A cloud-based contact center is a contact hub that handles inbound and outbound calls using software hosted by a third party.
Cloud-based contact centers provide all infrastructure and functionality on a subscription basis. This reduces capital investment and allows businesses to scale up or down easily.
The following table outlines the key differences between on-premise, hosted and cloud call center approaches:
| on-premise | hosted | cloud | |
| Server managing the audio channels | operating on business site | operated on external site managed for the business user | operated on virtualized server instances that can be turned on and off and replicated instantly |
| Telecoms interconnections | direct interconnection with telecoms services to the business site of the call center | supplier has direct telecoms interconnections to the hosted service explicitly for the business customer | uses large scale telecoms interconnections to global suppliers that can be used by any account |
| Office telephony device connections | phone devices of employees are connected to the local on-site server | phone devices connected to the hosted server | phone devices connected to a virtual server with a range of SIP connections reserved for the business customer |
| Integration to CRM or ticketing or support desk solutions (often called CTI for computer telephony integration) | custom software module for on site system to interact with technical interface in the CRM or other system | same as on-premise but hosted on external site | configure a pre-built available on-demand integration connectors for common CRMs and other tools |
| Where and how is data stored and processed? | your data is processed and stored in servers that are on your site(s) | your data is processed on your behalf in external site managed for your by the vendor | your data is processed in separated vistualized server units. Note that these can be specific to you as a company and not shared resources. The processing can even be done in a specific server location in a specific territory. The details of this processing and storage are what you need to check with the supplier if it is important to your company. |
You can find out more about the structure of a cloud call center here
