Understanding Wait, Call, Service and Hold Times

Frontlion records several different times for every visit. Customers often ask how wait time, call time, service time and hold time differ, and how they add up to the total time in the queue. This article explains exactly when each timer starts and stops, with two worked examples.

The four timers at a glance

Only one timer runs at any moment during a visit. Each timer is started or stopped by a specific action from the customer or the agent.

• Wait time starts when the customer joins the queue and stops when the agent calls the customer. If the customer is put back in the queue, wait time starts again and keeps adding to the earlier amount.
• Call time starts when the agent calls the customer and stops when the agent clicks Start service (or puts the customer back in the queue). This is the time the agent spends waiting for the customer to arrive.
• Service time starts when the agent clicks Start service and stops when the agent ends the service. It pauses while the visit is on hold, then continues from where it stopped.
• Hold time starts when the agent clicks Hold and stops when the agent clicks Resume. Hold time is never counted as service time.
• Total time in queue runs from the moment the customer joins the queue until the agent ends the service. It equals Wait + Call + Service + Hold.

Example 1: A standard visit with one hold

The customer waits, is called once, comes to the counter, and is served. Partway through, the agent puts the visit on hold for two minutes.

1. The customer joins the queue. Wait time starts.
2. After 5:00, the agent calls the customer. Wait time stops at 5:00 and call time starts.
3. After 1:00, the customer arrives and the agent clicks Start service. Call time stops at 1:00 and service time starts.
4. After 4:00, the agent clicks Hold. Service time pauses at 4:00 and hold time starts.
5. After 2:00, the agent clicks Resume. Hold time stops at 2:00 and service time continues from 4:00.
6. After another 6:00, the agent ends the service. Service time stops at 10:00.

Result: Wait 5:00, Call 1:00, Service 10:00, Hold 2:00, Total time in queue 18:00.

Why is service time 10:00 and not 12:00? Service ran for 4:00, paused during the 2:00 hold, then continued for 6:00. The two service pieces add up (4:00 + 6:00 = 10:00). The 2:00 on hold is reported separately as hold time.

Example 2: The customer is called but does not show up

The customer waits 5 minutes and is called. The agent waits a minute, the customer does not come, so the agent puts them back in the queue. They wait another 3 minutes, are called again, arrive after 30 seconds, and are served.

1. The customer joins the queue. Wait time starts.
2. After 5:00, the agent calls the customer. Wait time stops at 5:00 and call time starts.
3. After 1:00 the customer has not arrived, so the agent puts them back in the queue. Call time stops at 1:00 and wait time continues from 5:00.
4. After another 3:00, the agent calls the customer again. Wait time stops at 8:00 and call time continues from 1:00.
5. After 0:30, the customer arrives and the agent clicks Start service. Call time stops at 1:30 and service time starts.
6. After 8:00, the agent ends the service. Service time stops at 8:00.

Result: Wait 8:00, Call 1:30, Service 8:00, Hold 0:00, Total time in queue 17:30.

Why is wait time 8:00 and not 5:00? Wait time stopped at the first call, but when the customer went back into the queue it started again and kept adding to the earlier amount (5:00 + 3:00 = 8:00). Call time works the same way across both calls (1:00 + 0:30 = 1:30).

What each action does to the timers

Times in the examples are illustrative and shown as minutes:seconds.

Read next: How to pull Wait, Calling, Holding and Serving times on Insights

If you have more questions please reach out to our Frontlion Support Team.