SLA and Automation
Service Level Agreements (SLAs) define response time targets for your support team. Combined with automation rules, they help ensure tickets are handled promptly and consistently.
SLA Configuration
Navigate to Admin > Support > SLA to configure response time targets for each priority level.
Response Time Targets
Set a target response time in minutes for each ticket priority:
| Priority | Example Target |
|---|---|
| Low | 1440 minutes (24 hours) |
| Medium | 480 minutes (8 hours) |
| High | 120 minutes (2 hours) |
| Urgent | 30 minutes |
The response time target is the maximum time between a customer's message and the next staff reply. Adjust these values to match your team's capacity and customer expectations.
SLA Breach Flagging
When a ticket exceeds its SLA response time target, it is flagged as breached:
- Breached tickets are highlighted in the ticket list so staff can prioritize them.
- The breach indicator shows how far past the target the ticket is.
- SLA metrics are tracked over time, allowing you to monitor your team's compliance rate.
Breached tickets remain flagged until a staff member responds. The flag is informational - it does not automatically escalate or reassign the ticket.
Timer Pause Rules
The SLA timer does not always run. It automatically pauses when a ticket enters certain statuses where the customer is not waiting for a staff response:
- On Hold - the timer pauses because the ticket is waiting on an external factor, not staff action.
- Waiting on Customer - the timer pauses because the ball is in the customer's court.
The timer resumes when the ticket status changes back to a state where the customer is waiting for staff (e.g., when the customer replies and the status changes to Waiting on Staff).
This ensures your SLA metrics accurately reflect staff response performance rather than time spent waiting on customers or external dependencies.
Auto-Close Settings
Automatically close inactive tickets to keep your support queue clean and focused on active issues.
Configuration
Navigate to Admin > Support > Automation to configure auto-close:
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Days of Inactivity | The number of days a ticket must be inactive (no new messages from either side) before it is eligible for auto-close |
| Eligible Statuses | Which ticket statuses are subject to auto-close. Typically set to Resolved and Awaiting Reply - you usually do not want to auto-close tickets in In Progress or On Hold |
| Customer Notification | When enabled, the customer receives a notification before their ticket is closed, giving them a chance to reply and keep it open |
How Auto-Close Works
- The system checks for tickets that have been inactive for the configured number of days.
- Only tickets in the eligible statuses are considered.
- If customer notification is enabled, a message is sent to the customer warning that the ticket will be closed soon.
- After the notification period (or immediately if notifications are disabled), the ticket status is changed to Closed.
Customers can reopen a closed ticket by replying to it. The status changes back to Waiting on Staff and the ticket re-enters the support queue.
Next Steps
- Tickets - ticket workflow and statuses
- Categories - organizing tickets