While Arise Virtual Solutions cannot be called a scam as that may not be its primary objective it is true that you may be able to make more money working for some other virtual call center company. There are several virtual call center companies that not only do not charge their call center agents for the training that they undergo but in many cases also pay them during the training process. It is a well-known fact that having to pay a fee to join any work at home opportunity be it in the garb of training or start up costs or any other reason is considered to be a red flag when it comes to avoiding work-at-home scams. The second point is that Arise Virtual Solutions only hires its home-based call-center agents as independent contractors. This means that Arise Virtual Solutions does not make any commitment as to the amount of work that it will provide its home-based call-center agents. There is no guarantee of a minimum date that an employee usually has and there are no other benefits such as a retirement plan or health benefits. After investing money in training and furnishing your home office to function as a virtual call center it is possible to get left high and dry without sufficient work every month to recover your costs. Arise Virtual Solutions is a company that hires home-based call-center agents and has been functioning for more than 10 years. The head office of Arise Virtual Solutions is based in Miramar, Florida. The type of jobs offered to the virtual home-based call-center agents include technical support, sales and customer service. Arise Virtual Solutions differs from almost any other what you call center company in several ways. First of all Arises requires its home-based agents to become Virtual Service Corporations, which means that the agents have to become an Incorporated identity in their home state. While many other companies may require their home-based call center agents to work as independent contractors they do not expect them to become corporations. Secondly, Arise requires its agents to pay for the initial training as well as any specialized training that may be required to service a particular client. This is at odds with the policies of many other virtual call center companies where they do not charge a person undergoing training with them but also, in several instances, pay the person during the training process as well.

Costs Involved with Working with Arise Virtual Solutions The fee and payment structure with Arise Virtual Solutions can get fairly complicated to understand. The frequently asked questions page on the website of the rise only covers some of the basic information which may not help you fully grasp the functioning of the company and what it will require to become a home-based call-center agent for Arise.

This is the fee structure that is involved with signing up with Arise. When Arise requires you to set up your own Corporation in your own state it can cost you anywhere from $55-$400 depending upon whether you are able to undergo the process yourself or need legal help in the matter which may further inflates the cost. The initial training with Arise costs $99 which is in addition to any expense that you undergo while setting up your home-based office to work as the virtual call center. The Read more about the requirements for a home-based call-center office. After you have established yourself as a virtual service Corporation and have paid for the initial training with Arise you will also be required to pay for any specific training that a client requires. These training charges can range from $50-$225. Arise also charges its home-based call-center agents for the so-called infrastructure and services provided and this amounts to $19.75 twice a month. As you can see the fee structure of working with Arise Virtual Solutions is pretty steep and you will need to work for the first 10 to 20 hours to just recover your costs before you can start to make any money. Since Arise Virtual Solutions require you to pay for training every time that you are assigned to a new client this fee can crop up repeatedly.

How to Sign up with Arise Virtual Solutions This is a process that one must follow in order to apply for a home-based call-center job with Arise Virtual Solutions. Apply online on their website. All applicants must be over 18 years of age and need to take an online assessment test. In case you do not pass any part of the assessment you need to wait three months before you can apply again.

If you pass assessment test and your application is accepted, you will need to pay a fee for a criminal background and credit check which ranges from $11-$26. If the background check is satisfactory Arise needs you to undergo “Arise basic certification program” which costs $99 and takes 20 hours to finish. You need to establish yourself as a Virtual Service Corporation. This means registering yourself as a Corporation in your home state which could cost you anywhere between $55-$400 depending upon the fee applicable in your state. You may also need to get legal assistance if you cannot manage the process on your own which would further inflate the cost of incorporating yourself. Many states charge an annual fee and tax to corporations which are absent for independent contractors.

Next comes the signing of the contract with Arise. Set up your home office for Arise virtual solutions. The home office requirements for home office for Arise Virtual Solutions are pretty much typical of most home call center offices. Costs of running a DSL Internet line and a dedicated phone line may run into about $50 a month along with any new equipment and installation charges that you need to undergo. You will need to apply to enroll for specific client certification. In order to service a particular client you will need to pay for this specific client certification programs which may cost you another $50-$225. This specific client certification program may last from two days to several weeks. Once the training is completed you can begin working and servicing the client assuming that there are available positions.

Interpretation of All Information regarding Arise Virtual Solutions

You can make $10-$14 per hour working for Arise Virtual Solutions. However, the fact remains that the outlay of the initial costs as well as recurring charges are pretty high. At the end of the day since you are working as an independent corporation and not as an employee of Arise there is no guarantee of how much work you will get or of any minimum wages. There is also an absence of any benefits such as a pension plan or a health plan.

According to the information available on their website, Arise puts the average at $400-$600 as a minimum amount that a call center agent must outlay before being ready to work for a client. A call center agent must also devote 20 hours of training time minimum before starting to work for an income. While the compensation could be a fixed rate based on per call, per minute or per hour basis, it will differ from one client to another but usually ranges between $10-$14. Considering the initial costs, this means that you need to work at least 20 hours before you can starts to make any money and that’s without counting the initial 20 hours that you put into the training.

