Article • 8 min read

What is a contact centre? Definition, types, and use cases

Establish a flexible, dynamic contact centre to drive customer loyalty and improve agent efficiency.

By Cristina Maza, Contributing Writer

Last updated April 29, 2025

Two glass cubes rest on a green surface, one with a clock on its front surface.

What is a contact centre?

A contact centre is a department that manages customer interactions across multiple channels, such as social media, email, voice, and online chats. The term may also refer to the software that the team uses to handle those interactions. Contact centre software can save and consolidate contextual information from conversations with customers, enabling companies to deliver personalised, omnichannel experiences.

Consumers communicate through various avenues—from messaging services to apps to email. Their choices of communication channels aren’t always predictable. So, if you only offer one or two customer support channels, you’ll miss critical opportunities to connect with your audience.

Establish a modern, dynamic contact centre to meet your customers with human-centred support when and where they need it. Contact centres let you connect with customers through their preferred communication channels and provide the tools that help your agents perform to their full potential.

Read on to learn everything you need to know about contact centres, from how they work to tips on implementing and managing your own.

More in this guide:

How a contact centre works
Contact centre vs. call centre
6 types of contact centres
5 benefits of a contact centre
Top use cases of a contact centre
Key contact centre technology and features
How to manage a contact centre strategy
The future of contact centres
Frequently asked questions
Future-proof your CX with contact centre software

How a contact centre works

Unlike traditional call centres that mainly handle phone calls, contact centres use technology like AI and automation to streamline conversations and ensure fast, personalised service. These centres are capable of hyper-personalised, autonomous support, bolstering customer support, sales, and more. They help businesses strengthen customer relationships while empowering agents to work more efficiently.

One of the key ways contact centres operate is by intelligently distributing incoming requests:

AI agents and interactive voice response (IVR) prescreen customer enquiries to route them to the best-suited agent or provide instant automated answers to simple questions.
Real-time analytics track call volumes, wait times, and customer sentiment, allowing supervisors to adjust staffing and workflows on the fly.
AI-driven insights help agents by suggesting responses, detecting emotions from customer sentiment, and flagging urgent tickets, making every interaction more effective.
AI copilots can provide real-time script recommendations, pull up relevant customer data, and summarise past interactions so agents don’t waste time digging through records.

Example: If a customer switches from chat to a phone call, AI ensures the agent has full context, preventing frustrating repeats. By handling routine tasks, AI frees agents to focus on complex or emotionally sensitive issues.

Ultimately, the best contact centres combine cutting-edge AI with a people-first approach. Automation speeds up resolutions, while agents use AI insights to personalise interactions and build rapport. This balance leads to happier customers, less agent burnout, and more efficient operations.

Contact centre vs. call centre

Successful call centres and contact centres can have overlapping responsibilities, but there are distinct differences between the two.

A Venn diagram compares contact centres vs. call centres

Call centre software only handles calls, routing them to different departments, often with the help of a business Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). However, a contact centre offers customers multiple support channels, including phone, email, chat, messaging apps, social media, and self-service options.

Thanks to these expanded communication options, a contact centre can better serve your customers, helping you deliver enhanced customer experiences.

	Contact centre	Call centre
Communication channels	Multichannel or omnichannel capabilities	Voice
Self-service options	IVR Chatbots and AI agents FAQ pages	IVR
Functionality	Call reporting Queues Monitoring Omnichannel routing 360-degree customer view	Call reporting Queues Monitoring

6 types of contact centres

Learn about the different types of contact centres to determine the right fit for your company and customers.

Inbound

Inbound contact centers handle incoming calls or messages from customers and are similar to inbound call center software. Agents may provide product and tech support, process payments, and answer questions. Customers generally reach out to enquire about:

Products
Promotions
Locations
Business hours

Businesses that rely on appointments and reservations—like clinics, salons, restaurants, and tourism agencies—can use inbound contact centres for booking requests.

Companies with software products use contact centres to answer technical questions over different channels, like sending a video tutorial to a customer who doesn’t know how to use a specific feature.

Outbound

Similar to outbound call centers, agents at outbound contact centers usually reach out to prospective customers to pitch products and services. Reps may also be responsible for marketing, appointment setting, lead generation, fundraising, payment collections, and more.

Outbound contact center agents often use power dialers to automatically call numbers on a list. When a customer answers, the software connects them to an available agent. For smaller companies, these agents are effectively salespeople, but for larger businesses, they might assist an internal sales team with miscellaneous tasks, such as cold calling and appointment scheduling.

