The Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) was formed in September 2006 with the purpose of improving the security of credit / debit card information throughout the process of a card transaction. The Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council are responsible for application and management of the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, which is the standards and requirements that are used to ensure that all organisations that process, store, or transmit their customers' card information, do so in a secure environment. PCI compliance applies to any organisation that processes payment via credit or debit card, regardless of their size. Read more
A SIP trunk is a service offered by an Internet Telephony Service Provider (ITSP) to use Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) to deliver telephone services and to set up communications for individual users as well as both small and large businesses. Read more
The Telephone Preference Service (TPS) is a register which gives both business and the general public the opportunity to opt out of unwanted sales and marketing calls. This official register is completely free to join. Read more
IP telephony (Internet Protocol telephony) uses the internet to deliver calls as packets of data on shared lines. Also know as VOIP it is the real-time transmission of voice signals over the internet or private data network. Read more
Fax, also known as facsimile, involves the transmission of scanned material via electronic signals through a telephone system. Once this information has been transmitted, the device receiving the information (typically a fax machine) will convert the electronic signals into an image. The use of fax machines to transmit images and information has declined over recent years due to the emergence of internet based technologies such as email, however, there are many industries that still rely on faxes to transmit information such as financial records and signed contracts. Read more
In the contact centre industry, the importance of consistently high call quality cannot be understated. It is, after all, the fundamental purpose of a contact centre to make outbound calls to individuals, and due to the significant overheads associated with a contact centre operation, they simply cannot afford to drop calls or have bad call quality at any time. The significance of dropped calls and bad call quality cannot be understated due to the severe impact that it can have on the contact centre operation. This article explores some considerations that are necessary to ensure that call quality doesn't adversely affect your operation. Read more
The ICO (Information Commissioner's Office) is an independent authority that has been set up to uphold information rights in the public interest, promote openness by public bodies and data privacy for individuals. Read more
The TPS/CTPS are free services that individuals or businesses can join to stop unsolicited calls. However, customers on the TPS/CTPS can be called if you have prior consent to do so. TPS is an acronym for Telephone Preference Service, which is regulated by the ICO (Information Commissioner's Office) and relates to (PERC) the Privacy Electronic Communications Regulations. In May 2011 the information commissioner was granted significantly extended, and enhanced powers enabling much swifter fines to be issued and greatly increased value (up to £500,000). Read more
Telecommunications is perhaps the most important service that is provided within any business, as it will almost certainly causes the most disruption when an issues manifests, or in the event of a full blown telecommunications outage. In the event of a full service outage, not only are your workforce unable to make outbound telephone calls, which will impact on your ability to sell your services, but your customers are also unable to get in contact with you. Given these facts, the importance of resiliency and redundancy of any IP telecoms network warrants careful consideration to ensure you are not put in a situation where your business grinds to a holt due to telephony issues. Here are some things to consider questioning of your existing provider, or any new IP based provider. Read more
The quality of the data used by a call centre is of fundamental importance in all campaigns that are undertaken. If the data used is of a high standard, then it is much likelier that the campaign will be a resounding success on the basis that you would expect a higher contact rate on higher quality, and typically newer data. Conversely, if the data is of a poor standard, then the call centre will have the odds stacked against them in trying to achieve any targets for the campaigns they are involved in as there are likely to be telephone numbers and contact details that are incorrect on poor quality, and typically much older data. When high, and poor quality data are compared on this basis, it would appear foolhardy to use poor data in any campaign, but the reality is that high quality data can be extremely expensive. Read more