Although, the training aspect is common with mostly all virtual call center companies, Arise has its call center agents doing extra training time for each individual client and even requires them to pay for taking the training. While paying all these initial costs who could make sense if they were all one time costs and you work for the company for a long time, the fact is that several of these costs are recurring costs. Arise charges a training fee for every new client that the home call center agent has to work with.

And taxes and fees associated with setting your self up as a Corporation may come into several hundred dollars annually in certain states. Along with that Arise charges almost $40 every month as a service fee for providing the infrastructure support. Just these to expenses of paying for the infrastructural support as well as paying for the Internet and phone could mean that you need to work for and at least 10 hours every month just to recover these expense and realize any form of profit each month.

Bottom line with Arise Virtual Solutions is that it seems to be making a lot of money from levying fees and charges on its home-based call center agents apart from generating an income from the clients that it services. A person wanting to work from home for Arise Virtual Solutions does have to pay a premium dollar for it.

The call center may cater to the very company that you are working for or it may be and outsourcing enterprise that provides tele services to various other clients.

It is also known as relates to the terms such as customer service center, telemarketing center.

Usually the virtual call center agent is responsible for punishing the virtual call center at home with the necessary  equipment and is responsible for its upkeep, maintenance and providing any other service require from the virtual call center.

A virtual call center can be an inbound or outbound or center where calls are either made or received by the virtual call center agent or a combination of both.

A virtual call center is a work-at-home opportunity.

If you are considering setting up a virtual home-based call center to work as a home-based telephone  customer service representative or sales agent then you will need to ensure that you have the right office equipment to get the job done and to get started. While finding a home-based call-center job will be a top priority, whether or not you qualify to get the job  will also depend upon  having the right set up at home. While different call center agencies may have different requires for the office equipment usually a virtual call center agent should be able to provide basic services like a personal computer, phone, basic software such as word processing and e-mail as well as telephonic services.

The following are the technical requirements for a home-based call-center office.

Computer requirements and technical specifications

Desktop personal computer running Windows. Usually laptops and Macintosh computers are not allowed.  The minimum requirements for the computer usually are 1 GHz to 2 GHz processor running windows XP or Vista. You might be surprised to find that  call-center company often does not require the newest OS to be running on your computer as it may not be set up to work on it yet. You will require 512 Mb 1 GB of RAM, sound card, speakers and a 15 inch 217 inch monitor. Your computer should be running adequate  antivirus and spyware protection along with a functioning firewall. Software requirements for your desktop personal computer will require basic word processing  as well as the ability to handle Excel spreadsheets and Adobe PDF formats.

Internet requirements

Your Internet connection will need to be a fast Internet connection with the SL or cable Internet capabilities. Satellite and ial-up connections are usually not allowed. There may b some restriction on using Wi-Fi as well although a Wi-Fi inside the home may be allowed in certain instances.

Telephony services

Telephony services need to be provided in the form of a phone line that is separate from your home phone. Cell phones and VoIP protocols are not acceptable. The handset has to be a corded handset. Cordless are usually not allowed. You may also need a handset with noise canceling technology. The telephone instrument needs to be one where the dialing pad is on the phone and not on the handset.

Instant Messaging Services

Instant messaging services such as Yahoo messenger, AOL messenger and MSN messenger may also be required on your computer as they may serve a purpose in the functioning of your job as a home-based call-center agent. This is not an issue as these  are available for free download from their respective websites.

Other Office Requirements

There may be other requirements from your office set up which  mainly depend and differ from one company to another. These include having equipment like paper shredders, lockable filing cabinets, noise reduction headsets, WebCam, a backup power supply etc.

As far as home-based call-center jobs are concerned the difference between an employee and an independent contractor could mean the difference both in the amount of work that you do as well as the amount of money that you earn.

a person working from home can be both an employee as well as an independent contractor. The word telecommuting means  working from a remote location. If you break up the word it would mean commuting to office for work through “Tele”   methods which would include using e-mail, fax and telephone.

The patient of this definition is in order because many people as you that simply because a position offers telecommuting they are employees of the company. Telecommuting can be done by both an employee as well as an independent contractor.

And independent contractor usually works on a project basis for the company. He can be thought of as a consultant and freelancer as well. There are tax repercussions as to whether you are an independent contractor or an employee. Tax are not deducted from the income of an independent contractor  although the income is reported to the IRS by the company.  If the income exceeds  $600 in payment, the employer is supposed to provide the independent contractor with a  1099– MISC tax  form.

An employee is on the roles of the company and is treated as such. Tax may be deductible from his income by the company but on the other hand employees are also usually provided with minimum wages and benefits like health plan and  of pension and retirement plan as well. An employee is governed and managed on a regular basis for the company and told what to do when. An independent contractor usually works on his own time and are the focus for the company is usually on the end product rather than managing the process timings and schedule.

