leading to frustrated customers and bad reviews.

With that in mind, think twice before you go all-in on outsourcing customer support. Here’s why — and what you should do instead.

The business case for outsourcing customer service

Around 77% of customer service leaders use outsourcing to cut costs and scale up their operations. This practice allows them to handle inquiries across multiple time zones and languages, reduce overhead, and free up their staff to focus on more strategic activities.

The result? Higher profits, greater efficiency, and increased customer satisfaction.

For many companies, the cost savings alone justify the decision to outsource customer service. Let's do the math:

Say you run a small- to medium-sized Shopify business that receives around 70 inquiries per day.

The average base salary for a customer service rep in the U.S. is $68,800 per year. A single agent can manage 50 to 100 inquiries daily.

If you offer 24/7 customer support, you need at least two agents to cover shifts. That's $137,600 per year, plus benefits and other expenses, such as office space and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services.

Be prepared to shell out an additional $148,000 per year if you also want a customer success manager on your team.

By comparison, the cost of outsourcing customer service is around $9 to $65 per hour, depending on the provider's location. For example, call centers in India charge as little as $6 to $12 per hour.

This option also eliminates the need for employee training, onboarding, and on-premises hardware, which can further reduce operational costs. Plus, you can scale your support services up or down as needed without hiring or laying off staff.

What is customer service outsourcing in ecommerce?

Outsourcing can take different forms, depending on your industry and business needs.

In ecommerce, this practice involves hiring third-party companies to handle customer support operations like:

• Responding to buyer queries
• Processing returns and refunds
• Managing order-related issues
• Helping customers navigate your website
• Assisting with checkout problems
• Creating support tickets and tracking resolution
• Managing loyalty program inquiries

And much more.

For example, these professionals can answer customers' questions on social media or via live chat. You can also ask them to handle order modifications, exchange requests, and other aspects of the post-purchase experience.

If you've just started a Shopify business, consider working with individual agents rather than call centers. This option is more cost-effective for small companies that need extra help to meet seasonal demand fluctuations.

But don't jump in just yet. While it's true that outsourcing can reduce costs and support business growth, it also carries significant risks.

Why you should think twice before outsourcing

Good customer support requires intimate knowledge of your business and target audience. When buyers reach out to you, they expect to get a response that reflects your brand identity.

Outsourcing companies juggle multiple clients across various industries. They may not take the time to fully understand your brand’s voice, values, and customer expectations. Plus, they may not get to know your products as well as an in-house team would.

This misalignment can lead to inconsistent messaging and a generic approach to customer interactions. Shoppers may feel misunderstood or undervalued, diminishing their trust in your brand.

In a 2023 survey, 61% of consumers said they would be willing to spend more with a brand that offers personalized experiences. 82% agreed that personalization influences their brand choices at least half the time.

Another survey revealed that nearly 75% of consumers expect better personalization when sharing more data with the companies they interact with.

Outsourcing service providers often fall short in this area. They may also not follow your guidelines, resulting in reputational damage, operational mishaps, and lost opportunities.

Other potential drawbacks include:

• Loss of control: When working with an outsourcing partner, you have less oversight over how they handle customer inquiries. If something goes wrong, people will blame your company.
• Inconsistent quality: Service quality can vary from agent to agent within the same team, leading to an inconsistent customer experience. This problem may also stem from cultural differences or language barriers.
• Data security concerns: Sharing customer information with outsourcing providers increases the risk of data breaches or misuse. There's also a risk of compliance issues with privacy regulations, such as the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) or the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
• Dependency on the provider: Service disruptions, financial problems, and other issues experienced by your outsourcing partner can directly impact your business. A strong reliance on third parties will also make the transition to in-house customer service more difficult (if you decide to stop outsourcing).
• Hidden costs: Outsourcing often has less obvious costs that quickly add up. For example, some providers charge extra for additional support during peak season. On top of that, you may need to invest in advanced security protocols to protect sensitive customer data. Other costs include tech integration, quality control, and service level changes.
• Customer attrition: In a 2022 survey, 76% of consumers said they would leave a brand after just one bad experience, such as waiting too long for a reply via live chat support. An underperforming outsourcing partner can deter customers due to poor service quality. As a result, you may lose revenue and need to spend more on marketing to attract new customers.
• Subpar reporting: Most outsourcing companies provide regular updates and reports, but they only cover basic metrics like customer satisfaction and churn rates, average ticket resolution time, and so on. This data is important, but you may also want to monitor customer sentiment, customer effort score (CES), and other less obvious metrics. Outsourcing makes it harder to track these numbers due to fragmented data, pitfalls in feedback collection, or standardized reporting practices.

That said, you shouldn't rely solely on a third party for customer support. That's the number one mistake brands make when outsourcing this service.

The smart alternative to ecommerce customer service outsourcing

Outsourcing has its perks, but this doesn't mean you should jump all in. Instead, consider these options:

• Build a hybrid customer service team: This approach works best for large enterprises, allowing them to balance in-house and outsourced customer service. For instance, the outsourcing company could handle basic customer inquiries, such as questions on returns and exchanges, and escalate complex cases to your internal staff.
• Use AI customer support software: Consider switching to an AI-powered customer support tool with automation capabilities. A good example is OpenDesk, a platform that enables ecommerce brands to automate and personalize their support services.

The latter option offers greater flexibility and convenience than a hybrid customer service team. Plus, it's safer and more cost-effective than outsourcing.

