Releasing capacity on inactive conversations

Conversations that have gone quiet still hold agent capacity. Releasing them automatically is what keeps the queue moving.

Conversations that have gone quiet still hold agent capacity. Releasing them automatically is what keeps the queue moving.

The problem

A customer asks something, the agent answers, the customer goes to lunch. The conversation is open, so it counts against the agent's capacity. Five of those and the agent receives nothing new while the queue grows.

This is the single most common reason messaging feels slow when there is apparently plenty of staff.

Set it up

1. Open the messaging settings in Admin Center.
2. Enable releasing capacity for inactive conversations.
3. Set the period of inactivity.
4. Save.

Choosing the period

Long enough that a customer who stepped away is not treated as gone, short enough to recover capacity within the same shift. Somewhere in the tens of minutes suits most teams.

Watch it for a week. If agents report being at capacity with conversations they consider finished, it is too long.

The conversation is not closed

Capacity is released; the conversation stays open. A customer who comes back is picked up again, usually by whoever is available rather than the original agent.

Worth telling agents, because a returning customer with context they do not have is otherwise confusing.

Pair it with a reminder

A message before releasing gives the customer a chance to respond, and makes the release feel like a natural end rather than being dropped.

See also

• Sending inactivity reminders
• Ending conversations: by the agent or the customer
• Capacity rules to balance the workload