Agents at outbound contact centres typically contact customers and prospects regarding:

Outstanding debts
Telemarketing
Fundraising
Research
Sales
Promotions
Surveys
Updates

For smaller companies, customer service agents essentially act as salespeople, but for larger businesses, they might assist an internal sales team with miscellaneous tasks, such as cold calling and appointment scheduling.

Omnichannel

Omnichannel contact centers connect with clientele through phone calls and digital channels, such as:

Social media messaging
App or website live chats
Email
SMS and mobile apps

An omnichannel solution is unique because conversations are completely fluid across channels, allowing agents to connect with customers using their preferred communication method at any given time.

Whenever or however a customer makes contact, the interaction is recorded for future use. This customer context—conversation history, account type, order history, and contact information—is invaluable and helps agents provide better support as the conversation moves from channel to channel.

Multichannel

Cloud

Cloud-based contact centres streamline inbound and outbound communications by routing them through internet servers.

Cloud solutions are popular because they:

Have fewer upfront costs.
Are easy to deploy.
Are customisable and scalable.
Record all interactions.
Offer call quality monitoring.
Empower agents with data.
Create a better customer experience.

When a solution isn’t tethered to one location, agents can interact with customers from anywhere with an internet connection.

On-premise

The on-premise contact center model uses hardware to host a contact center at a specific location. It is a more traditional solution, but it is becoming outdated because it has expensive infrastructure. It also requires companies to hire an IT team to maintain the servers and troubleshoot issues, making it less flexible and more costly.

But there are still some benefits. For example, businesses:

Only need to purchase the required equipment
Don’t need to make monthly payments
Have more control over software and hardware
Can store important data at a facility

An on-premise solution can also limit growth due to its steep expansion cost. If you plan on scaling, the benefits of a cloud-based tool might be more enticing.

Key contact centre services and features

It’s important to customise your contact centre to fit your customers’ needs while also adhering to budget and resource constraints. The key features of contact centres vary depending on the software but can include:

Interactive voice response (IVR) systems: IVR is a phone tree system that answers incoming calls and routes the customer to their chosen department or the best-suited agent.
Automatic call distribution (ACD) and routing: ACD systems route inbound calls to available agents to reduce wait times.
Call recording: Customer calls are recorded for quality control measures and used for agent training.
Call monitoring: Managers can track activity from a real-time dashboard and listen to ongoing calls.
Real-time reporting: Teams can access reports with up-to-date information to proactively adjust to customer needs and resolve service issues.
Integrations: Contact centres can connect to third-party tools so teams can work efficiently and access all company resources.

5 benefits of a contact centre

With a contact centre, support agents can connect with customers over several channels. This flexibility isn’t just convenient for customers—it also means there are more opportunities to learn about your audience and practise customer care. Here are five key benefits your business can experience from using a contact centre.

The five main benefits of contact centres, including higher customer satisfaction.

1. Delivers omnichannel support

Agents can provide better support when they have a complete picture of the customer and the issue. Omnichannel contact centres consolidate customer information gathered via chatbots, forms, and representatives into one place.

Say a customer reaches out for help and engages with a chatbot. After answering a series of automated questions, the customer’s support ticket gets escalated to a live agent. By this time, the customer has little to no patience and does not want to repeat themselves to a representative. Luckily, with an omnichannel support system, the agent already has the customer’s information and the context of their issue, helping to streamline the rest of the interaction.

Example: Say a customer reaches out for help and engages with a chatbot. After answering a series of automated questions, the customer’s support ticket gets escalated to a live agent. By this time, the customer has little to no patience and does not want to repeat themselves to a rep.

Luckily, with an omnichannel support system, the agent already has the customer’s information and the context of their issue, helping to streamline the rest of the interaction.

2. Improves customer satisfaction

Contact centres can improve customer satisfaction because customers can choose the form of communication that best serves their issues. They also help agents streamline customer interactions and build on past communications based on previously collected information. This allows for more personalized experiences and ultimately results in stronger consumer relationships and greater customer satisfaction.

Example: Suppose a customer needs immediate help with a high-stakes issue. They may prefer to speak with an agent on the phone to address it. Meanwhile, a customer with a low-stakes query might reach out via email or chat. Either way, contact centres empower customers with choices, including self-service options.

3. Promotes collaboration

By consolidating customer interactions and inquiries in one centralised hub, contact centre teams have access to a unified and organised system for addressing customer issues. This centralisation facilitates team communication, enabling agents to collaborate effectively and share insights, solutions, and best practices.

