You can’t measure whether you reach your contact center objectives without setting up right Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). KPIs, even though they are often confused with call center performance metrics examples, are exact goals you are willing to reach – for example, boost your contact rate during telemarketing campaigns by 20% in three months. Call center metrics, on the other hand, are measurable values you use to measure the progress of your call center goals. Thus, using a term like “call center KPI metrics” is wrong, as well as considering call center KPI the same thing as call center performance metrics examples.
KPI metrics call center uses are specifically designed to measure different aspects of call center performance, from CX to sales.
How to explain the value of call center KPIs?
One of the main mistakes call centers can do is to use benchmark approach in setting KPIs for their business, without taking into account specific needs of the company and some valuable nuances. You have to complete a hard work to explain the value and meaning of each KPI you set to your team, so you can make sure they will have clear understanding of what they are expected to do and why. By the way, call center metrics and KPIs are set to be reached, aren’t they?
Call center KPIs: list
Let’s check out the key call center KPIs that can cover almost all business needs in call center industry, with clear descriptions and guidelines on how to use them. Even though you can consider these call center KPIs “standard”, they do help in improving customer satisfaction, employee engagement and overall call center performance, so allocate a few minutes to get introduced to them.
1. Average Handling Time (AHT)
Average Handle Time (AHT) is one of the most basic call center metrics that is used to measure how much time is spent by an agent to process customer query. AHT measures time from the moment customer initiates contact to the time when agent completes all required steps to either resolve an issue or to transfer it to a responsible specialist, if the issue requires professional attention agent can’t provide. In other words, this means that AHT isn’t interchangeable with Average Resolution Time, as it doesn’t measure the time to the moment of resolution – or does so, but only in cases when an agent can solve the isue himself. It is also non-interchangeable with Average Call Duration, as it also includes time agent spend on after-call work. Measuring this rate is vital to understand the productivity of your agents and acting proactively when they struggle to meet your AHT KPIs.
2. Percentage of Calls Blocked
Percentage of calls blocked is an extremely essential metric for inbound call center, as it points out to the number of customer calls you lose due to overloaded call queues or other issues that stop customers from contacting you. Blocked calls are calls that are initiated by the customer, but not answered by the agent due to connectivity issues, long queues, busy tones, or other problems. In most cases, it shows a need to increase the number of active agents on line, or in less popular cases, it shows issues with software. You have to set up a limit for blocked calls and make sure that this limit is met – otherwise, you will struggle from lost deals and low customer satisfaction. Nonetheless, it rarely happens due to agent fault, mostly because they can’t directly influence whether the call will be answered, but it can also be a sign of call avoidance or issues with AHT. It helps you to measure percentage of calls answered too. In other words, this metric is called call abandonment rate.
3. Business drivers
Business drivers are key sales metrics that point out to your revenue, and they have to be measured to calculate ROI (Return on Investment). These drivers can include such well-known universal metrics like conversion rate, price per call, cross-sales data, revenue per call, and so on, and so on. You also have to measure business drivers in comparison with other call center KPIs to make sure that you will make right decisions based on such analysis.
4. Workforce management
Workforce management KPIs go far beyond just schedule adherence, as they also include such vital metrics, as agent occupancy, agent utilization rate, and so on. All these metrics are used to measure how effectively your agents are using their worktime and what percentage of this time is spent on vital tasks, especially on handling incoming calls. Without right use of workforce management metrics, you will be hardly able to build stable teamwork and achieve discipline in your department.
5. First response time (FRT)
77% of clients say that speed of service is the most important part of customer service quality. Thus, such a metric as first response time is a great assistant to measure whether your agents can fulfill such a wish. Surely, this metric has an industry standard, and it is 20 seconds – 80% of calls should be answered within first 20 seconds since the call was initiated or transferred from the IVR (Interactive Voice Response) system. Another name of this metric is Average Response Time, or Average Speed of Answer. You have to keep in mind that most customers consider 40 seconds as the highest waiting time possible for them, but you should better follow industry benchmark. It is especially important to retain averate time of first response unchange during peak hours, which requires agent productivity to be monitored and improved.