Think of OpenDesk as a centralized platform that brings all your inboxes in one place. As a result, it allows you to manage customer queries across multiple channels and keep a pulse on important metrics like:

• Customer satisfaction score (CSAT)
• Net Promoter Score℠ (NPS®)
• Customer lifetime value (LTV)
• Average response time
• Customer emotion

In 2024, OpenDesk introduced a proprietary metric called Tickets Per Order (TPO), which enables users to track the number of customer queries related to product queries, order delays, and other topics.

Ecommerce brands can leverage this data to find and address the root causes of customer dissatisfaction.

OpenDesk also automates ticket categorization and common inquiries, enabling support teams to prioritize time-sensitive messages. Thanks to its AI capabilities, it can auto-generate responses based on your data and brand voice guidelines.

These features allow for faster and more personalized support, which can improve the ecommerce customer experience.

How to choose the best customer service solution for your ecommerce business

According to a Qualtrics XM Institute study, poor customer experiences cost businesses 7% of their revenue. The organization also found that 50% of shoppers who have a bad experience with a brand will tell their families and friends about it. More than 40% will leave negative feedback on the company's website.

Given these numbers, you’ll want to offer the best possible customer service. Otherwise, you could lose revenue and have your reputation tarnished.

The question is, should you go the outsourcing route or hire an in-house support team? What about a hybrid approach?

Each option has pros and cons, and choosing one depends on where you're at in your business journey — among other factors.

Consider these aspects before deciding on your next move:

Control vs. flexibility

With an in-house team, you have full control over customer interactions. This option ensures your staff uses the best practices and tools for profitable ecommerce customer service and follows standardized processes for handling complaints or other issues.

Outsourcing provides more flexibility but less control. For example, it allows you to scale quickly, especially during peak seasons, without needing to hire extra staff. The downside is that an external team may not adhere to your brand voice or handle customer issues as directed.

Product and brand knowledge

There's no doubt that some outsourcing companies offer high-quality customer service. However, they may not be as knowledgeable about your brand and products as an in-house team. This can be a problem for ecommerce businesses selling complex products like medical equipment or smart home devices.

If you hire internal staff, you can provide ongoing training. Better yet, give them access to an AI-powered customer support solution to make their job easier.

For instance, OpenDesk can generate responses in your brand's voice, freeing up your team to focus on high-priority queries. Simply upload documents about your products, services, and policies — and let the AI work its magic.

Data security and compliance

Call center services and other outsourcing solutions can leak sensitive data, leaving your business vulnerable to cyber attacks, reputational damage, or legal liabilities. Plus, their data handling practices can undermine your compliance efforts.

According to a 2024 study, over 60% of enterprises reported third-party data breaches or security incidents in the last 12 months. Fifty-eight percent of companies that experience data loss don't manage to recover all their data.

These things can happen even if you do everything in-house, but outsourcing may increase the risks.

For instance, the company you partner with might lack proper security measures and fall victim to ransomware. This can disrupt your operations, leading to customer distrust, revenue loss, fines, and lawsuits.

Cost considerations

Outsourcing ecommerce customer support costs less upfront than hiring internal staff, but beware of hidden fees. Some companies may charge you extra for things like:

• After-hours service
• Personalized reports
• Multilingual support
• Dedicated account management
• Custom integrations
• Setup or onboarding
• Early termination

For example, your outsourcing partner may impose surcharges for handling a higher volume of customer inquiries than agreed. This could happen after a product launch, during peak seasons, or following a marketing campaign.

Although in-house customer support has higher costs, it can cause a better return on investment (ROI) as your team becomes more efficient.

Plus, you can use a smart support system like OpenDesk to automate common inquiries and streamline workflows. These features enable small teams to handle a larger volume of tickets and focus on more complex customer issues, eliminating or reducing the need for additional staff.

Convenience

Outsourcing customer care is far more convenient than hiring in-house employees. With this option, you don't have to set up a dedicated support center, buy new equipment, or manage people.

But, as discussed earlier, customer service outsourcing has drawbacks and may not be a good fit for your business.

The solution? Switch to a platform that gives you the best of both worlds.

We’re talking about customer service software platforms with automated ticketing systems, customizable dashboards, advanced analytics, and other helpful features.

Depending on your needs, choose a tool that can:

• Track and manage customer interactions across multiple channels
• Automate responses to common inquiries and FAQs
• Summarize conversations
• Enable real-time support (e.g., via live chat)
• Automate repetitive tasks
• Offer self-service options for customers
• Integrate seamlessly with your existing systems
• Give you advanced analytics and reporting capabilities
• Grow with your business

For example, some customer service tools use AI to automate ticket resolution and route complex cases to human agents. Others have built-in survey features, live chat, and self-service options like community forums and knowledge bases.

Elevate your customer service with OpenDesk

Customer support services directly impact your profits and bottom line. Even with the best products and a huge marketing budget, you can still lose business if your customer support is subpar.

You may think outsourcing will make things easier, but that's not necessarily the case. An external team may lack the know-how and skills to manage your customers and keep them coming back.

At OpenDesk, we deeply understand the ecommerce market and the factors influencing customer loyalty and engagement. With that in mind, we built a customer support app for Shopify businesses.

OpenDesk simplifies your customer service operations and helps you build a loyal customer base. With our platform, you can manage buyer interactions effortlessly and scale up or down as needed.

With OpenDesk, you can address customer complaints promptly while retaining the personal touch of an internal team. On top of that, we use the latest technology to safeguard customer data and prevent security incidents.

Our platform is aimed at ecommerce brands of all sizes, from startups to large enterprises. User-friendly and highly scalable, it offers powerful automation solutions to streamline customer support and help you cut down on agent headcount.

But don't just take our word for it. Sign up for a 30-day free trial to explore OpenDesk's features and automation.