Connect to IntercomTransfer Rate
Transfer Rate measures the percentage of support conversations that are transferred or reassigned to a different agent or team during their lifecycle. Transfers create friction — customers must re-explain their issue — and signal routing failure, insufficient frontline training, or unclear ownership. Transfer rate is distinct from escalation rate: escalation moves a ticket upward (Tier 1 → Tier 2), while transfer moves it laterally (billing team → technical team at the same tier).
Transfer Rate = (Conversations transferred or reassigned mid-resolution ÷ Total conversations handled) × 100
Count a transfer any time a conversation changes hands after initial assignment, not just at open. Most platforms log reassignment events. Distinguish warm transfers (the sending agent stays until the receiving agent joins) from cold transfers (immediate handoff) — cold transfers have measurably worse CSAT.
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- 1Ignoring transfer rate because escalation rate is tracked — they are different failure modes. A team can have low escalation and high transfer if routing rules are broken.
- 2Measuring transfer rate per team without tracking who transfers to whom — the most frequent transfer paths reveal the routing rule failures worth fixing.
- 3Not quantifying the CSAT impact — transferred customers average 20–30% lower CSAT. This makes transfer rate reduction a high-ROI investment.
- 4Confusing initial routing decisions with mid-ticket reassignments — only mid-ticket reassignments after the first agent reply count as transfers.