Setting clear expectations for your team is the foundation of a highly responsive sales and support system. Inside the Conversations menu, the SLA Settings control panel allows you to establish strict benchmarks for your customer communication.
By using this feature, you define exactly how quickly your team should respond to incoming customer messages based on the communication channel. This ensures that your brand standards remain consistently high and that no prospect is left waiting indefinitely.
1. How to Navigate to SLA Settings
Configuring your response deadlines is a one-time setup step that can be adjusted whenever your business operational capacities scale.
To locate the configuration panel inside your Scotify Solutions account:
- Click on the Conversations tab in your main left-hand sidebar.
- Select the Settings gear icon (typically located at either the top or bottom of the conversation sub-menu).
- Click on the SLA Settings tab to open the response duration matrix.
2. Defining Your Channel Thresholds
Different communication channels require different speeds. A client sending an email does not expect an answer as quickly as a website visitor using a live chat widget. Within your Scotify Solutions account, you can set customized target times for each stream.
- Live Chat Thresholds: Because live chat implies an active, real-time browsing experience, response goals are typically defined in minutes. Setting an SLA of 2 to 5 minutes prevents visitors from closing the tab and leaving your site.
- SMS/Text Messaging Thresholds: Mobile text communication is rapid but asynchronous. A standard business benchmark for text replies is usually between 5 and 15 minutes.
- Social Media DMs (Facebook & Instagram): Consumers browsing social apps expect fast interactions. Setting an SLA window of 15 to 30 minutes keeps engagement rates high.
- Email Thresholds: Email allows for a longer grace period. Businesses often set email SLAs between 1 and 4 hours to accommodate complex support or pricing requests.
3. Saving and Enforcing the SLA
Once you enter your target response durations in minutes or hours for each channel, click the Save Settings button.
Immediately upon saving, your Scotify Solutions account will begin monitoring the timestamp of every single incoming message. The system calculates the exact duration between the customer's message and your team's first outward reply to flag whether the standard was met or breached.
Recommended Response Configuration Matrix
| Communication Channel | Recommended Target SLA | Target Customer Experience |
|---|---|---|
| Website Live Chat | 3 Minutes | Instant assistance while actively shopping. |
| SMS / Text Message | 10 Minutes | Prompt, conversational desktop or mobile attention. |
| Social Media Messages | 15 Minutes | Fast engagement while browsing social feeds. |
| Standard Business Email | 2 Hours | Comprehensive, structured information delivery. |
Pro-Tip: Defining these goals does more than just populate your reporting dashboard. Once saved, these thresholds can be referenced directly inside your Automation Workflows. For instance, you can design a workflow that states: "If a Live Chat SLA is within 60 seconds of breaching, change the background color of the chat or ping the master account administrator immediately." This ensures your team remains proactive rather than reactive.