Average speed of answer

Average speed of answer

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The global average for ASA is 28 seconds.

1. What is ASA in a Call Center?

Average speed of answer (ASA) measures the average time taken for an agent to answer voice calls over a specific duration. This also considers the amount of time a customer is kept on hold before speaking to an agent, excluding the time spent with an IVR.

The calculation for ASA is as follows:

Average speed of answer is the ratio of total waiting time for answered calls to total number of answered calls
Formula for average speed of answer

For instance, let the total waiting time for answered calls yesterday be 16.5 minutes. If all your agents answered a total of 27 calls, yesterday’s speed of answer is 36.67 seconds (16.5 x 60)/27.

2. What are the Benefits of a Low ASA?

Call centers with a low speed of answer can impact many customer satisfaction metrics. Some of them include the following:

  • Lower AHT: When customers don’t have to wait lengthy amounts of time for their calls to be answered, they aren’t frustrated. This allows agents to resolve their queries faster, leading to lower average handle times.
  • Low Abandonment Rates: When customers don’t get their calls answered quickly, they tend to abandon their call in frustration. A lower average speed of answer can reduce abandonment rates.
  • Increased CSAT scores: When agents answer voice calls with minimal hold time, it increases customer satisfaction.

You’ve learned the basics of ASA. This is Conviner signing off!

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