Which Industries Can Benefit from Bureau Customer Service?

Customers are the lifeblood of any business. But how can you provide the best customer experience while efficiently managing time and costs?

Customer service outsourcing has long been a popular solution. Outsourcing allows companies to access skilled people, technology and expertise without the overheads associated with maintaining support via an in-house team.

At first, this followed a standard model. A team of (predominantly) telephone-based agents would be assembled and integrated into a business, typically on a full-time, long-term basis. However, the modern business landscape and changing customer expectations have forced the industry to evolve.

Contact centre outsourcing now offers bureau contact centres as a flexible solution, allowing businesses to scale their customer support operations in response to fluctuating demand. We’ve explored the industries that can benefit most from a customer service bureau and why this is an increasingly attractive proposition.

What is Bureau Customer Service?

Customer service outsourcing has evolved significantly in the past 20 years. For example, outsourced contact centres in the UK are no longer purely office-based or restricted by one contact method.  

Instead, today’s multi-channel and omnichannel customer service teams are proficient in email, live chat, social media and even AI-powered interactions beyond phone support.

This is fantastic news for the customer. But how have the needs of business been catered for?

Bureau contact centres have emerged as ideal solutions for small and medium-sized companies that may not have the budget to maintain a dedicated customer service team.

Bureau customer service, otherwise known as 'shared resource’, has simple payment terms and zero fixed costs. Billing is based on the volume of contacts handled.

A bureau call centre team is a group of agents that work for multiple companies. Sharing resources, infrastructure, and technology enables businesses to significantly reduce or entirely remove their customer service fixed costs.

Are your current agents underused? Or do you face challenges in resourcing and scaling to meet demand, perhaps because of variable or seasonal contact patterns? If so, outsourcing customer care in this way makes perfect sense.

Benefits of Bureau Customer Service

• Operational from mornings to evenings, covering typical overflow periods
• Low-cost set-up
• No fixed costs or minimum spend
• Flexible billing based on the volume of contacts handled (call minutes, emails processed, live chats completed, social media replies, etc); only pay for what you use
• Flexible operation with the ability to scale up and down based on demand and manage seasonal peaks.
• Simple integrations with client-owned systems
• Consistent levels of service
• Handles multiple and varied types of customer contact while matching your brand values
• Experienced professionals with the expertise to provide a great customer experience
• Access to improved technology and omnichannel contact centre support
• Comprehensive reporting and data analytics provide actionable insight to improve your customer service experience
• Allows businesses to focus on their core competencies while knowing their customers are safe

Overall, the shared bureau call centre can be a strategic asset, helping businesses deliver superior customer service while optimising their own resources and costs.

Bureau Call Centre Services and the Human Touch

Self-serve and web-based options have enhanced the customer service experience and reduced contact times. However, don’t disregard the power of voice communication.

The Customer Contact Panel report ‘2025: A Year of Difficult Conversations?’ explores some challenges facing contact centre leaders, particularly AI and automation adoption.

While ‘the death of voice’ has long been predicted, this crucial form of communication remains a key revenue driver in customer service experience.

In fact, 72% of customer experience management revenues ($300 billion per annum globally) are still driven by voice.

The human voice will remain key to delivering empathetic customer support that builds trust and satisfaction.

Key Industries Benefitting from Flexible Customer Service

A bureau contact centre is well-suited to companies or campaigns that experience variable contact volumes throughout the day, week, month or year.

Here are a few examples of industries that can benefit from this type of flexible customer service:

Ecommerce and Retail

Ecommerce customer service is perhaps one of the most obvious beneficiaries of flexible and scalable support. Online retailers face significant fluctuations in customer enquiries, particularly during sales events, holidays and new product launches.

Benefits of bureau customer service for eCommerce:

• Scalable support during peak shopping seasons
• Out-of-hours and overflow availability to handle increased levels of customer queries
• Expertise in handling order issues, returns, and product information requests

For instance, a UK-based online retailer might outsource call centre services to manage the surge in customer contacts during seasonal sales. This would free up resources elsewhere and help maintain a strong brand reputation by providing prompt and efficient service.

Micro Scooters quickly onboarded our out-of-hours and overflow call handling teams to help them manage increased requirements. Our partnership was so successful, it landed us the Best Ecommerce Customer Service prize at the Ecommerce Awards.

Travel and Hospitality

Travel and hospitality can be seasonal and subject to high levels of disruption, making these industries great matches for scalable customer service options.

Benefits of bureau customer service for the travel and hospitality sector:

• Flexible support for travellers and guests
• Ability to handle sudden increases in volume due to travel or event disruptions
• 24/7 support for emergency situations and time-sensitive enquiries

Airlines and hotel chains have historically outsourced call centre services to manage booking changes, provide travel updates and offer assistance during peak travel seasons—all without the need for a big team of permanent staff.

Hospitality and event providers also outsource customer care support to help them manage sudden changes.

A customer service bureau is particularly beneficial for growing travel and hospitality businesses. Since partnering with event provider TOCA Social to offer multi-channel query handling, including Live Chat, we’ve managed over 850 weekly interactions.

Health and Social Care

The health and social care industries require sensitive and often urgent customer support. Outsourcing customer service can help providers manage inbound calls, schedule appointments, provide after-hours support and effectively handle patient enquiries.

Benefits of bureau customer service for health and social care organisations:

• Fully-trained advisors providing empathetic customer support
• 24/7 availability for urgent medical inquiries
• Scalable support for seasonal health concerns (e.g. flu season)

Social care providers benefit from our bureau contact centre services. Our solution is the perfect fit for fluctuating inbound calls, allowing complete management while eliminating fixed costs

Why Outsourced Customer Service is a Great Option

Cost-Effectiveness

Businesses can significantly reduce the operational costs associated with maintaining an in-house support team by opting for customer service outsourcing. The pay-per-use model allows for better budget control and resource allocation.

Scalability and Flexibility

Outsourced call centres in the UK can scale support operations up or down based on demand. This flexibility is crucial for businesses with seasonal fluctuations or unpredictable growth patterns.

Access to Expertise and Technology

Bureau customer service providers often invest in the latest industry technologies and train their staff in best practices across various sectors. This gives businesses access to expertise and tools that might be costly to develop in-house.

Focus on Core Business

By outsourcing customer service, businesses can focus on their core activities while leaving the complexities of customer support to specialists. This can improve overall business performance and innovation.

The UK Customer Satisfaction Index (UKCSI) is the nationwide barometer of customer satisfaction, often highlighting the disconnect between customer service expectations and reality.

By embracing flexible customer service options, businesses can ensure they're well-equipped to handle modern customer service challenges while focusing on their core operations and growth strategies.

Do you struggle to balance customer care with day-to-day activities in ecommerce, retail, travel, hospitality, health or social care? Our contact centre services are the solution for you.

Get in touch to learn more.

Updated August 2025