As far as the job of a home-based call center agent is concerned being an employee who went off course and the agency probably means that you are guaranteed a minimum wage and a minimum number of working hours every month. Whereas an independent contractor will have no such commitment and contract from the company.

There are both downsides and up sides of being an employee or an independent contractor when working as a virtual home-based call-center agent. As an employee you  will probably be required to promise a certain number of hours and maybe even at company specified time. You will however be guaranteed minimum wages and  Even a fixed salary every month.  Payment for home-based call center agents on the basis of per hour or per minute on the call is also usually reserved for full-time employees. You will have additional benefits such as health care plans, pension plans and retirement plans offered by the company as well. However, independent contractors usually do have more flexibility with the time and when they want to schedule their work.  You will just have to decide based upon your circumstances which once you think is best for you. Commonly, it is advisable to have a  position as an employee of a call center agency even when you are working at home as that promises greater stability in career and finances.

While working as a home-based call-center agent both an employee and an independent contractor will be required to work in a distraction free  environment.

LiveOps is a company based in Santa Clara California. It is the privately held concern and hires home-based call center agents exclusively to service various clients.It only hires home-based call center agents to function as independent contractors and as of late it has more than 20,000 people working from home as a virtual call center operators.

The call center jobs available with LiveOps are both incoming and outgoing calls but mostly it deals with inbound sales calls. Other kinds of positions that are offered to home-based call center agents are:

advanced sales agent which according to LiveOps website can earn $9.62 for every 30 min. block.

Outbound call agents which according to LiveOps webpage can run about $5.25 per 30 min. block.

Incentives are available.

Bilingual agents for French and Spanish speaking people.

Roadside assistant agent.

Inbound and outbound sales, customer service and dispatch related  call center jobs.

Call center job for a licensed insurance agent.

Requirements to apply to become a LiveOps call center agent

All call-center agents who work  from home for LiveOps are independent contractors and not full-time employees of the company. The home-based agents are required to be more than 18 years of age and can function from any of the 48 contiguous states of the United States of America. The agents can should you the time in blocks as short as 30 min. LiveOps does not charge anything to provide training to its home-based call center agents but also does not pay them during the training process.

LiveOps also charges $50 as a fee to do a credit and background check of their call center agents. Usually this feat will be chargeable only if a job offer is made to the individual sending the credit and background check of course. In order to apply for a home-based call-center job with LiveOps you can follow the following process:

Create a login on the website of LiveOps with a valid e-mail address and sign in.

Provide information on the background including any experience related to customer service, sales, insurance etc.

Take an assessment test for comprehension and computer skills, although this is optional.

Agree to the policy and terms and conditions of the company by verifying that you understand the requirements.

Audition your voice in order to get it tested to be fit for  marketing and servicing phone calls.

Visit the website.

Different call center jobs will require the agents to undergo different training based on the client that you are going to be servicing. The training that you would have to undergo will also depend upon the product as well as the fees that you are working in. Some home-based call-center jobs in specialized fields may also require prior experience.  different call center companies have different policies regarding how they train their virtual call center operators. Some trainings are unpaid whereas other companies pay their employees during the training process as well. Some call center companies may want to charge the home-based call center agent for training but you should usually avoid these kind of companies. Training for home-based call-center job may be completed virtually from your own home using the computer and the phone line or you may have to attend special training sessions in the office of the call center company. Mostly people are able to undergo and finished their training remotely from another location and state.

You will be trained to his handle calls and respond to e-mails as well as  educated on the company product and service so that you can handle customer service related issues and technical issues during a call.

The training provided is very simple and will only harness your basic qualifications such as the ability to speak and write well as well as proficiency with using a personal computer along with basic software packages such as an Excel sheet, word processing and e-mailing.

This question is pretty similar to the question as to how much you can earn working as a call center agent from home. The amount of work that you will be required to do first of all depends whether you are hired as an employee of the virtual call center company or as an independent contractor. Employees of the company usually have to commit to a certain number of minimum hours every month or every week. This also means that in turn the company guarantees a minimum amount of work to the virtual home-based agent. As an independent contractor you may be assigned to a particular project dealing with a particular client one at a time. You may have to go through the process of really qualifying when that particular project with a certain client is over and you need to  get approved for another client.

Some companies promise and require a commitment of a minimum number of hours every week or every month whereas others have no such minimum requirement  which means that in turn they do not promise a minimum number of hours as well.

So in order to understand how much work you are going to be getting when working from home as a virtual call center agent you need to ask a few crucial questions.

You need to ask whether you are going to be working as an employee or an independent contractor.

Next you need to know whether the virtual call center company guarantees you a certain amount of hours of work every week or not.

You also need to ask whether you are going to be working on a full-time or part-time basis and what is the minimum commitment if any that the company requires from you about the number of  hours you need to work every week or every month.

The amount of work that you receive as a home-based call-center agent will depend upon all of these factors and the best way to get an idea of your work commitment is to get a very clear picture of your job profile. Also read the post regarding how much you can expect to on working from home as a virtual call center agent as that will also give you an idea about the amount of work that is involved.