Know Thyself, and Thy Support Call Time

Members of the ISP-Outsourcing list discuss the amount of time it takes to respond to a call to an ISP's tech support, and contrast that number with the amount of time it should take.

[June 13, 2002]

On the ISP-Outsourcing list in May, AH queried,

"What is the average support call time per user for your subscription base?"

A number of respondents shared their averages, which covered a wide range:

[RL observed] "Our call times average slightly under five minutes for tech support, and under four minutes for sales calls. Still, these are very low: the industry average for tech support calls is over eight minutes, while sales call varies according to your promotions."

[BK advised] "Figure on eight-minute calls with about an 18 percent call ratio."

Others pointed out that it's important to keep the variables in mind:

[TF noted] "We have a high percentage of retirees in our area, so our average tech call is 12 minutes long."

[RL explained] "The percentage of customers that call for tech support increases when and if problems arise. The percentage that call when the network is trouble-free is usually less than 18 percent. This can easily double during outages, etc."

TF added that it's worth imposing limits in order to keep costs under control:

"People abuse tech support. When you pay for it, you get pretty strict with it. We have a 15-minute limit on tech calls: when we get a 30-minute call, we send someone to their house, and bill them for it."

—End