What is first contact resolution (FCR)?
First contact resolution (FCR) is the percentage of customer issues that are fully resolved in the customer's first interaction with a support team, with no follow-up contact needed. It applies to every channel, including phone, email, chat and messaging, and it is one of the most widely used measures of customer service effectiveness.
Also called: first call resolution, first-touch resolution, one-touch resolution, right first time
Why first contact resolution matters
Every repeat contact costs agent time and tests the customer's patience. A customer who has to chase an answer is more likely to complain, and the second contact often lands with a different agent who has to read the history first.
FCR is also called first-touch resolution or right first time. First call resolution is the same idea for phone only. One-touch resolution is narrower: in some helpdesks it means a ticket solved with one agent reply or fewer.
Teams measure FCR in two ways. A customer survey asks whether the issue was resolved. Internal data checks whether the same customer got in touch again about the same issue within a set window, often between 1 and 30 days depending on the contact reason. SQM Group, which specializes in FCR research, reports that internal measures tend to come out higher than survey results.
How it's calculated
FCR = issues resolved on first contact ÷ total issues × 100
Worked example: a support team handles 8,000 issues in a month. For 1,200 of them, the customer gets in touch again about the same issue within seven days, so 6,800 issues were resolved on first contact. 6,800 ÷ 8,000 × 100 = 85%.
Example
A customer asks to change the delivery address on an order that has not shipped. If the address is updated in the order system during that conversation and the customer is told it is done, the issue counts as resolved on first contact. If the reply says the request has been passed to the warehouse and the customer has to chase it two days later, it does not.
First contact resolution and DigitalGenius
DigitalGenius resolves requests such as order status, returns and cancellations within the conversation by taking the action in the brand's systems. When a person is needed, it hands over so the team can pick up where the AI left off.
Related terms
FAQ
Is first contact resolution the same as first call resolution?
They measure the same thing. First call resolution is the older term from phone contact centers. First contact resolution covers every channel, including email, chat and messaging.
How long should the repeat-contact window be?
Choose a window that suits the contact reason. SQM Group suggests anything from 1 to 30 days, with shorter windows for simple requests such as order status. Keep the window fixed so results can be compared over time.
Should FCR be measured by survey or by internal data?
Both have a place. Surveys capture whether the customer felt the issue was resolved. Internal data covers every contact and is cheaper to collect, but it can miss customers who gave up. Many teams track internal FCR weekly and check it against survey results.
· By Iain Moss