Tracking Average Speed to Answer can help you measure the efficiency of your Support Team. A quick response improves the customer’s first impression of your company and gives them confidence you will respond quickly if issues arise.
Let's say you have a customer who faces a minor issue with your product and call-in to your support centre. A few scenarios could occur:
1. They wait in queue for approximately two minutes before the team responds to the call, which is below your centre's Average Speed to Answer of 3.5 minutes.
2. They wait in queue for 10 minutes before the team responds to the call but an automated message lets them know that while they wait that wait times are above average due to increased call volumes.
3. They wait in queue for 20 minutes and the team doesn't respond within the appropriate time frame resulting in potential customer disconnecting the call.
Your team should always aim for the first or second scenario described here. A significant wait time without appropriate warning means you could lose the opportunity to foster your relationship with the customer and leave them with a bad impression of your customer service practices.