Optimal Holding Time in Telemarketing

When a telemarketing staff or a seat calls, whether the customer will answer the phone is under uncertainty. This is a common risk faced by telemarketing companies: holding the telephone too long will bring a big lose to the company, while waiting too short won´t be beneficial also. In this paper, we want to solve the problem and propose the definition optimal holding time, and then we conduct data mining in a deeper level based on a mathematical model. By analyzing specific data from an insurance agency company, we give the conclusion that the optimal holding time in telemarketing is around 20 to 40 seconds in general.