For many companies in the West - the US, UK, Australia, and Canada - the Philippines is the ideal destination for outsourcing work that is highly professional even at an affordable cost. Business process outsourcing, or BPO for short, is a large sector in the Philippines as well, boasting a 30 billion dollar contribution to the global economy and employing over 1.4 million Filipinos annually. Although BPOs in the Philippines offer a wide variety of services, including anything and everything from legal services to social media influencing, there are a few that are far more commonly used than others. Without further ado, here are the four most commonly outsourced services to call centres in the Philippines.

1) Customer Service

In what is probably not a surprise, customer service and support is the most common service that is outsourced to the Philippines. Customers using service like banking, utilities, and online shopping websites in countries all over the world are often helped by customer service agents miles away from them at a contact centre in the Philippines. Although this can be a stressful job, many BPO workers in the Philippines have taken specialised training courses in friendly conversation and conflict de-escalation. Because of this, many are able to handle even the most complex customer calls with grace.

2) Tech Support

IT support comes in as number two among the most common outsourced services to the

Philippines. Similar to customer service work in handling calls from confused, frustrated, and angry customers, workers in this role often have an extra layer of knowledge in tackling IT issues. What's more, many outsourcing companies in the Philippines only hire the brightest students at the top universities, many of whom hold degrees in computer science. Thus, IT support is a high-quality service offered by industry professionals in the Philippines, and companies and customers alike can rest assured that their computer issues will be handled for them.

3) Lead generation

Another large reason that companies choose to outsource to the Philippines is to generate sales leads. Sales leads are potential contacts, whether it be other businesses or individuals, that may be interested in a good or service a company provides. Many BPOs in the Philippines offer sales lead generation as a service, where employees can sift through a list of many contacts and see who could be interested in a product or service. That information is then relayed back to the company, which can make an official sales pitch.

4) Telemarketing

Telemarketers get a bad reputation, but in reality, it's another method of sales - this time focused immediately on the customer instead of other businesses. It can also help a business gain a better idea of what its market is. Customers that continuously ignore or hang up on calls are not part of this demographic, while those that pick up are. This is extremely valuable data to a company. Telemarketing requires strong communication skills and a positive, friendly demeanour to be successful. Thankfully, the Philippines has a robust tourism market, and customer service and relations are a large part of the culture. With this in mind, BPO employees in the Philippines make excellent telemarketers.

These are the four most popular services contracted through BPOs in the Philippines. However, they are far from the only services. As the sector keeps growing, the industry will surely diversify and include more specialised roles for eager young college graduates to fill.