The document provides a detailed exploration of average first reply time (FRT) metrics in customer support, emphasizing its importance in acknowledging customer inquiries and managing team workloads. It outlines how to calculate FRT, the significance of varying response expectations across different channels, and guidelines for addressing high or low FRTs. Additionally, it urges support teams to set response-time goals and consider staffing adjustments if response times are unsatisfactory.

1. A Guide to:
Kayako’s Customer Support Metrics deep dive series
First Reply Time

2. What is average first reply time?
F R T

3. Average first reply time looks at how long it it
takes for your support team to get back to a
customer’s first request.
What is average first reply time?
F R T

4. Why should you measure average
first reply time?
F R T

5. First reply time is more important that overall reply
times, because it's an acknowledgement to the
customer that their issue is being looked into.
Why should you measure average
first reply time?
F R T

6. It also indicates how quickly your team is addressing
new tickets, and helps you see if you have enough
team members to deal with volume.
Why should you measure average
first reply time?
F R T

7. Different channels have different expectations for first
reply time.
Live chat should have a very quick first reply time,
while email can afford to wait a little longer.
Why should you measure average
first reply time?
F R T

8. Get the Ultimate
Guide to Support
Metrics cheat sheet.
Your guide to all the
customer support
metrics that
matter, and how to
calculate them.
Check it out!

9. How to calculate first reply time
F R T

10. How to calculate first reply time
Total first reply time
[Sum of all time taken to
reply to first contacts]
Total number of cases
=
Average first
reply time
F R T

11. So you’ve got your average
first response time…
Now what?
F R T

12. High average first reply time?
More than 24 hours for email
More than 1 hour for social/chat
43% of consumers expect an email reply within one day
42% of consumers expect a response on social media
within one hour
F R T

13. What this means:
High average first reply time?
More than 24 hours for email
More than 1 hour for social/chat
F R T

14. In general a high first reply time means that customers
may channel switch because they aren't sure if you’ve
received their message or are working on their case.
What this means:
High average first reply time?
More than 24 hours for email
More than 1 hour for social/chat
F R T

15. What to do:
High average first reply time?
More than 24 hours for email
More than 1 hour for social/chat
F R T

16. If you’re struggling with high first reply time, you need
to set minimum response-time goals and help your
team to meet them.
If you’re still struggling, your team is probably
stretched too thin, and you’ll need to hire more team
members.
What to do:
High average first reply time?
More than 24 hours for email
More than 1 hour for social/chat
F R T

17. Low average first response time?
Less than 8 hours for email
Less than 30 minutes for social/chat
F R T

18. What this means:
Low average first response time?
Less than 8 hours for email
Less than 30 minutes for social/chat
F R T

19. You’re doing a great job of getting back to
your customers really quickly!
What this means:
Low average first response time?
Less than 8 hours for email
Less than 30 minutes for social/chat
F R T

20. F R T
What to do:
Low average first response time?
Less than 8 hours for email
Less than 30 minutes for social/chat
F R T

21. Check to make sure you aren’t getting a falsepositive -
exclude any auto-responders from your calculations.
If you’ve still got a low first response time, then
awesome! Keep it up!
What to do:
Low average first response time?
Less than 8 hours for email
Less than 30 minutes for social/chat
F R T

22. Get the Ultimate
Guide to Support
Metrics cheat sheet.
Your guide to all the
customer support
metrics that
matter, and how to
calculate them.
Check it out!

23. kayako.com
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