Company Overview Company History Our People Our Locations Leadership Message FAQ Press/Media Contact Us Form Home 6/14/2010 USA 800 featured in Kansas City Business Journal Friday, June 11, 2010 Kansas City Business Journal - by James Dornbrook Staff Writer USA 800 Inc. has had the largest growth period in its history during the past two years, despite the recession. The Raytown-based call center outsourcing firm is profiting from companies looking to cut fixed costs, and its status as a 100 percent employee-owned firm is helping it bill itself to potential clients as providing higher-quality service. CEO Tom Davis said USA 800 added 300 employees during the past six months, bringing its total to about 1,000. The company recently finished a $2 million expansion of its Raytown headquarters, adding 150 workstations, for a total of 250. It’s adding a training center and employee amenities at a 450-seat call center in St. Joseph, and it also operates a 75-seat call center in Halstead, Kan. To keep up with demand, however, Davis said USA 800 is looking to add a facility in either Missouri or Kansas that can handle about 300 workstations. “We’ve got a heavy fourth quarter shaping up, and we’re going to exceed the footprint that we need to service our seasonal calls,” he said. “We’re used to running at about 40 to 50 percent capacity, but right now we’re running at 90 percent. We need to get back down to 50 percent capacity so we can add that next piece of business and have the flexibility to handle those seasonal surges that happen.” Kevin Barth, COO of Commerce Bank’s Kansas City region, said USA 800 is capitalizing on the expense of owning, operating and staffing an in-house call center, especially in a tumultuous economy. “People go to them to outsource those peak activities, rather than staffing up in-house to handle those peak levels,” Barth said. “It makes for a more efficient use of people, capital and equipment.” Virgil Grimm, telesales manager for Cricket Communications Inc., said the company hired USA 800 in 2007 to handle all inbound sales calls and website chat sales. “We had an aggressive timeline to get this done, and to put all the necessary infrastructure in place under that time frame was next to impossible,” he said. “Deploying the technology is one thing, but having to hire people with the necessary expertise was just too big of a hurdle.” USA 800 already had the technology in place, Grimm said, so it could use a 90-day ramp-up period to focus on training and providing customer service. “They are a midsized outsourcer, so they have more technology than a mom-and-pop shop, but you don’t get lost in the mix like you sometimes do with the big guys,” Grimm said. “They are employee-owned, and their representatives seem to be more engaged than going with a firm that is just out to put butts in seats.” Davis said USA 800 doesn’t try to compete with call centers that are trying to offer the lowest prices. The company targets jobs that require salesmanship to turn general inquiries into new clients. For Cricket, that means USA 800 representatives receive regular training to keep them up to date on new products and promotions. Barth said Commerce helped USA 800 finance the employee buyout in 1996. The company had strong management, he said, and employee ownership seemed a good fit for the industry. “It’s really helped reduce turnover in an industry that has more turnover than most,” he said. “They aren’t making and selling widgets, so it’s all about service. Being (employee-owned) helps keep employees focused on providing the best customer service they can because they share in the fruits of their labor.” USA 800 INC. Description: Employee-owned call center outsourcing firm Top executive: CEO Tom Davis Founded: 1976 Employees: About 1,000 Sales: $30 million (projected 2010) Headquarters: 9808 E. 66th Terrace, Raytown, MO 64113	"Few decisions are bigger than outsourcing customer communications. Customers are the lifeblood of any business. At USA 800, we have proven experience to be the partner you can trust..."  Learn More   "USA 800 is a trusted partner for DRAFT. We use their services for multiple projects because we can be sure that they will deliver the..." -Vice President Top 10 Advertising Agency Learn More   Visit our Resource Library to find out about our partnerships at USA 800 and how we help companies like yours... White Papers Case Studies Brochures Newsletters Learn More
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