What Is the Cost Per Call?
The Cost Per Call (CPC) is an essential metric for measuring the cost of handling a single call. CPC indicates how efficient and effective your call center is operating. CPC is viewed as a call center key performance indicator (KPI) and should not be used for agent or supervisor KPI performance accountability.
When the CPC is high, it is common to negatively impact the call center's operating cost and budget. Conversely, when CPC is low in some cases, it can substantially negatively impact customer call center service. The key is to determine the appropriate CPC that represents the efficiency and effectiveness goals of the call center.
How to Calculate Cost Per Call?
Calculating the Cost Per Call for a call center involves several additional factors. Here are the steps to calculate the cost per call for a call center:
- Determine the total cost of operating the call center: This includes all costs associated with running the call center, such as salaries, benefits, training, technology, facilities, and overhead. It would be best if you calculated CPC monthly or yearly.
- Determine the number of calls handled by the call center: This includes all inbound and outbound calls handled by the call center during the same period that you calculated the total cost.
- Calculate the Cost Per Call: To calculate the Cost Per Call, you need to divide the total cost by the number of calls handled. For example, if the total monthly cost of operating the call center is $1,000,000 and the number of calls handled during the same period is 100,000, the Cost Per Call would be $10.00.
- Consider other factors such as the complexity of the calls, the length of the calls, the skills and experience of the agents, and the efficiency of the call center operations. You may need to adjust the Cost Per Call based on these factors to get a more accurate picture of the actual cost.
Cost Per Call Resolution Is More Insightful Than the CPC Metric
To calculate the Cost Per Call Resolution (CPCR), you need to multiply the cost per call by the average number of calls to resolve an inquiry or problem. The below formula is used to calculate Cost Per Call Resolution:
Cost Per Call Resolution = Cost per Call × Average Number of Calls to Resolve
It's important to note that the Cost Per Call Resolution is more insightful than the traditional Cost Per Call metric because it considers how many calls are required to resolve an inquiry or problem. As a result, the CPCR metric better reflects the actual cost of handling customer inquiries and problems, as it includes the cost of all the calls required to achieve a resolution.
Furthermore, the Cost Per Call Resolution metric can be used to develop a business case for improving first call resolution rates. By reducing the number of calls required to resolve an inquiry or problem, organizations can lower their Cost Per Call Resolution and improve the overall customer call center experience.
In summary, calculating the Cost Per Call Resolution involves multiplying the Cost Per Call by the average number of calls required to resolve an inquiry or problem. This metric is more insightful than the traditional Cost Per Call metric due to it does not factor in number of calls required to resolve an inquiry or problem. Furthermore, CPCR can help organizations make a business case for improving first call resolution rates.