6. Quality metrics
There are plenty of customer service quality metrics, but most of them are used simultaneously during quality assurance procedures, in quality assurance scorecards by your QA specialists. These metrics can measure such aspects of agent performance as customer issue resolution time, accuracy of after-call work and customer card recording, call transfers, on-hold times, etc. All these metrics should be compared to ongoing KPIs and company standards to make a conclusion regarding performance of each single agent and providing further training to agents.
7. Sales per agent
When it comes to sales call centers, you should also measure how many sales each agent generates and compare it to overall number of calls completed. Managers have to compare number of sales to sales quotas to find out whether agents meet it or not.
8. Revenue per successful call
This metric shows what revenue is generated by one successful call – and it is calculated easily, you have to subtract the cost of a call from the revenue you generate from it. It is useful for revenue forecasting and creating sales plans.
9. After-call work time (ACW)
Besides calls themselves, agents also spend a lot of time on completing after-call work – filling down customer cards, making notes, updates to the customer information, contacing other departments when needed, etc. After-call work time should take a lot of time compared to handling calls, but it is a vital task .This metric is also called wrap-up time, and it measures average time agents spend on these activities.
10. Call arrival rate
This metric is sometimes called inbound call volume, it shows how many calls you handle on hourly, daily or monthly basis. You should use this metric to plan agent schedules and avoid long wait times and lost calls/
11. Success Rate in Call Establishment
Not every call results in a successful connection. Evaluating the call setup success rate allows managers to gauge the daily likelihood of successful call connections, facilitating strategic resource allocation for optimal call connection rates.
12. Longest Call Hold Time
The Longest Call Hold KPI assists call center managers in pinpointing instances of extended call hold times. To minimize waiting times, adjustments to agent schedules can be made. For instance, if Tuesdays consistently show the longest hold times, scheduling more call agents on that day can help enhance overall efficiency.
13. Average Call Duration
Tailor this KPI to align with the specific products and services offered by your call center, as average call durations can vary across different centers. Monitoring this metric provides insights into call handling times and aids in optimizing overall operational efficiency.
14. Average Age of an Inquiry
This KPI measures the duration an average case remains open if not resolved during the initial call. A shorter average inquiry age is indicative of a more efficient resolution process, contributing to enhanced customer satisfaction.
15. First Call Resolution (FCR)
FCR (First Contact Resolution) is a pivotal KPI indicating whether a customer’s issue was resolved during the initial call, without the need for a transfer or callback. Studies show that companies measuring FCR over an extended period often witness significant improvements, ultimately leading to enhanced customer experience and positive feedback.
16. Net Promoter Score (NPS)
Utilized to gauge customer loyalty and experience, NPS derives from customer responses to a key question regarding the likelihood of recommending the company or agent. Scores over 50 are considered favorable, reflecting strong customer satisfaction and correlating with positive business growth.
17. Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT)
CSAT measures how well a company’s products and services meet or exceed customer expectations, typically on a scale from 1 to 5 during customer surveys. As a leading indicator of customer loyalty and long-term revenue, CSAT scores help identify factors influencing call center performance positively or negatively. The more satisfied customers and loyal customers you have, the better it is for customer retention.
18. Customer Effort Score (CES)
Similar to NPS, CES assesses customer satisfaction and loyalty by asking about the ease of resolving their call reason. A simple scale from very difficult to very easy provides insights into the efficiency of customer interactions, aligning with the idea that quick and effective resolutions enhance overall customer experience and loyalty.
There are also many other important contact center metrics, such as Issue Resolution rate, average cost of ownership and TCO, customer experience metrics, agent occupancy and utilization, and so on, which help you to measure your progress in achieving business goals. You have to measure customer feedback effectively to achieve your business objectives and imrpove your performance over time, and also invest in call center agents training.