--- title: "First response time: what it is and what counts | attendo" description: "What first response time is in customer support, why it weighs so much on how customers see you, what counts as a response and the mistake of empty replies." url: "https://attendo.me/en/glossary/first-response-time" lang: "en" --- # First response time: what counts and how to improve it Also known as: FRT First response time is how long your team takes to send a meaningful reply after a ticket comes in. ## Why it is worth the effort It is the time that weighs most on how customers see your service, and one of the cheapest to improve. A customer who hears “we are looking into it, we will get back to you before noon” ten minutes in waits calmly. The same customer, with no answer for two hours, is already annoyed, even if the problem is solved just as fast. ## What counts as a first response A reply **with substance**. The automatic “we have received your message” does not count: everyone knows a machine sends it. A useful reply confirms the problem has been understood and says when there will be news. ## The usual mistake Improving the metric with empty replies. If the team learns it is measured on this, it will send “thanks, we are on it” within thirty seconds. The metric improves and the service stays the same. Measure it alongside [resolution time](https://attendo.me/en/glossary/resolution-time) and satisfaction. ## In attendo The response deadline is counted to the minute on your business calendar, using the [contract](https://attendo.me/en/modules/contracts-and-sla) deadline, the work type one or the general one. The SLA report shows compliance by customer, agent and contract. - [attendo Ticketing](https://attendo.me/en/ticketing) [Calculator](https://attendo.me/en/calculators/sla-breach-cost): Cost of missing the SLA What late tickets add up to per month and per year: contract penalties and the hours spent explaining and compensating. ## Where it is used in attendo ### Modules - [Contracts and SLA](https://attendo.me/en/modules/contracts-and-sla): Scope, SLA and hour bank, measured on every ticket - [Communications](https://attendo.me/en/modules/channels): Email, WhatsApp, Teams, Meet, web chat and phone, channel by channel - [Web chatbot](https://attendo.me/en/modules/web-chatbot): Answers with your documentation and hands off to a person as needed - [Telephony](https://attendo.me/en/modules/telephony): Every call on its record, recorded, transcribed and summarized ### Industries that use these modules - [IT services and MSPs](https://attendo.me/en/industries/it-services) - [Repair and after-sales service](https://attendo.me/en/industries/after-sales-repair) - [Elevators and escalators](https://attendo.me/en/industries/elevators) - [HVAC and refrigeration](https://attendo.me/en/industries/hvac) - [And any other business](https://attendo.me/en/industries) ## Related terms Support and service ### SLA Service level agreement An SLA (service level agreement) is the written commitment, usually part of a contract, on how quickly you will respond to and resolve a customer’s tickets. Support and service ### Resolution time Time to resolution Resolution time is how long a case takes from the moment it comes in until it is closed as resolved. Support and service ### Ticket backlog Support backlog The ticket backlog is the set of open tickets waiting to be resolved at a given moment. ### On the blog #### How to measure your support SLA and prove you meet it Signing an SLA is easy. Proving you meet it is another matter, and that is where renewals are lost. If you provide the data yourself in a spreadsheet, the customer has every right not to believe it. 4 min read [See all 53 glossary terms](https://attendo.me/en/glossary) ## Shall we look at it with your data? We will show you how what you just read works in attendo, with your own assets, tickets and customers. If it is not a fit, we will tell you. - With your operation, not a generic demo - A real person from our team replies - No cold calls afterwards Would you rather talk first? - Phone [+34 910 053 530](tel:+34910053530) - Email [sales@attendo.me](mailto:sales@attendo.me) - Monday to Thursday 9:30 AM to 6:30 PM and Friday 9:30 AM to 2:30 PM (Spain time)