Issue resolution is more efficient because agents can draw from a collective knowledge base, making it easier to provide consistent and accurate responses. This collaborative environment enhances team cohesion and ensures quality service, benefiting customers and the organisation.

Example: Imagine a customer service agent receiving a ticket for a complex billing dispute from a long-time corporate client. The agent connects with both the billing department’s senior analyst and the account management team lead with the company’s integrated contact centre platform.

The cross-functional team resolves the issue within an hour and identifies a systemic billing process improvement.

4. Increases sales opportunities

In contrast with call centres, contact centres include both online channels and the phone. Multichannel communication enables more revenue-boosting opportunities than only using phones. Agents can upsell and cross-sell products or services, such as sending links to products that solve a customer’s problem or sharing information about a package upgrade.

Example:During a routine customer service call about a laptop’s warranty, a tech support agent notices the customer is struggling with outdated equipment. The agent recognises the opportunity and explains the latest company models to address customer needs.

By the end of the call, the customer receives exceptional service and purchases three new laptops with extended service plans. A contact centre helped turn a simple support interaction into a significant sales opportunity that benefits both the customer and the company.

5. Gathers customer insights

Contact centers enable agents to connect with customers at several touchpoints, gaining insights into consumer needs, preferences, and buying behaviors.

Analytics software can track and measure key customer experience metrics across channels. You can use this data to research trending phrases and words in customer conversations, which can help you catch issues before they snowball.

Additionally, cross-channel analytics software can help you interpret data from all channels, get a 360-degree customer view, and determine which communication channels your audience likes the most. You can use this information to segment your buyers and tailor your customer support accordingly.

Example: A bank’s contact centre might notice customers complaining about a “credit card scam” in live chat and email—something that needs addressing urgently. This prompts the bank to take schnell action to resolve the matter.

Top use cases of a contact centre

Contact centres drive meaningful engagement, streamline operations, and enhance brand loyalty. From AI-powered self-service to hyper-personalised support, businesses leverage contact centres to meet customers where they are and deliver seamless experiences. Here are five key use cases that showcase their transformative potential.

1. AI-powered self-service solutions

Contact centres use advanced AI chatbots—like AI agents—and IVR systems to resolve routine inquiries instantly and autonomously.

Customers can check order status, reset passwords, or get FAQs answered with 24/7 support, reducing wait times and freeing agents for complex issues. Natural language understanding (NLU) enables these tools to understand and respond to customer intent, improving satisfaction while cutting operational costs.

2.38 Proactive customer engagement

Instead of waiting for issues, contact centres proactively reach out with updates, appointment reminders, or personalised offers.

AI predicts customer needs, like billing alerts or renewal notices, and triggers automated calls, emails, or SMS. This reduces inbound queries, boosts retention, and makes customers feel valued before problems arise.

3. Omnichannel CX management

Customers expect seamless transitions between telephone, email, chat, and social media.

Contact centres unify these channels, ensuring agents have a full interaction history. It doesn’t matter whether a chat escalates to a call or a tweet becomes a support ticket. Tickets across all channels are collected, analysed, and categorised in a unified agent workspace for all relevant teams to access. Consistent, context-aware service builds trust and eliminates frustrating repeats.

4. Advanced customer journey analytics

By tracking touchpoints across channels, contact centres identify pain points, such as frequent drop-offs during returns. This information helps optimise workflows by reducing those pain points.

AI analyses behaviour patterns to predict churn risks or upsell opportunities, helping businesses act strategically to boost customer retention and sales. Real-time dashboards turn data into actionable insights to continuously improve CX.

5. Hyperpersonalized support

Leveraging CRM data and AI, agents tailor interactions based on purchase history, preferences, or past issues.

For example, a VIP customer might skip queues, or a rep could recommend products aligned with past buys. Personalisation fosters loyalty and turns service into a competitive advantage.

Key contact centre technology and features

1. IVR systems

IVR software is an automated phone tree system that answers incoming calls and routes customers to their chosen department or the best-suited agent. Using voice or keypad inputs, IVRs can handle routine enquiries like:

Checking account balances
Scheduling appointments
Processing payments

Advanced IVRs even leverage AI for natural language processing, allowing customers to speak naturally instead of navigating rigid menus.

2. Automatic call distribution (ACD) and routing

ACD systems intelligently distribute incoming calls to the most appropriate available agent based on pre-defined rules, such as:

Skillset
Language preference
Customer priority

Intelligent routing can take things further with AI to analyse call context, customer history and sentiment, and agent performance. This data helps route calls even more efficiently and effectively, minimising hold times and eliminating manual transfers for smoother experiences.

