Does “Off-the-Shelf” Call Center Integration Really Work?

If you’re considering purchasing business software, you’ve probably heard the phrase “seamless integration.” Vendors like to paint a pretty picture of contact center integration: just download, point, click, and voila.

In reality, it is not that simple.

The promise of one-click integration

Integrating your CRM data into your contact center platform isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s essential to reaping the full benefits of your investment.

Marketers use terms like “plug and play,” “ready,” and “one-click” all the time. Even I’ve used them when describing integrations.

The idea behind ready-made integrations is sincere. They should make it easy for anyone to connect their tools, even those without an IT background.

After all, not everyone has the resources to hire a developer.

These integrations are built and tested by experts who know the systems inside and out. Plus, vendors on both sides handle updates and maintenance for you. When one updates, the other follows suit.

In theory, it sounds great.

But contact center integrations are built for the masses, not for your specific workflows, systems, or agents. Every contact center is different, and vendors can’t account for everyone’s needs.

What to expect from contact center integrations out of the box?

If you’re lucky, you’ll get the integration set up and everything will work as planned. This is more likely if you’re using a well-established CRM, such as HubSpot or Sales forcewhen paired with a popular contact center solution, Nextva or RingCenter.

You may find a few areas clumsy, but you can adjust your processes to make them work. That definitely happens.

But more often than not, you’ll find that the integration works fine – not great, just okay.

Fields may not be mapped correctly, the features you were hoping for may not be available, and there may be no timeline for adding those features; you’re at the mercy of two vendors.

This is common if you are using new or little-known software.

This can also happen when you combine a well-known CRM software with an industry-specific contact center platform, and vice versa.

You can get the integration working without investing in developer resources, but you will likely need to rely on workarounds and hacks to make it work for your team.

Worst case scenario? Nothing works. This is especially common if you’ve heavily customized your CRM or contact center platform. Whether you’re using something you built yourself or having a developer tweak built-in systems to fit your processes, you’ll have a hard time getting off-the-shelf integrations to work for you.

No matter which scenario you fall into, you may find yourself hoping for more. It’s an unfortunate but common experience.

When pre-built integrations aren’t enough

The easiest solution is middleware, which are third-party tools that specialize in connecting data, systems, and processes. Zapier And To do are the most popular at the moment.

I’ve had great success using them for a variety of tasks. While there is a learning curve and additional expense, none of them are as steep as custom integrations or APIs. For the most part, the middleware is drag-and-drop and lets you create custom flows and automations.

For call centers, you can use them to:

• Sync your communication history.
• Create new contacts in your CRM.
• Update your contact information in both systems.
• Trigger tasks, reminders, and follow-ups.
• Automate deal and opportunity management.
• Set custom alerts and notifications.

You can even use it to attract other vehicles, such as: Looseness or email too. However, there are limitations — especially when it comes to flexibility and customization. Some features and capabilities won’t be an option.

If you have the budget, time, and resources, custom integrations using APIs and SDKs offer much greater possibilities.

These also give you more control over security; if you need to comply with strict security requirements (for example), this may be your only option. HIPAA).

However, custom integrations add complexity and overhead beyond what middleware requires.

With both options, you may encounter latency, scalability concerns, and compatibility issues. security risksand consistency issues.

Why isn’t call center integration easier?

Every contact center is unique. The data they collect, how they store it, what they do with it, and their processes are unlike any other business — including yours.

To complicate matters further, CRMs and contact center solutions are highly customizable. While this is great for tailoring them to your workflows, any level of customization inherently makes integration a challenge.

Omnichannel integration is even more challenging. Syncing emails, chats, social media, text messages, and other communication records into a CRM — even if it’s not customized — is no easy task.

Synchronizing all data often leads to duplication, data loss, or data corruption.

On top of that, technology is constantly changing. New features are released and UI updates are happening behind the scenes all the time. Your integration might work great one day, but break the next. It’s a constant evolution that requires constant maintenance from everyone involved.

Vendors and middleware providers are doing their best to make things easier for everyone, but it’s a very challenging task.

How do you make contact center integrations work for you?

First, if you don’t have a CRM or contact center solution, choosing two that work well together is the best place to start.

TO SEE: Best contact center CRM software And best call center platforms.

The best approach is to take advantage of free trials, demos, and direct meetings with vendors. It may be tempting to just sign up for one and call it a good one, but this will do you no good in the long run.

Spend time testing each solution, especially out-of-the-box integrations. Try to replicate your use case as closely as possible and test it in volume.

The more extensive testing you do, the fewer surprises you will encounter in the future.

Don’t be afraid to question vendors about integration details. Tell them how you work and what you need, then ask them to show you how it’s done. If they can’t show you, consider it a red flag. You should also ask about future development plans so you know what direction they’re going in.

Already have both software? You have three options depending on your budget.

If you don’t have the budget, small-scale manual data entry or partial integrations may be enough. Even basic syncing contacts, transferring interaction records, and using screen popups can be a huge advantage.

It’s better than nothing.

No budget and very little? You’ll likely need to make internal changes to make the out-of-the-box contact center integration work. This could mean switching to a different CRM or contact center solution, changing your processes, finding workarounds, simplifying the data you collect, or learning to use middleware.

For businesses with deep pockets, custom integration or API development It is the best way to avoid internal changes and get exactly what you need.

It may take longer than you expect, but having a system that fits your workflow will be worth it.

Regardless, it’s crucial to educate your team on your integrated system – even the best setup won’t work if no one knows how to use it.