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Second-Tier Cities Looking Good to Call Center Operators

DALLAS-There has been a 10% increase in the attendance at this year's call center trade show in Dallas. No wonder, say the experts; it's big business for companies and developers. But, second-tier cities are now the new hotspots instead of metros like Dallas, where there are close to 700 in operation.

By Connie Gore | Updated on January 24, 2001

DALLAS-The call center industry, employing 3% of the nation’s workers, is big business in Texas and more so in the Dallas-Ft. Worth region, home to about 700 of the state’s estimated 2,000 facilities. But, the latest trend is to head to second-tier cities, where there are more workers, more development prospects and cheaper rent.

The impact of the trade on the state’s economy has been evidenced in recent days as 4,500 company representatives have made appearances at the lectures and exhibit booths of the 11th annual Call Center & CRM Solutions 2001 conference at Dallas’ Wyndham Anatole Hotel. Today marks the exhibit closeout while tomorrow is dedicated to an industry teleconference. New designs for interiors and equipment plus software development have drawn the attention of call center managers and building developers, says Liz Crawford, Advanstar’s show manager. She told GlobeSt.com that attendance is up 10% from prior years. The increase isn’t surprising since the past year has been rife with development news about the industry, which now encompasses 80,000 call centers nationwide.

“The industry is growing 10% to 12% every year and I don’t see that slowing down,” Paul Hebner, executive vice president of the Call Center Network Group, told GlobeSt.com. It’s just been in recent years that it’s become acceptable for companies to admit that they are operating call centers, sparking a building spree from some developers looking to tap the revenue pool. A handful of developers are constructing or rehabbing structures in multiple markets to offer a one-stop shop for companies, which are striking multiple leases for the sites.

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