3. Call recording

Call recording captures customer-agent conversations for quality assurance (QA), compliance, and training purposes. Recordings help supervisors to:

Evaluate agent performance.
Identify coaching opportunities.
Ensure adherence to scripts and regulations.
Resolve disputes.
Verify customer agreements.

AI-powered speech analytics can automatically detect trends, sentiment, and common issues—turning raw recordings into actionable QA insights for continuous improvement.

4. Call monitoring

Call monitoring allows managers to listen to live calls, whisper guidance to agents (without the customer hearing), or even take over conversations if needed.

Real-time dashboards display key metrics like call duration, hold times, and agent status, enabling schnell interventions. This is crucial for maintaining service quality, especially for new hires or high-stakes interactions. When combined with AI-driven alerts, monitoring helps supervisors proactively address issues before they escalate, ensuring consistent customer experiences.

5. Real-time reporting

Real-time reporting provides instant visibility into contact centre performance with metrics like:

Reporting insights help supervisors spot bottlenecks and deploy resources dynamically to meet demand. AI-enhanced analytics can predict trends like peak call times, allowing teams to prepare in advance. With up-to-the-minute data, businesses can make agile decisions to improve efficiency and enhance overall service quality.

6. Integrations

Seamless integrations with CRM platforms, help desk software, and other business tools ensure agents have full customer context at their fingertips. Integrations boost the customer service ROI of any contact centre platform by expanding its capabilities to customise service to your needs. They can also be low- and no-code, meaning you don’t need any technical knowledge for implementation.

API-friendly contact centres like Zendesk also enable custom integrations, unifying systems for smoother operations. This reduces agent effort, minimises errors, and enables faster, more informed customer support—key for delivering a cohesive experience across every channel.

How to manage a contact centre strategy

With so many open lines of communication, contact centres typically require a proactive management style and a different approach than call centre management.

Four tips to follow for better contact centre management.

Here are some ways you can efficiently manage your contact centre to keep things running smoothly.

Establish a contact center team structure: It’s a good idea to define your contact centre's team structure and roles early on. This means determining everyone's titles and duties, from executives to customer service agents. Common contact centre roles include directors, managers, team leaders, and agents.

Hire qualified agents and prioritise workforce management: Agents must have the necessary skills to carry out tasks without excessive training. If you prioritise hiring candidates with inherent potential, you can train a versatile team—especially if you leverage AI-powered quality assurance tools to help pinpoint coaching opportunities.
Measure agent performance: Collect data, set customer service goals, review team performance, and provide ongoing training and feedback to help agents improve. Research customer service tips and best practices to stay current on industry trends and provide the best support.
Prioritise workflow improvements: Define clear workflows and utilise analytics to make data-driven decisions to enhance efficiency, customer satisfaction, and overall business performance. You can further enhance your team’s efficiency with automation, like IVR and chatbots, that handle routine customer inquiries and route them to the right resources or agents.

The best contact centre software can help you do all of this automatically with advanced AI-driven analytics, giving your agents more time to handle core responsibilities rather than tedious, repetitive tasks.

The future of contact centres

The future of contact centres is here.

AI and automation will only improve as AI-driven tools handle more customer service interactions. However, leading AI-powered CX solutions like Zendesk already enable companies to automate resolutions for up to 80 per cent of customer service interactions. The other 20 per cent? AI can receive, categorise, and escalate those tickets to the appropriate human agent to eliminate service gaps.

One potential advancement in the future of contact centre technology is augmented reality (AR). AR has the potential to revolutionise troubleshooting, such as a customer pointing their phone at a broken appliance while an agent overlays step-by-step repair instructions in real time.

The ultimate goal of future contact centres is to continue offering the blend of cutting-edge tech and human empathy that redefines CX. Contact centres do this exceptionally well today, and they’ll only improve in the future.

Frequently asked questions

How does a contact centre lead to better CX?

How can I measure the return on investment (ROI) of a contact centre solution?

What’s the best contact centre available?

Customer story module

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Future-proof your CX with contact centre software

Integrating contact centre software with your other systems can lead to better internal and external communication, helping you meet customer expectations and stay competitive. That’s especially true with AI-driven contact centre software that can help you exceed your competitors’ customer service capabilities and offer more value to your customers.

Invest in omnichannel customer service and industry-leading CX software to streamline and coordinate client data and provide better customer service.