E-commerce Support: What to Track During Peak (Black Friday, Holidays)
During peak (Black Friday, holidays, big campaigns), ticket volume and backlog can spike fast. E-commerce support teams need to know what to track, how to set targets for peak, and when to scale. This post covers the metrics that matter and how to use them during peak.
What to track during peak
The same core support ops metrics apply—but with more frequent checks and optional temporary targets:
- Volume — Ticket volume and ticket inflow this period vs last week and vs same period last year. So you see both short-term spike and seasonality. See ecommerce support metrics.
- Backlog — Backlog count and trend; aging so you see stuck tickets. During peak, check daily; if backlog and aging grow, you need more coverage or simpler first replies. See ticket backlog dashboard and Zendesk backlog report.
- First reply — First response time (median or average). You may set a temporary target for peak (e.g. “first reply within 8h during Black Friday week”) and communicate it to customers and the team. See first reply time in Zendesk and reduce first response time.
- Resolution — Resolution time trend. Same idea: temporary target for peak if needed. See Zendesk resolution time report.
- Reopens — Reopen rate so you spot quality slip when volume is high. If reopen rate jumps, slow down slightly or add a quick quality check. See ticket reopen rate.
For the full set and a weekly template, see support metrics dashboard and support ops metrics.
How to set targets for peak
- Temporary first-reply and resolution targets — e.g. “first reply within 8h during peak week” instead of your usual 4h. Document and communicate to customers and the team.
- Return to normal after peak — Don’t leave relaxed targets in place forever; reset after peak and review what happened.
- Year-over-year — Compare to same week or month last year so you see real growth vs seasonality. See ecommerce support metrics.
When to scale staffing
- Volume up, backlog growing — If backlog and backlog aging are rising and volume is up, you likely need more coverage (overtime, temp, or overflow).
- First reply or resolution slipping — If first reply or resolution time is trending up and you’ve already optimized triage and macros, capacity is often the next lever.
- Daily check during peak — Short daily check: volume today, backlog now, first reply today. Use the full support dashboard template weekly for trends and actions.
For more on e-commerce support metrics and peak, see ecommerce support metrics and support metrics dashboard.