First response time: what is it + 4 tips to improve
Understand what first response time (FRT) is, the importance of the indicator, how it is measured, and tips for improving results.
All customers want is speed, whether when buying, asking a question, or asking for help with support. To find out if a business provides this agility, one of the metrics used is first response time (FRT).
Os service indicators they are very strategic data and must be constantly monitored so that the company has a vision of the results that the efforts to provide quality service are achieving.
In general, the faster the service response arrives, the greater the customer satisfaction.
Hence the importance of analyzing the time metrics, especially if your company has a service SLA, that is, a service level agreement with the rules for requesting support.
In this article, we will address one of these metrics, the FRT first response time, and explain its importance, how it is measured, and also how to improve the first response time of calls.
Keep going and happy reading!
What is the first response time?
First response time is one of the customer service KPIs that indicates the time between opening a call and answering the agent for the first time.
In other words, it is the time required for a human attendant (automated chatbot responses, for example, don't count) to respond to the customer directly.
In English, this KPI is called First Reply Time, for this reason, it is common for people to refer to it only by the acronym FRT.
What is the importance of first response time (FRT)?
Performing well on the first response time (FRT) metric is important because it indicates that the service processes are efficient and that the team is able to manage the volume of tickets received without losing service efficiency.
Therefore, monitoring the FRT of the service channels helps to visualize the performance of each one and to understand which ones need reinforcement to optimize response time.
In this context, is it easy to see that for customers the faster the better? But the question remains as to how fast it is fast enough, do you agree?
In the search 'Hubspot Research Consumer Customer Support Survey', 60% of consumers considered 10 minutes or less to be “immediate” for the average first response time to support complaints.
Another interesting result of the research is that the most frustrating aspect of requesting customer service for 33% It's about people having to wait.
So, taking performance over time of first response (FRT) seriously is critical to customer satisfaction.
Also read: 5 actions to increase customer satisfaction.
How is first response time measured?
Now that you understand what the indicator is and its importance, let's also understand how to measure first response time (FRT).
For the calculation, only the services requested for the first time are considered. If the company uses a help desk software, it's easier to do this separation and see the response time for each open request.
Then, the necessary information will be:
- the total response time of the first interactions, which is the result of the sum of the calls in the day/week/month;
- the total number of open calls in the analyzed period.
With these data, the calculation is as follows:
First Response Time (FRT) = the total response time of the first interactions ÷ total number of calls in the analyzed period.
To have a margin of comparison, Zendesk created a guide with the average first response time for three different channels based on your research:
How to improve first response time?
If your company is focused on customer experience, the tips below will help improve first response time (FRT), offering quality service and answering exactly what the customer is looking for.
1. Do constant training with the team
The speed of the first response time (FRT) is important, but so is the content of the response. Then Train the team constantly to solve recurring problems and promote the exchange of ideas so that members share their good practices.
2. Include the response pattern in the SLA
The study of the first response time (FRT) overall and by service channel allows the company to visualize and determine a new standard closer to the ideal one for its customers.
To demonstrate seriousness, include the average amount of time the company undertakes to give back to customers in Service SLA.
Read more: How to improve the service SLA of the company?
3. Keep the knowledge base up to date
Agile first response time must be accompanied by the right response. So, Build and maintain the knowledge base upgraded and accessible so that the attendants can easily consult it during the resolution of calls.
4. Encourage the service team
So that achieving the first response time (FRT) goal does not turn into a form of pressure, Encourage the team opening up to request help, showing the results and congratulating the effort. Recognition is fundamental to maintaining a positive organizational climate.
Do you want to invest in your customer service?
First Response Time (FRT) is just one of the service KPIs that can be optimized by building an efficient support service.
A Cloud Humans can help your company optimize service processes and those related to the customer experience. Thus, your team is able to provide a humanized, fast and assertive service.
Talk to our experts who are available to present our solution and show how much it can help you achieve your business objectives.